Eric Morecambe
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Emorecambe2.jpg
Eric with trademark pipe and glasses
Eric Morecambe OBE was the stage name of Eric John Bartholomew (May 14, 1926 – May 28, 1984), part of the double act of Morecambe and Wise with Ernie Wise. In the UK he is widely considered to have been a "comic genius".
Eric took his stage name from the seaside resort of Morecambe in Lancashire, England, his home town. He and Ernie were both teenagers when they teamed up in 1941, and had still to face national service during World War II when he was a Bevin Boy, conscripted to work in a coal mine.
Before his sudden death, Eric had already suffered a massive heart attack which had forced him to put his career on hold. It was an experience he often talked about publicly. His last appearance was in a live stage performance, immediately following which he collapsed with another heart attack.
In his leisure time, Morecambe was a keen birdwatcher, and the statue of him at Morecambe shows him wearing his binoculars. He was also an enthusiastic football fan and a director of Luton Town F.C.. Morecambe also had a love of Long John Silver impressions, which never left him through his life (one can be seen in the 'Monty on the Bonty' sketch with Arthur Lowe).
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Early Life and Childhood Career
Eric was born to parents George and Sadie Bartholomew. His mother, Sadie, was determined to see her only child make a success of his life, and took work as a waitress to raise funds for his dancing lessons. Eric did not enjoy these lessons at the time, although they were to come in handy during his later life.
During this period, Eric Bartholomew (the John having been dropped more or less from birth) won numerous talent contests, most notably in Hoylake in 1939, the prize for which was an audition with Jack Hylton. Also present was another young talent named Ernest Wiseman, already a familiar voice from Arthur Askey's radio series "Bandwagon". This was the first meeting of what was to become one of Britain's most loved comedy partnerships, although it was to be a further two years before they would team up.
Three months after the audition, Hylton invited Eric to join a revue called "Youth Takes A Bow" at the Nottingham Empire, where, once more, he encountered Ernie. The two soon became close friends, and, under Sadie's encouragement, started to develop a double act. When the two were eventually allowed to perform their double act on stage (in addition to their solo spots), Hylton was impressed enough to make it a regular feature in the revue.
Eric and Ernie
After the war, they made their name on radio, before arriving on television in 1955. They appeared together in many series such as Two of A Kind. There were also a number of Christmas specials. They were well-regarded and their reputation enabled them to garner a number of prestigious guests including Angela Rippon, Princess Anne, Cliff Richard, Glenda Jackson, Tom Jones, Elton John and even the then Prime Minister Harold Wilson. Des O'Connor was frequently the butt of their humour.
The celebrities were generally humiliated by the pair, and especially by Eric's playful insults, undermining the status of the celebrities, joking that they're "Rubbish" and pretending not to recognise them. Generally, the greater the quality of the celebrities, the greater the humiliation. A fine example is their exchange with the Beatles at the height of their fame.
(Ernie is talking to the band when Eric enters) Morecambe: Yeah-eh! It's the Kay sisters, they've come! Great! Fabulous! Wise: The Kay sisters?! This is... Morecambe: Look, they've dyed their hair! Wise: ...this is the Beatles! Morecambe: Hello, Beatle! Where is he? Wise: "Where is he?" Morecambe: There he is! Hello, Bongo! Hey. Wise: That's Ringo! Morecambe: Oh, is he there as well? ... John: Me dad used to tell me about you, you know. [John indicates with his hand how tall he was when his Dad told him] Morecambe: You've only got a little dad have you? Yer dad used to tell yer, that's a bit strong, innit? Alright, Bonzo? Wise: That's Ringo! Morecambe: Yeah, him as well!
Of all the comedy acts produced by Britain, Morecambe and Wise are perhaps the best loved and most fondly remembered. They were arguably the first truly great double act in Britain. Many have highlighted the genuine affection Eric and Ernie had for one other, which shone through Braben's material. Their enjoyment of their work was picked up by the audience who regarded them as friends as well as entertainers.
The humour was largely derived from their on-stage relationship, especially in their work with Eddie Braben at the BBC. Eric was regarded as the funny man, although this was one of the most equal partnerships of all time. He constantly poked fun of Ernie's appearance, but there was clearly great affection between the two. In sketches, Eric frequently appeared playing the piano (badly), most notably in the famous "Grieg's Piano Concerto" sketch, featuring Andre Previn (who only had a few hours to learn his part). Eric's favourite catch phrase was "What do you think of the show so far? - [throws voice] Rubbish!" which became a favourite with imitators everywhere.
So enormous was Morecambe and Wise's popularity that their annual BBC Christmas shows became almost mandatory viewing in Britain from 1968-1978. Despite his heart condition (his first attack striking in 1968), he and Ernie still managed energetic song and dance routines and superbly timed visual comedy.
Legacy
A larger-than-life statue of Eric was unveiled by the Queen at Morecambe in 1999.
In 1999 Eric Morecambe was voted the funniest person of the 20th Century in an internet poll. Eric pulled in 26% of the votes, beating Tommy Cooper and John Cleese to the coveted position.
A West End show, The Play What I Wrote, appeared in 2001 as a tribute to the duo. Directed by Kenneth Branagh, each performance featured a different guest celebrity, including Kylie Minogue, who was said to be particularly keen to participate. Bizarrely, the show later transferred, with some success, to Broadway, only moderately rewritten to allow for the fact that Eric & Ernie were virtually unknown in the U.S. The show toured the UK in 2003.
In 2003, Eric's eldest son Gary released "Life's not Hollywood, it's Cricklewood", a biography of his Father from the point of view of his family, using family photos and extracts from previously unseen diaries. The book revealed Morecambe as a toned down version of his on-screen persona, prone to occasional bouts of mild depression and overworking.
In a 2005 poll The Comedian's Comedian, he was voted the 4th greatest comedy act ever by fellow comedians and comedy insiders.
Further Reading
External links
- The Morecambe & Wise homepage (http://www.morecambeandwise.co.uk/)
- Eric Morecambe's page at FindaGrave.com, with biography and pictures of plaque (http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=21638&pt=Eric%20Morecambe)