Growing up in Brooklyn’s urban area, Jackie Gleason frequently attended vaudeville shows. This passion drove him to pursue a career on the stage. In 1925, Jackie’s father abandoned the family when the boy was ten years old, so he dropped out of school in 1930 to help his mother. However, he didn’t have a permanent job, occasionally, he earned from playing billiards and performing in the aforementioned vaudeville. After his mother died in 1935, Gleason began playing in Brooklyn nightclubs, polishing his comedy skills. Find more information about the life and career of the well-known Brooklyn comedian and comic at brooklynski.info.
Childhood and early years
The man was born Herbert Walton Gleason Jr. and christened John Herbert Gleason, and his mother Mae called him Jackie. The woman raised the boy by herself. His older brother, Clement, had very poor health, frequently fell ill and died when Jackie was just three years old. Although his mother was successful in persuading young Jackie to adopt the Catholic faith and participate in religious ceremonies, she had little influence over his academic performance.
The young man was a destructive student, who rarely considered his studies seriously, mainly playing billiards and engaging in other funny business. For example, once, he generously spread burger cheese over the school’s heating batteries. This allowed him to take the day off from school while the cleaners looked for the one responsible and meticulously cleaned the cheese off the radiator. Likewise, no one has ever found out for sure who released a snake into the orchestra pit of Halsey Theater.
However, when he once took on the role of host for an eighth-grade presentation, the audience cheered his extraordinary performance. It was then that Jackie realized that school was simply an impediment to realizing his dream that had to be overcome. Teachers applauded when Jackie Gleason left school.
Jackie knew since he was six years old that he wanted to perform in front of an audience, look them in the eyes and listen to applause. The young man realized this as a child when his father took him to the Halsey Theater for a morning screening of silent films and vaudeville. After dropping out of school, Jackie worked as a host and performer at amateur parties in local Brooklyn theaters.
After his mother died when he was 19, Gleason relocated to Manhattan, where he gained even more popularity. Then, during a performance in a nightclub, he was noticed by the head of Warner Brothers, Jack Warner, and as a result, Jackie signed a contract with the film studio and became a young actor. His debut film was “Navy Blues,” but he did not become a movie star, so he returned to New York. Perhaps Jackie’s troubles stemmed from unexpected sources: his improvisational talents and disregard for memorizing scripts didn’t assist him much in the movies, let alone earning the directors’ approval.
The emergence of television provided Jackie Gleason with new opportunities. He left his mark here, this time a significant one. He originally played the titular part in the serialized adaptation of the film “The Life of Riley” before becoming the host of the musical and comedy variety show “Cavalcade of Stars” on the DuMont network. As a result, his long-running CBS show “The Jackie Gleason Show” was born.
In this effort, he demonstrated his whole arsenal of humorous characters, including millionaire playboy Reginald Van Gleason III, the silent and naive character the Poor Soul, jerkish Charlie Bratton and his most popular character, Brooklyn bus driver Ralph Kramden. In 1955, the format of “The Jackie Gleason Show” changed. The idea was to make use of the crazed popularity of “The Honeymooners”.
Comedian’s film career
As a result, it was decided to divide Gleason’s screen time into two half-hour shows: “The Honeymooners” and “Stage Show,” which included a mix of music and pop and were hosted by the Dorsey Brothers. Gleason owned both shows. In 1955-56, episodes of “The Honeymooners” were adapted into their own television series, which featured 39 classic episodes. During the 1950s and 1960s, Gleason recorded 43 albums of mood music and wrote songs for his shows, including “Melancholy Serenade” and “You’re My Greatest Love”.
His career success is clearly demonstrated by the fact that Jackie Gleason built a round mansion in Peekskill, New York, starred in nine films, was nominated for an Oscar for “The Hustler,” and won a Tony Award for his Broadway performance and his portrayal of Uncle Sid in the play “Take Me Along.” In addition, Gleason either produced or featured in 30 unique television programs, and he also transported his new TV show and all of its entourage to Miami, Florida by train.
One of his most well-known film appearances was Minnesota Fats in the 1961 film “The Hustler,” which also starred Paul Newman. His other role was in the 1962 film “Requiem for a Heavyweight” directed by Rod Serling. Jackie played a silent title character in the 1962 film “Gigot” and Sheriff Buford T. Justice in the TV series “Smokey and the Bandit,” which ran from 1977 to 1983 and also featured movie star Burt Reynolds. Subsequently, Jackie Gleason’s last picture was “Nothing in Common,” in which he portrayed a father. The film was released in 1986, and it starred the comedian as well as the famous actor Tom Hanks, who played the role of his son.
Music by Jackie Gleason
In addition, Gleason had a brief music career in the 1950s and 1960s, releasing a series of light music albums. There were also several hits, though. His first album, “Music For Lovers Only,” still retains the record for the longest stay on the Billboard Top Ten charts, lasting 153 weeks, and each of his first ten albums sold more than a million copies. His legacy includes nearly 60 long-playing albums and even more singles.
In the following decade and a half, Gleason got married, this joyous, although short-lived, event occurred in 1970. However, in 1974, the comedian and actor divorced. Beverly McKittrick was his then-wife and later ex-wife. A year after his divorce, he married June Taylor’s sister, Marilyn.
Jackie appeared in eight films. In addition, he hosted or appeared on 17 special television series, founded the annual Inverrary Classic Golf Tournament, directed five special series about newlyweds and produced “The Honeymooners” for syndication, which included all episodes except those filmed during the 1955-56 season. In 1978, the actor underwent triple-bypass surgery.
The man who brightened up the sad world
In 1986, when Jack Gleason was diagnosed with diabetes and phlebitis in 1986, he knew that his condition was very serious. To avoid upsetting his daughter, he didn’t tell her anything about it, only indicating that he’d be gone for a while. The conversation occurred over dinner one evening following the day of filming “Nothing in Common”.
The marble staircase leading to his sarcophagus is engraved with the inscription: “And Away We Go”.