Al Shean
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Al Shean
Biography
German-born vaudeville entertainer Al Shean entered show business folklore as one-half of the comedy team of Gallagher and Shean. Few people can remember the team's jokes or routines, but many can recite from memory the duo's signature song, "Absolutely, Mr. Gallagher? Postively, Mr. Shean." Of more significance to the film world, Shean was the younger brother of Minnie Marx, who in turn was the mother of the Marx Brothers. When the merry Marxes were struggling in vaudeville in the World War I years, it was Uncle Al Shean who wrote several of the team's best and most popular sketches; he also decided that Harpo Marx would be a more effective comedian if he didn't try to speak on stage. The Marx Brothers returned the favor by seeing to it that the aging, impecunious Al Shean was cast in substantial character roles in such MGM films as San Francisco (1936), The Great Waltz (1938), and Ziegfeld Girl (1941). ~ Hal Erickson, RoviRelated Videos:
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Al Shean
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Al Shean
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Al Shean
| Al Shean | |
|---|---|
| Born | Abraham Elieser Adolph Schönberg or Adolf Schönberg, or Alfred Schönberg, or Albert Schönberg[1] 12 May 1868 Dornum, Germany |
| Died | 12 August 1949 (aged 81) New York City, New York |
| Occupation | Comedian |
Al Shean (12 May 1868 - 12 August 1949) was the stage name for comedian Abraham Elieser Adolph Schönberg,[2][3][4][5] although other sources give his birth name variously as Adolf Schönberg, Albert Schönberg, or Alfred Schönberg.[6] He is most remembered for being half of the vaudeville team Gallagher and Shean, and as the uncle of the Marx Brothers.
Schönberg's father was a magician. His sister, Minnie, married Sam "Frenchie" Marx; their children would become the Marx Brothers. After making a name for himself in vaudeville, Shean teamed up with Edward Gallagher to create the act Gallagher and Shean. While the act was successful, the men apparently did not like each other much.
Shean went on to some solo film roles: as the professor in San Francisco (1936), as a priest in Hitler's Madman (1943), as the grandfather in The Blue Bird (1940), and in some three dozen other films. He and Gallagher also made an early sound film at the Theodore Case studio in Auburn, New York, in 1925.[7] Shean's son, also named Al Shean, worked on The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show.
See also
References
- ^ Mitchell, Glenn (2003). The Marx Brothers Encyclopedia. Reynolds & Hearn. pp. 258. ISBN 1-905287-11-9.
- ^ "The Marx Brothers Family". http://www.marx-brothers.org/marxology/one4all.htm. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ "Abraham Elieser Adolf SCHONBERG". FamilySearch International Genealogical. http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/IGI/individual_record.asp?recid=100411302230&lds=1®ion=11®ionfriendly=North+America&frompage=99. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ Vaudeville, old & new: an encyclopedia of variety performers. Frank Cullen,Florence Hackman,Donald McNeilly. http://books.google.com/books?id=XFnfnKg6BcAC&pg=PA427&dq=%22al+shean%22+1868&cd=8#v=onepage&q=%22al%20shean%22%201868&f=false. Retrieved January 6, 2010.
- ^ Louvish, Simon (2000). Monkey Business.The Lives and Legends of the Marx Brothers. St. Martin's Press. pp. 471. ISBN 0-312-25292-7.
- ^ Mitchell, Glenn (2003). The Marx Brothers Encyclopedia. London: Reynolds & Hearn. pp. 258. ISBN 1-905287-11-9.
- ^ "Gallagher and Shean". CBX Media. 2003-11-19. http://www.silentera.com/PSFL/data/G/GallagherandShean1925.html. Retrieved February 21, 2008.
External links
- Al Shean at Internet Broadway Database
- Al Shean at the Internet Movie Database
- Gallagher and Shean (1925) experimental sound film made by Theodore Case
- 1918 passport photo, Al Shean
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