| Fred Karno | ||
| Background information | ||
| Birth name(s): | Frederick John Westcott | |
| Date of birth: | March 26 1866 | |
|---|---|---|
| Birth location: | Exeter, England | |
| Date of death: | September 18 1941 (aged 75) | |
| Genre(s): | Music hall comedian & theatre impresario | |
| Spouse(s): | Edith -1927(d) Marie Moore 1927-1941 |
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Frederick John Westcott (March 26, 1866 - September 18, 1941), best known by the stage name Fred Karno, was a theatre impresario of the British music hall. Karno was born in Exeter, England, in 1866. A slapstick comedy pioneer, Karno is credited with inventing the cream-pie-in-the-face gag. Among the young comedians who worked for him were Charlie Chaplin and Stanley Jefferson, who would later adopt the name of Stan Laurel. These were part of what was known as "Fred Karno's Army", a phrase still occasionally used in the UK to refer to a chaotic group or organization. With the advent of cinema, the music hall's popularity declined. As a result of this decline, Karno went bankrupt in 1926, and his wife Edith, from whom he had been separated since 1904, died a year later of diabetes - passing away in her sleep on (May 24, 1927). Three weeks later, Karno married his longtime mistress Marie Moore. He died of diabetes at the age of 75. His houseboat, the Astoria, on the River Thames at Hampton, Middlesex, is now used as a recording studio by Pink Floyd's David Gilmour.
