Richman, Harry [né Reichman] (1895–1972), singer. The brash, jaunty performer was born in Cincinnati and began his career in vaudeville as a pianist for Mae West, the Dolly Sisters, and Nora Bayes. Striking out on his own he gave imitations of Al Jolson and David Warfield but soon developed a turn in which he sang dressed either in white tie and tails or a straw hat and blazer. His Broadway appearances were almost always in revues, notably George White's Scandals of 1926, in which he introduced “The Birth of the Blues” and “Lucky Day,” and International Revue (1930), in which he performed “Exactly Like You” and “On the Sunny Side of the Street.” Much of his later career was confined to nightclubs. Autobiography: A Hell of a Life, with Richard Gehman, 1966.
Though his fame didn't outlast the Depression era, Harry Richman was one of the top entertainers of the Jazz Age, a nightclub act with a flamboyant style often compared to Al Jolson. A period star of Broadway and the silver screen, he also earned notices for his hobby, aviation; he set a world record for altitude in 1935, and made the first transatlantic round trip in a single-engine plane. Born Harold Reichman, he started in vaudeville -- with a two-man act, as a comedian, and then with a song-and-dance number -- and played theaters from Chicago to San Francisco. Moving east by the early '20s, he and his piano backed Nora Bayes and Mae West, and his Broadway debut came in 1922's Queen o' Hearts.
Richman's real breakout came in 1926; George White's Scandals of 1926 became a big hit, thanks in large part to his popular performance, "Birth of the Blues," recorded for Vocalion. Despite a few (comparative) flops the following year, he introduced a pair of prize-winning standards: "Blue Skies" and "I'm on the Crest of a Wave." Back on top by 1930, Richman earned the biggest hit of his career, courtesy of the film Puttin' on the Ritz. The title song became one of the most popular songs of the year, while "There's Danger in Your Eyes, Cherie" also earned praise. Later that year, Richman returned to Broadway for International Revue, and introduced two more chestnuts, "Exactly Like You" and "On the Sunny Side of the Street."
Harry Richman's Broadway farewell occurred in 1934, and though his aviator prowess occasionally gained more headlines than his musical career, he kept busy recording during the '30s and '40s. He also became a respected songwriter, known for contributing to the careers of two great performers: Django Reinhardt ("Miss Annabelle Lee") and Bessie Smith ("Muddy Water"). He died in 1972. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide
He made his feature movie debut in Hollywood in 1930 with the film Puttin' on the Ritz, featuring the Irving Berlin song of
the same title, which gave Richman a phonograph record hit that year. His film career
was short lived due to his somewhat overpowering personality, and his limited acting skills. (Leonard Maltin wrote of Puttin' on
the Ritz: "A songwriter drinks and goes blind - after seeing this you'll want to do the same".) This made little difference to
his career as he remained a popular nightclub host and stage performer.
Richman was also an amateur aviator of some accomplishment, being the co-pilot in
1936, with famed flyer Henry Tindall "Dick" Merrill, of the
first round-trip Trans-Atlantic flight in his own single-engine Vultee transport. Richman had filled much of the empty space of the aircraft with ping pong balls as a flotation aid in case they were forced down in the Atlantic, and after the successful
flight he sold autographed ones until his death. They continue to turn up on eBay to this day.
He also made regular radio broadcasts in the 1930s.
Richman largely retired in the 1940s, although he made irregular appearances, including on
television, into the 1950s.
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