Web Page 1176
24th August 2013
Top Picture: Jim Dale as a pop idol
Middle Picture: Remember the Manor Court Club?
Bottom Picture: 6-5 Special Record Cover
Jim
Dale
Jim Dale was born James
Smith in 1935 and entered show business at the age of nine and for six years he
studied ballet, tap, judo, ballroom, National, tumbling and eccentric
dancing. After all that training at the age of seventeen, he became the
youngest professional comedian touring the British Music Halls. After
spending two years National Service in the RAF
he ventured into pop singing and became the first artist under the wing
of legendary "Beatles" recording manager, Sir George
Martin, resulting in many Hit Parade entries during Britain's
‘Swinging Sixties'. He first appeared in, then hosted the two top music shows
on British television, “The Six Five
Special” and “Thank Your Lucky Stars” He was then invited to join BBC
radio as a disc jockey, and for over a year hosted their number one
program for children,”Saturday Morning
Children’s Requests”.
He became one of the icons of the "Carry
On" team, and made thirteen films for them.
In 1966 he joined director Frank Dunlop's new
"Pop Theatre" at the Edinburgh Festival, and was the first actor to
star at the new Young Vic Theatre in Moliere's "Scapino." In
1970, at the request of Sir Laurence Olivier, he joined the British
National Theatre as a leading actor.
Jim has lived in New York for thirty years with
his American wife Julie Schafler, he also owns New York’s prestigious “Julie
Artisans’ Gallery” on Madison Avenue.
In 2004 he was awarded the MBE for his work in promoting children’s
literature. To millions of American and Canadian
children Jim is the voice of Harry Potter. He has recorded all seven
audio books in the series, and created individual voices for over two hundred
and fifty characters. For his narration work he became the first inductee into
the American Audio Hall of Fame. He has won two Grammy Awards and
Seven Grammy Nominations. Plus a
record ten Audie Awards , the 'Oscars' of the Audiobook world.
Jim is mentioned in the Guinness Book of
Records because he created a total of 134 different character voices for one
audio book, “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix"
Then in 2007 Jim broke his first
record by creating 146 different character voices for” Harry Potter and the
Deathly Hallows"
Not content with that his third record is for occupying the first SIX places in the “Top Ten Audio Books of America and Canada 2005”.
Not content with that his third record is for occupying the first SIX places in the “Top Ten Audio Books of America and Canada 2005”.
But for us here in England he was a lively
young pop singer turned actor appearing in such comedy classics as:-
"Carry On Again Doctor" ………………............ Dr. James Nookey (1969)
"Lock Up Your Daughters!"………………..........Lusty (1969)
"Carry On Doctor"……………………….............Dr Kilmore (1968)
"The Plank" ……………………………….....…..Painter (1967)
"Carry On, Don't Lose Your Head".……........…. Lord Darcy Pue (1967)
"Follow That Camel"…..…………………........…Bertram Oliphant West (1967)
"Carry On Screaming".…………………..............Albert (1966)
"Carry On Cowboy"..……………………............. Marshall P. Knutt (1965)
"The Big Job"……………………………............ Harold (1965)
"Carry On Cleo".... ……………………….......….Horsa (1964)
"Carry On Jack"..………………………….......... Carrier (1964)
"Carry On Spying" ………………………............Carstairs (1964)
"Carry On Cabby"..………………………......… Expectant father (1963)
He has had a distinguished career in the
theatre and on Broadway as well as his singing career he also wrote lyrics and
in 1965 he wrote the lyrics to the title song of -"Georgy
Girl." Tom Springfield, brother of Dusty Springfield wrote the
music. It was recorded by "The Seekers" and many other vocalists, and
went on to sell over 10 million copies.
He has lived in New York since 1980. He was married to Patricia
from 1957 until their divorce in 1977. They had four children. The eldest boy,
Murray Dale, was briefly a successful actor in the 1970s British children's
television series Boy Dominic.
Middle son Adam, a successful aerial cameraman, is the winner of the Golden Arrow Award for Best Helicopter Cameraman. His
youngest son Toby Dale is, in his father's words, "a brilliant
actor". All three sons live in London. He has five grandchildren. His only
daughter, Belinda Dale, died of Leukaemia in
December 1995. His first wife, Patricia, died in March 1977, after a long
battle with cancer. In 1980, he married Julie Schafler, the owner of Madison
Avenue's 'Julie: Artisan's Gallery'.
One of Jims favourite stories is told below in his own
words:-
A few years ago I walked into an old
junk shop and found my first big hit song "Be My Girl" in a
collection of ancient 78rpm pop records.
Me: "Wow, look at this, how much is it?"
Owner: "Four pence, same as all the others"
Me: "Four pence? For a hit record by Jim Dale?"
Owner : "Who?"
Me: "Jim Dale, it's a collectors item this is. You can't sell it for four pence. It's worth a good four Pounds of anybody's money."
Owner: "OK, four Pounds then."
Me: "That's more like it." (Handing him four crisp one pound notes in exchange for his moth eaten old record).
Peter
You Write:
I too worked at Gauntlett's
Dairy from August 1960 to September 1962 as a schoolboy week-ender and
holiday worker. So that is roughly 14-1/2 to 16 -1/2 and then I joined the RAF.
I must have just missed Peter B when he worked there but no doubt he knew all
the people who worked there when I was there.
My Uncle got me the job as he
knew Vic Gauntlett very well and my Uncle had gone to school
with Vic's Sister Mary Gauntlett back in the 1930's. I can remember my starting
pay and it was 1/3d an hour and when I left Gauntlett's it was 3s.0d an
hour. Laughable when you think about it
now but there was a method in my working this way. I had started off
as a paper boy at Jarman's Newspaper shop in Drayton and the pay was 10s a week
for a morning and evening paper round..... not a lot was it!
So, by working a Saturday I could achieve this princely sum of 10/-
pocket money in one fell swoop of just one day's work and stay in bed
an hour later in the morning for the rest of the week! We all know
it was no fun delivering papers on a wet and cold Winter's morning 7 days a
week.
As it
happens with my Father dying during this period there was no money in my
family so by working extra days during the holidays it did make me
financially independent by not having to ask for any pocket money
from my Mum.
There were some
great character's working at Gauntletts and you never forget them. They
all came from different backgrounds and from all walks of life. The most
memorable for me was Ron Rickwood ( Ricky Dean ) who by day was a dairy
worker and by night he sung in a Portsmouth rock group "The Rivals"
and I use to tag along with him and the group to live gigs at the nightspots of
Portsmouth like the Savoy and Kimbell's Ballroom to name but two. Great
times I have to say but looking back I think my school work did suffer a bit
from lack of commitment and enthusiasm to scholarly learning but when
you watch your Dad die at a young age from cancer your outlook on life
changes dramatically.
The work was
quite hard as Pete B has said but it toughened you up and toned you up in the
muscle department lifting full milk crates and stacking them 7 high to
be wheeled into the freezer. This was probably why I was pretty good at
the Discus throwing where you need strong upper body strength and I did
represent Manor Court for Portsmouth North Schools in the Discus.
I think it was a
good start to any working life and it made you appreciate how to earn
money and how to get on with others in a working environment. When I left
to join the RAF Vic. Gauntlett wanted me stay and go to college to learn the
dairy trade but I declined the offer. He gave me a £10 going away present and
that was a lot of money to a 16 year old in those far off days.
Vic. Gauntlett
wasn't short of my family member's though because a few short years later
my Brother also worked at Gauntlett's and the same faces were still working
there as I did go back for a nostalgic visit to see them all.
Regards to
everyone
Melvyn ( Griff
) Griffiths
News and Views:
Eydie Gorme who made her name in the fifties and
charted 24 times with and without her husband Steve Lawrence died on 10th
August from an undisclosed illness in a Las Vagas hospital. She was just six
days short of her 85th birthday.
On this day 24th August
1960-1965
On 24/08/1960 the number one single was Apache - The Shadows and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Rawhide
(ITV) and the box office smash was Psycho.
A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way
to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.
On 24/08/1961 the number one single was You Don't Know - Helen Shapiro and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street
(Granada) and the box office smash was One Hundred and
One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £13.25 and
Ipswich were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big
news story of the week was Burma becomes world's first Buddhist republic.
On 24/08/1962 the number one single was I Remember You - Frank Ifield and the number one album was
West Side Story Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street
(Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia.
A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Everton were on the way to
becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.
On 24/08/1963 the number one single was Bad to Me - Billy J Kramer
and the number one album was Please Please Me - The Beatles. The top rated TV
show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The
Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Liverpool were on
the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.
On 24/08/1964 the number one single was Do Wah Diddy Diddy - Manfred Mann and the number one album was
A Hard Day's Night - Beatles. The top rated TV show was Labour
Party Political Broadcast (all channels) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove.
A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Manchester United were on the way
to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.
On 24/08/1965 the number one single was I Got You Babe - Sonny and Cher and the number one album was Help - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street
(Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound
of today's money was worth £11.69 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the
Season's Division 1 champions.
No comments:
Post a Comment