American musician (1904?1995)
Phil Harris
|
---|
Harris in 1956
|
Born
| Wonga Philip Harris
(
1904-06-24
)
June 24, 1904
|
---|
Died
| August 11, 1995
(1995-08-11)
(aged 91)
|
---|
Resting place
| Forest Lawn Cemetery
, Cathedral City, California
|
---|
Other names
|
- Wonga Harris
- Wonga P. Harris
|
---|
Occupations
| - Singer
- actor
- comedian
- bandleader
|
---|
Years active
| 1933?1991
|
---|
Spouses
|
(
m.
1927;
div.
1940)
|
---|
Children
| 3
|
---|
Wonga Philip Harris
(June 24, 1904 ? August 11, 1995) was an American singer, entertainer, bandleader, and actor. He was an orchestra leader and a pioneer in radio situation comedy, first with
The Jack Benny Program
, then in
The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show
in which he co-starred with his wife, singer-actress
Alice Faye
, for eight years. Harris is also noted for his voice acting in animated films. As a voice actor, he played
Baloo
in
The Jungle Book
(1967), Thomas O'Malley in
The Aristocats
(1970),
Little John
in
Robin Hood
(1973), and Patou in
Rock-a-Doodle
(1991). As a singer, he recorded a number one novelty hit record,
"The Thing"
(1950).
Early life and career
[
edit
]
Harris was born in
Linton, Indiana
on June 24, 1904,
[1]
but grew up in
Nashville, Tennessee
,
[2]
and identified himself as a Southerner. His hallmark song was "
That's What I Like About the South
." He had a trace of a Southern accent and in later years made self-deprecating jokes over the air about his heritage. His parents were circus performers. His father, a tent bandleader, gave him his first job as a drummer with the circus band.
[3]
His unusual first name "Wonga," is said to derive from a
Cherokee
word meaning "messenger of fleet" or, perhaps more accurately translated, "fast messenger."
[4]
Harris began his music career as a drummer in San Francisco, in the mid-1920s playing drums in the
Henry Halstead
Big Band Orchestra. He formed an orchestra with Carol Lofner in the latter 1920s
[a]
and started a long engagement at the
St. Francis Hotel
. In the 1930s, Lofner-Harris recorded swing music for
Victor
,
Columbia
,
Decca
, and
Vocalion
. The partnership ended by 1932, and Harris led a band in Los Angeles for which he was the singer and bandleader.
In 1933, he made a short film for RKO called
So This Is Harris!
, which won an
Academy Award
for best live action short subject. He followed with a feature-length film,
Melody Cruise
. Both films were created by the same team that produced
Flying Down to Rio
, which started the careers of
Fred Astaire
and
Ginger Rogers
. He also starred in
I Love a Bandleader
(1945) with
Leslie Brooks
. Here he played a house painter who gets amnesia, then starts to lead a band. He recorded
Woodman, Spare That Tree
(by
George Pope Morris
and
Henry Russell
) in 1947. His nickname was "Old Curly." In 1950, Harris recorded a hit novelty song, the million-seller, "The Thing," which hit number one on the U.S. chart.
[7]
Additionally, he appeared in
The Wild Blue Yonder
(1951), alongside
Forrest Tucker
and
Walter Brennan
. He made a cameo appearance in the Warner Bros. musical,
Starlift
, with
Janice Rule
and
Dick Wesson
, and was featured in
The High and the Mighty
with
John Wayne
in 1954.
[3]
Harris made two feature films with
Jack Benny
for
Paramount Pictures
,
Man About Town
(1939) and
Buck Benny Rides Again
(1940). Both films also featured
Eddie "Rochester" Anderson
.
Radio
[
edit
]
In 1936, Harris became musical director of
The Jell-O Program Starring Jack Benny
singing and leading his band, with Mahlon Merrick writing much of the show's music. When Harris exhibited a knack for snappy one-liners, he joined the cast, portraying himself as a hip, hard-drinking Southerner whose good nature superseded his ego. He gave the others nicknames, such as "Jackson" for Jack Benny.
[4]
(Addressing a man as "Jackson" or sometimes "Mr. Jackson" became popular slang in the early 1940s.)
[8]
His signature song was "That's What I Like About the South." Many of his vocal recordings were comic novelty "talking blues," similar to the songs of
Bert Williams
, which are sometimes considered a precursor to rap.
[
citation needed
]
In 1942, Harris and his band joined the
U.S. Merchant Marine
and served for 16 weeks.
In 1946, Harris and wife Alice Faye began co-hosting
The Fitch Bandwagon
, a comedy-variety program that followed the Jack Benny show on Sunday nights. On
The Fitch Bandwagon
and its later incarnation as
The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show
, Harris played a vain, stumbling husband, while Faye played his sarcastic but loving wife.
Gerald Nachman
has written that Harris was a soft-spoken, modest man off the air. In
On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio
John Dunning
wrote that Harris's character made the show popular.
[9]
The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show
appeared until 1954. Harris continued to appear on Jack Benny's show from 1948 to 1952.
Recording career
[
edit
]
Harris was recording songs as early as 1931.
[10]
He sang with a deep baritone voice. Songs by Harris include the early 1950s
novelty song
, "
The Thing
".
[7]
The song describes the hapless finder of a box with a mysterious secret and his efforts to rid himself of it.
Later career
[
edit
]
In 1956, Harris appeared in the film
Good-bye, My Lady
. He made numerous guest appearances on 1960s and 1970s television series, including
The Steve Allen Show
, the
Kraft Music Hall
,
Burke's Law
,
F Troop
,
The Dean Martin Show
,
The Hollywood Palace
, and other musical variety programs. He appeared on
The American Sportsman
which took celebrities on hunting and fishing trips around the world.
Harris worked as a voice actor for animated films, providing the voice of Baloo the bear in
The Jungle Book
(1967),
Thomas O'Malley
in
The Aristocats
(1970), and
Little John
in
Robin Hood
(1973).
[11]
In 1989, he reprised his role as Baloo for the cartoon series
TaleSpin
, but after a few recording sessions he was replaced by
Ed Gilbert
.
[12]
Harris's final film role was in
Rock-a-Doodle
(1991), where he voiced Patou, the
Basset Hound
.
[13]
Harris spent time in the 1970s and early 1980s leading a band that appeared often in Las Vegas, often on the same bill with bandleader
Harry James
.
[14]
Personal life
[
edit
]
On September 2, 1927,
[15]
Harris married actress
Marcia Ralston
(then known as Mascotte Ralston) in
Melbourne
, Australia, where his band had a long engagement. The couple adopted a son, Phil Harris Jr. (b. 1935). Harris and Marcia divorced in September 1940.
[16]
Harris and
Alice Faye
married in 1941; it was a second marriage for both (Faye had been married briefly to singer-actor
Tony Martin
) and lasted 54 years, until Harris's death.
A
Democrat
, Harris supported the campaign of
Adlai Stevenson
during the
1952 presidential election
.
[17]
Harris was a lifelong friend of singer and actor
Bing Crosby
. He appeared on telecasts of Bing's Pro-Am Golf Tournament from
Pebble Beach, California
,
[
citation needed
]
and appeared in an episode of ABC's short-lived sitcom
The Bing Crosby Show
. After Crosby died in 1977, Harris replaced him as commentator for the annual
Bing Crosby Pro-Am Golf Tournament
.
Harris was a resident and benefactor of
Palm Springs, California
, and was active in many local civic organizations.
[18]
Death and legacy
[
edit
]
Harris died of a
heart attack
at age 91 in his
Rancho Mirage
home on the night of August 11, 1995.
[4]
He is interred at
Forest Lawn Cemetery
,
Cathedral City, California
.
[19]
Harris was a benefactor of his birthplace of
Linton, Indiana
, establishing scholarships in his honor for promising high school students, performing at the high school, and hosting a celebrity golf tournament in his honor every year. Harris and Faye donated most of their show business memorabilia and papers to Linton's public library. Harris was inducted into the Indiana Hall of Fame.
[
citation needed
]
In 1994, a Golden Palm Star on the
Palm Springs Walk of Stars
was dedicated to him.
[20]
Partial discography
[
edit
]
- The Thing
. RCA, Victor. 1950.
[21]
- That's What I Like About The South
. RCA, Victor. 1947 20?2471.
- Loaded Pistol, Loaded Dice
. RCA, Victor. 1947.
- Hambone
. RCA, Victor. 1952. 47-4584.
[22]
Notes and references
[
edit
]
- ^
Billed as "Carol Laughner and his Palm Court Orchestra", they played in Melbourne, Australia from November 1926
[5]
to October 1927.
[6]
- ^
"Phil Harris Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More..."
AllMusic
. Retrieved
2024-06-07
.
- ^
"Radiography"
.
Los Angeles Times
. 20 September 1936. p. 62
. Retrieved
27 March
2018
.
- ^
a
b
"Phil Harris, Comic, Bandleader".
The Press-Enterprise
. Riverside, California. August 13, 1995. p. B5.
- ^
a
b
c
"Benny Show's Phil Harris Dies at 89"
.
Los Angeles Times
. August 13, 1995
. Retrieved
July 27,
2022
.
Phil Harris, the bandleader who became famous by portraying himself as a flashy, hard-drinking musician on the old Jack Benny radio show, died. … He was 89.
- ^
"Advertising"
.
The Herald (Melbourne)
. No. 15, 450. Victoria, Australia. 24 November 1926. p. 8
. Retrieved
25 August
2022
– via National Library of Australia.
- ^
"Advertising"
.
The Herald (Melbourne)
. No. 15, 721. Victoria, Australia. 7 October 1927. p. 7
. Retrieved
25 August
2022
– via National Library of Australia.
- ^
a
b
Murrells, Joseph (1978).
The Book of Golden Discs
(2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. p.
50
.
ISBN
0-214-20512-6
.
- ^
Dalzell Victor; Partridge, Eric (2006).
The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English: J-Z
. Taylor & Francis.
ISBN
978-0-415-25938-5
.
- ^
Dunning, John (1998). "Phil Harris/Alice Faye Show".
On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio
(Revised ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. pp. 543?545.
ISBN
978-0-19-507678-3
. Retrieved
6 June
2024
.
- ^
Brooks, Tim (2010).
Lost Sounds: Blacks and the Birth of the Recording Industry, 1890?1919
. University of Illinois Press.
ISBN
978-0-252-09063-9
.
- ^
Arnold, Mark (2013).
Frozen in Ice: The Story of Walt Disney Productions, 1966?1985
. BearManor Media.
- ^
Voice actor decisions ? Baloo and Kit
Jymn Magon
, co-creator of TaleSpin who initially cast Harris for the role of Baloo: "his age was a factor. He didn't have the slick, con man timing anymore. I loved working with Phil, so I was distraught to inform management that he just wasn't going to work out for 65 episodes. (Besides, we had to chauffeur him to and from Palm Springs for the recording sessions ? a 4 hour round trip!!)", Animationsource.org
- ^
McCall, Douglas L. (2015).
Film Cartoons: A Guide to 20th Century American Animated Features and Shorts
. McFarland.
ISBN
978-1-4766-0966-9
.
- ^
Levinson, Peter J. (1999).
Trumpet Blues: The Life of Harry James
. Oxford University Press.
ISBN
978-0-19-028317-9
.
- ^
"Phil's Luck"
.
Table Talk
. No. 3095. Victoria, Australia. 1 September 1927. p. 22
. Retrieved
25 August
2022
– via National Library of Australia.
- ^
"Marcia Ralston Gets a Divorce"
.
The Telegraph (Brisbane)
. Queensland, Australia. 18 September 1940. p. 17
. Retrieved
25 August
2022
– via National Library of Australia.
- ^
Motion Picture and Television Magazine
, November 1952, p. 33, Ideal Publishers
- ^
Henderson, Moya; Palm Springs Historical Society (2009).
Images of America: Palm Springs
. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing. p. 102.
ISBN
978-0-7385-5982-7
.
- ^
Brooks, Patricia; Brooks, Jonathan (2006). "Chapter 8: East L.A. and the Desert".
Laid to Rest in California: a guide to the cemeteries and grave sites of the rich and famous
. Guilford, CT: Globe Pequot Press. p. 245.
ISBN
978-0762741014
.
OCLC
70284362
.
- ^
"The Brightest Stars from New-York to Los Angeles"
(PDF)
.
Palmspringswalkofstars.com
. Archived from
the original
on October 13, 2012.
- ^
Ruhlmann, William (2004-08-02).
Breaking Records: 100 Years of Hits
. Routledge.
ISBN
978-1-135-94719-4
.
- ^
"Going Strong"
.
Billboard
. 1952-03-08.
Bibliography
[
edit
]
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
International
| |
---|
National
| |
---|
Artists
| |
---|
People
| |
---|
Other
| |
---|