The Clown is one of the most traditional and enduring elements of show business. There are several vital characteristics which add up to define just what a clown is. One of the most important is that under the makeup, the clown is very often laughing on the outside while crying on the inside.
America's favorite clown, Red Skelton typifies laughing and crying at the same time. Few performers have given as much to bring happiness to their audience, especially while living through their own personal tragedies.
Joe Skelton had performed as a clown with the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus, but settled down to life as a grocer, and sired four sons with his wife Ida Mae. Joe was taken from his family two months before his youngest son, Richard Bernard Skelton, was born in 1913 (the same year, the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus lost 8 elephants, 8 performing horses and 21 lions and tigers when the Wabash River flooded).
Richard soon became Red Skelton. With no father, Red went to work early to help the family. One of the few opportunities presented to such a youth was selling newspapers. Red quickly developed the pestering patter that he would keep up until a potential customer bought a paper. One customer was so impressed with Red's patter and moxie that he bought the lad's entire stack of papers. The buyer then gave a ticket for the show in which he was performing to the lad.
The performer was comedian Ed Wynn. When Red was invited backstage, he fell in love with show business. The boy left school at the age of 14 to perform in local venues, showboats, and eventually went on the road in Vaudeville. Ida Mae, working two jobs to support her boys, never said that Red had run away from home, rather “his destiny had caught up with him at an early age”.
A seasoned and perhaps cocky performer not quite 18 years old, Red asked one of the ushers at the Pantages Theater in Kansas City what she thought of his act. The usherette was less than impressed with his material. Red then asked if she could write better. She said she could, and she did. Edna Mae Stillwell was 16 when she married Red two months before his 18th birthday in 1931.
It was to be a great professional collaboration and friendship, but evidently not a good marriage. Red and Edna divorced in 1943, leaving the courtroom arm in arm. She continued to advise and manage his career for many years. The divorce ended Red's marriage deferment, and he was drafted in 1944.
The Army used his talents as part of the entertainment corps, but the demands of 10-12 performances a day were too much for the high-strung Skelton. Red met his second wife, Georgia Davis while on furlough in the hospital. After a nervous breakdown, Red was released from his Army duties in 1945. Red and Georgia had two children, Richard Jr. and Valentina Marie.
In 1957, when Red was enjoying terrific success in show business, Richard Jr. was diagnosed with leukemia. Red's reaction was to take the family on an extended trip so the boy could see as much of the world as possible. When the family reached London, the press accused Skelton of staging the trip as a promotional stunt. While reading the unfavorable press, Richard Jr. learned the fatal nature of his condition.
The devastated family returned to the US, and the boy passed away ten days before his tenth birthday. The day he was buried, Red was scheduled to appear on television. Although the network could have used recorded material, Red asked to be kept completely off the air that night, and guest performers took his place.
Red first appeared on radio in 1937. He and Edna had developed a routine which mocked the way different people dunked their doughnuts in their morning coffee. The routine had Red eating nine doughnuts in each performance, and the pounds packed on when he was doing five performances a day, but it was funny enough to attract the attention of Rudy Vallee for the Talent Show segment of The Royal Gelatin Hour. Fan response was strong enough to bring Red back twice, and he took over the hosting duties of Avalon Time in fall of 1938.
Red signed with MGM in 1939 (at the insistence of star Mickey Rooney, a big fan of the doughnut dunkers routine). Movie success led to his own radio program, The Raleigh Cigarette Program, in fall of 1941. The show enjoyed good ratings, and gave Red the opportunity to introduce some of his most loved characters, including Klem Kadiddlehopper and The Mean Widdle Kid.
When Red was drafted the show's band leader and his vocalist wife, Ozzie and Harriet Nelson, had a chance to begin their own show. After his Army service, the sponsor and show were waiting for Red. He brought his Army buddy David Rose on the air with him as his new band leader.
NBC censored Red on April 22, 1947, when he began talking about the censorship of Fred Allen the week before. Bob Hope received the same treatment, and in the resulting protest, the NBC censors folded.
Red gained a new sponsor in 1948, Tide Detergent, and then swapped networks the next year as part of the CBS talent raids. After the CBS contract had expired in 1953, Red continued to make syndicated shows with ZIV for three more years.
Red Skelton said “I just want to be known as a clown, because to me that's the height of my profession. It means you can do everything-sing, dance, and above all, make people laugh.” Two Stars on
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