Poster
possibly 1962 (printed)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This hanging card advertises the stand-up comedian Ken Dodd's appearance at the Empire Theatre Newcastle, one of the theatres in the Moss Empires Group, whose managing director Prince Littler specialised in producing musical and variety theatre. The poster includes the name of the Managing Director Val Parnell, who went on to become famous for his television programme Sunday Night at the London Palladium.
Ken Dodd (b.1927) learned his trade in music hall and variety, starting out in 1952 in Liverpool as a member of Don Ellis's Fairfield Concert Party, and topping the bill two years later at the Hull Palace as 'the North's New Star Comedian'. He worked on radio and the variety theatre circuit during the 1950s, becoming a well-paid performer with star billing by the mid 1950s. His ability to improvise on stage was extraordinary and led to his soubriquet 'Ken Dodd the Unpredictable'.
His first break in pantomime came at the Bradford Alhambra in 1959, and he became widely known through television in the 1960s where his 'Diddy Men' and 'Tickling Stick' became trademarks of his act. Dodd had hugely admired the northern comics of the 1940s, of whom he once said: 'I think they left me to switch the light off. I am the last one. They've all gone. Frank Randle, Norman Evans. Max Miller. They're my heroes. They're my boys.'
Ken Dodd (b.1927) learned his trade in music hall and variety, starting out in 1952 in Liverpool as a member of Don Ellis's Fairfield Concert Party, and topping the bill two years later at the Hull Palace as 'the North's New Star Comedian'. He worked on radio and the variety theatre circuit during the 1950s, becoming a well-paid performer with star billing by the mid 1950s. His ability to improvise on stage was extraordinary and led to his soubriquet 'Ken Dodd the Unpredictable'.
His first break in pantomime came at the Bradford Alhambra in 1959, and he became widely known through television in the 1960s where his 'Diddy Men' and 'Tickling Stick' became trademarks of his act. Dodd had hugely admired the northern comics of the 1940s, of whom he once said: 'I think they left me to switch the light off. I am the last one. They've all gone. Frank Randle, Norman Evans. Max Miller. They're my heroes. They're my boys.'
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Letterpress on card |
| Brief description | Hanging card advertising the programme at the Empire Theatre Newcastle for the week beginning Monday 16 April, probably 1962, featuring Ken Dodd. Letterpress. |
| Physical description | Hanging card with string for suspension, printed with the heading of the Empire Theatre Newcastle which features the word EMPIRE in orange lettering edged in white, and the words 'MOSS' and 'Theatre' in white lettering, and 'NEWCASTLE' in blue lettering in a white box, against a blue background. The hanging card gives all the names of the performers in elongated upper case lettering within boxes outlined in blue. The performers' names are printed in blue and red, and they are billed as: Ken Dodd The Unpredictable Popular Radio Comedian, Betty Miller and her Rhythm-Makers 'Pye-Nixa Recording Star', 'Television's new star ventriloquist' Dennis Spicer, 'Radio Comedienne' Joyce Golding with Tony Stuart, Alf Carlson 'International Acrobatic Novelty', May Geldray 'The Harmonica Virtuoso from BBC's Goon Show', 'Dance Stylists' The Edorics, and 'Outstanding Equilibrists' The Botandos. |
| Dimensions |
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| Association | |
| Summary | This hanging card advertises the stand-up comedian Ken Dodd's appearance at the Empire Theatre Newcastle, one of the theatres in the Moss Empires Group, whose managing director Prince Littler specialised in producing musical and variety theatre. The poster includes the name of the Managing Director Val Parnell, who went on to become famous for his television programme Sunday Night at the London Palladium. Ken Dodd (b.1927) learned his trade in music hall and variety, starting out in 1952 in Liverpool as a member of Don Ellis's Fairfield Concert Party, and topping the bill two years later at the Hull Palace as 'the North's New Star Comedian'. He worked on radio and the variety theatre circuit during the 1950s, becoming a well-paid performer with star billing by the mid 1950s. His ability to improvise on stage was extraordinary and led to his soubriquet 'Ken Dodd the Unpredictable'. His first break in pantomime came at the Bradford Alhambra in 1959, and he became widely known through television in the 1960s where his 'Diddy Men' and 'Tickling Stick' became trademarks of his act. Dodd had hugely admired the northern comics of the 1940s, of whom he once said: 'I think they left me to switch the light off. I am the last one. They've all gone. Frank Randle, Norman Evans. Max Miller. They're my heroes. They're my boys.' |
| Associated objects |
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| Other number | THM/354 - Archive number |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.218-2008 |
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| Record created | July 14, 2008 |
| Record URL |
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