George Formby

George Formby (May 26, 1904 - March 6, 1961) was a British singer and comedian who became a major star of both cinema and music hall.

Formby was born in Wigan, Lancashire, as George Hoy Booth, the eldest of seven children (four girls and three boys). His father, James Booth, was a famous music hall comedian who used the stage name George Formby. He was apprenticed as a jockey when he was seven and rode his first professional race at ten when he weighed less than four stone.

On the death of his father in 1921, Formby abandoned his career as a jockey and started his own music hall career using his father's material. He originally called himself George Hoy (Hoy being his mother's maiden name). In 1924 he married dancer Beryl Ingham, who managed his career until her death in 1960. He allegedly took up the ukelele, for which he was later famous for, as a hobby and first played it on stage for a bet.

George Formby endeared himself to his audiences with his cheeky Lancashire humour and folksy Northern England persona. In film and on stage, he generally adopted the character of an honest, good-hearted but accident-prone innocent.

What made Formby stand-out, however, was his unique and often mimicked musical style. He sang comic songs, full of double-entendre, to his own accompaniment on the ukulele, for which he developed a catchy syncopated style which became his trademark. Some of his best-known songs were written by Noel Gay.

He made his first record in 1932 with the Jack Hylton Band, and his first movie Boots! Boots! in 1934. The film was successful and he signed a contract to make a further 11 with Associated Talking Pictures, earnt him a then-astronomical income of £100,000 per year. A subsequent contract with Columbia Pictures earnt him a further £500,000.

For six years between 1934 and 1945 Formby was the top box-office attraction in British cinema. He appeared in the 1937 Royal Variety Show, and entertained troops with ENSA in Europe and North Africa during World War II. He received an OBE in 1946.

Formby suffered his first heart attack in 1951. His wife died of leukaemia on 24 December 1960 and Formby planned to marry Pat Howson, a 36-year-old schoolteacher, in the spring of 1961. However he had a second heart attack before then and died in hospital on 6 March 1961. He was buried in the family grave in Warrington Cemetry, with an estimated 100,000 mourners lining the streets on the day of the funeral.

Selected Songs

  • Chinese Laundry Blues
  • The Isle of Man
  • The Window Cleaner
  • Leaning on a Lamppost
  • With my Little Ukulele in my Hand
  • With my Little Stick of Blackpool Rock
  • Mother What'll I do Now.

Filmography

  • Boots! Boots!
  • Off The Dole
  • The Song That Made A Star
  • No Limit
  • Keep Your Seats Please
  • Feather Your Nest
  • Keep Fit
  • I See Ice
  • It's In The Air
  • Trouble Brewing
  • Come On George
  • Let George Do It
  • Spare A Copper
  • Turned Out Nice Again
  • South American George
  • Much Too Shy
  • Get Cracking

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Filmography. Goldfrapp's website has been awarded the 2003 MTV Europe Music Award for best website. Selected Songs. Three songs from the album were used in television commercials: "Strict Machine" and "Train" for the launch of the Game Boy Advance, and "TipToe" for a Coca-Cola ad. He was buried in the family grave in Warrington Cemetry, with an estimated 100,000 mourners lining the streets on the day of the funeral. In 2003, the band released their second album, Black Cherry. The album takes Goldfrapp's sound in a very different direction, with pronounced, groovy drum beats and a generally edgier, more hectic atmosphere. However he had a second heart attack before then and died in hospital on 6 March 1961. Felt Mountain was nominated for the 2001 Mercury Music Prize.

His wife died of leukaemia on 24 December 1960 and Formby planned to marry Pat Howson, a 36-year-old schoolteacher, in the spring of 1961. The album, produced by PJ Harvey producer John Parish, features Alison's dreamy vocals, partly enhanced by synthesizer, set over a minimalistic, detached soundscape that draws influences from styles as diverse as 1980s synthie pop, classical film scores and traditional folk music. Formby suffered his first heart attack in 1951. The duo released their debut album, Felt Mountain, in 2000 to much critical acclaim. He received an OBE in 1946. The band was formed in 1999 when Alison Goldfrapp, a singer and composer who had so far worked with Tricky and Orbital, passed some of her demos to film composer Will Gregory. He appeared in the 1937 Royal Variety Show, and entertained troops with ENSA in Europe and North Africa during World War II. Goldfrapp are an electronic music group from Bath, England.

For six years between 1934 and 1945 Formby was the top box-office attraction in British cinema. Black Cherry (2003). A subsequent contract with Columbia Pictures earnt him a further £500,000. Felt Mountain (2000). The film was successful and he signed a contract to make a further 11 with Associated Talking Pictures, earnt him a then-astronomical income of £100,000 per year. He made his first record in 1932 with the Jack Hylton Band, and his first movie Boots! Boots! in 1934.

Some of his best-known songs were written by Noel Gay. He sang comic songs, full of double-entendre, to his own accompaniment on the ukulele, for which he developed a catchy syncopated style which became his trademark. What made Formby stand-out, however, was his unique and often mimicked musical style. In film and on stage, he generally adopted the character of an honest, good-hearted but accident-prone innocent.

George Formby endeared himself to his audiences with his cheeky Lancashire humour and folksy Northern England persona. He allegedly took up the ukelele, for which he was later famous for, as a hobby and first played it on stage for a bet. In 1924 he married dancer Beryl Ingham, who managed his career until her death in 1960. He originally called himself George Hoy (Hoy being his mother's maiden name).

On the death of his father in 1921, Formby abandoned his career as a jockey and started his own music hall career using his father's material. He was apprenticed as a jockey when he was seven and rode his first professional race at ten when he weighed less than four stone. His father, James Booth, was a famous music hall comedian who used the stage name George Formby. Formby was born in Wigan, Lancashire, as George Hoy Booth, the eldest of seven children (four girls and three boys).

George Formby (May 26, 1904 - March 6, 1961) was a British singer and comedian who became a major star of both cinema and music hall. Get Cracking. Much Too Shy. South American George.

Turned Out Nice Again. Spare A Copper. Let George Do It. Come On George.

Trouble Brewing. It's In The Air. I See Ice. Keep Fit.

Feather Your Nest. Keep Your Seats Please. No Limit. The Song That Made A Star.

Off The Dole. Boots! Boots!. Mother What'll I do Now. With my Little Stick of Blackpool Rock.

With my Little Ukulele in my Hand. Leaning on a Lamppost. The Window Cleaner. The Isle of Man.

Chinese Laundry Blues.