Joseph George O'Gorman (24 July 1890 – 26 August 1974) was a British entertainer and cricketer. With his brother Dave (1894–1964) he formed a song, dance and comedy act called the O'Gorman Brothers. Starting by touring the variety halls of England, in the 1930s they also became popular in the United States and earned a fortune.[1]
Joe O'Gorman
Personal information
Full name
Joseph George O'Gorman
Born
(1890-07-24)24 July 1890 Walworth, London, England
Died
26 August 1974(1974-08-26) (aged 84) Weybridge, Surrey, England
In becoming entertainers, the two brothers were following in the footsteps of their father, also called Joe O'Gorman (1863–1937). He was an Irishman who moved to England in 1879, where he had considerable success as a comedian. In both 1898 and 1901 he was elected King Rat of the Grand Order of Water Rats and he was also the first chairman of the newly formed Variety Artistes' Federation.[2] He had a double act with Joe Tennyson; they were known as The Two Irish Gentlemen or The Patter Propagators.[3]
In 1907 Joe and Dave began appearing as the O'Gorman Brothers, their act including acrobatic dancing, singing and comedy. They had considerable success, and toured South Africa in 1913 and visited Berlin, Vienna and Budapest the following year. Eventually the format settled into that of a comedy double act. They toured their own shows Round the Town, Finnegan’s Follies and Fools in Paradise. In the 1920s they became noted for the so-called "Crazy" style of comedy. They frequently appeared at the Holborn Empire and toured their London Palladium shows.[2]
They toured the United States in 1931 and 1932 for Paramount and RKO. From this time their act was renamed "Dave and Joe O’Gorman", in accordance with American convention. Around this time they made their first appearance in pantomime, and quickly became recognised as masters of the form.[2] In 1936 they appeared in the film Variety Parade.[4]
During World War II they made broadcasts on BBC radio, and toured in shows that included The Boys of the BBC and Hello Playmates with Arthur Askey. During this time they developed a very popular comedy ventriloquist routine. They also did much work entertaining the troops with ENSA, this including visiting Italy, India and Burma.[2]
They appeared in the 1946 Royal Variety Show and continued to appear in variety and pantomime. In 1948 they were chosen to lead a British version of the American show Hellzapoppin, which following initial performances in London toured the country. Their final tour was in 1954 with the Victoria Palace show Knights of Madness.[2]
In 1956 Dave followed his father in being elected King Rat. He died eight years later.[2]
The cricketeredit
Both brothers were keen amateur cricketers, playing for clubs including Honor Oak and Richmond.[1] In club cricket Joe took over 1.500 wickets.[5] Both brothers also played for the Surrey second eleven, where Joe in particular was very successful. As a result, in May 1927 he was selected to play two games at The Oval for the Surrey first team, making his debut at the relatively late age of 36. A leg-spinner described as having a "great repertoire of deliveries", he took four wickets, including one with his first ball in first-class cricket. Batting at number nine, he had three not out scores of 31, 20 and 42. His variety commitments meant that he was unable to play in the next - away - match. He made only one further appearance for the first team, the following month, when he was out for 13. This left him with the freakishly high career first-class batting average of 106.[1]
His grandson, Tim O'Gorman also played first-class cricket.[1]
^ abcdef"O'Gorman Brothers". Retrieved 10 August 2015.
^Dominic Cavendish (13 January 2019). "Where are the great double acts of today?". Sunday Telegraph. p. 27.
^"Variety Parade (1936)". IMDb. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
^Lemmon, David (24 March 2015). The History of Surrey County Cricket Club. Christopher Helm. p. 163. ISBN9780747020103.
External linksedit
Musical Hall Guild: Joe O'Gorman senior Retrieved 11 August 2015
History for Sale: Dave O'Gorman Retrieved 11 August 2015
Further readingedit
Brian O'Gorman (Joe's son), Laughter in the Roar: Reminiscences of Variety and Pantomime, 19 November 1998, ISBN9780953407804.
January 01, 1970
gorman, father, also, senior, joseph, george, gorman, july, 1890, august, 1974, british, entertainer, cricketer, with, brother, dave, 1894, 1964, formed, song, dance, comedy, called, gorman, brothers, starting, touring, variety, halls, england, 1930s, they, al. For his father also Joe O Gorman see Joe O Gorman senior Joseph George O Gorman 24 July 1890 26 August 1974 was a British entertainer and cricketer With his brother Dave 1894 1964 he formed a song dance and comedy act called the O Gorman Brothers Starting by touring the variety halls of England in the 1930s they also became popular in the United States and earned a fortune 1 Joe O GormanPersonal informationFull nameJoseph George O GormanBorn 1890 07 24 24 July 1890Walworth London EnglandDied26 August 1974 1974 08 26 aged 84 Weybridge Surrey EnglandBattingRight handedBowlingRight arm legbreakRoleBowlerDomestic team informationYearsTeam1927SurreyFC debut18 May 1927 Surrey v GlamorganLast FC10 June 1927 Surrey v LeicestershireCareer statisticsCompetition First classMatches 3Runs scored 106Batting average 106 00100s 50s 0 0Top score 42 Balls bowled 384Wickets 4Bowling average 41 755 wickets in innings 010 wickets in match 0Best bowling 2 49Catches stumpings 1 Source CricketArchive 9 August 2015 Contents 1 The entertainer 2 The cricketer 3 References 4 External links 5 Further readingThe entertainer editIn becoming entertainers the two brothers were following in the footsteps of their father also called Joe O Gorman 1863 1937 He was an Irishman who moved to England in 1879 where he had considerable success as a comedian In both 1898 and 1901 he was elected King Rat of the Grand Order of Water Rats and he was also the first chairman of the newly formed Variety Artistes Federation 2 He had a double act with Joe Tennyson they were known as The Two Irish Gentlemen or The Patter Propagators 3 In 1907 Joe and Dave began appearing as the O Gorman Brothers their act including acrobatic dancing singing and comedy They had considerable success and toured South Africa in 1913 and visited Berlin Vienna and Budapest the following year Eventually the format settled into that of a comedy double act They toured their own shows Round the Town Finnegan s Follies and Fools in Paradise In the 1920s they became noted for the so called Crazy style of comedy They frequently appeared at the Holborn Empire and toured their London Palladium shows 2 They toured the United States in 1931 and 1932 for Paramount and RKO From this time their act was renamed Dave and Joe O Gorman in accordance with American convention Around this time they made their first appearance in pantomime and quickly became recognised as masters of the form 2 In 1936 they appeared in the film Variety Parade 4 During World War II they made broadcasts on BBC radio and toured in shows that included The Boys of the BBC and Hello Playmates with Arthur Askey During this time they developed a very popular comedy ventriloquist routine They also did much work entertaining the troops with ENSA this including visiting Italy India and Burma 2 They appeared in the 1946 Royal Variety Show and continued to appear in variety and pantomime In 1948 they were chosen to lead a British version of the American show Hellzapoppin which following initial performances in London toured the country Their final tour was in 1954 with the Victoria Palace show Knights of Madness 2 In 1956 Dave followed his father in being elected King Rat He died eight years later 2 The cricketer editBoth brothers were keen amateur cricketers playing for clubs including Honor Oak and Richmond 1 In club cricket Joe took over 1 500 wickets 5 Both brothers also played for the Surrey second eleven where Joe in particular was very successful As a result in May 1927 he was selected to play two games at The Oval for the Surrey first team making his debut at the relatively late age of 36 A leg spinner described as having a great repertoire of deliveries he took four wickets including one with his first ball in first class cricket Batting at number nine he had three not out scores of 31 20 and 42 His variety commitments meant that he was unable to play in the next away match He made only one further appearance for the first team the following month when he was out for 13 This left him with the freakishly high career first class batting average of 106 1 His grandson Tim O Gorman also played first class cricket 1 References edit a b c d Chalke Stephen 29 June 1989 Summer s Crown The Story of Cricket s County Championship Fairfield Books p 328 ISBN 9780956851154 a b c d e f O Gorman Brothers Retrieved 10 August 2015 Dominic Cavendish 13 January 2019 Where are the great double acts of today Sunday Telegraph p 27 Variety Parade 1936 IMDb Retrieved 10 August 2015 Lemmon David 24 March 2015 The History of Surrey County Cricket Club Christopher Helm p 163 ISBN 9780747020103 External links editMusical Hall Guild Joe O Gorman senior Retrieved 11 August 2015 History for Sale Dave O Gorman Retrieved 11 August 2015Further reading editBrian O Gorman Joe s son Laughter in the Roar Reminiscences of Variety and Pantomime 19 November 1998 ISBN 9780953407804 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Joe O 27Gorman amp oldid 1212595507, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
