Fred Thompson (writer)
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Frederick A. Thompson, usually credited as Fred Thompson (24 January 1884 – 10 April 1949) was an English writer, best known as a
librettist A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major ...
for about fifty British and American musical comedies in the first half of the 20th century. Among the writers with whom he collaborated were
George Grossmith Jr. George Grossmith Jr. (11 May 1874 – 6 June 1935) was an English actor, theatre producer and Actor-manager, manager, director, playwright and songwriter, best remembered for his work in and with Edwardian musical comedies. Grossmith was also a ...
,
P. G. Wodehouse Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse ( ; 15 October 1881 – 14 February 1975) was an English writer and one of the most widely read humorists of the 20th century. His creations include the feather-brained Bertie Wooster and his sagacious valet, Je ...
,
Guy Bolton Guy Reginald Bolton (23 November 1884 – 4 September 1979) was an Anglo-American playwright and writer of musical theatre, musical comedies. Born in England and educated in France and the US, he trained as an architect but turned to writing. B ...
and
Ira Gershwin Ira Gershwin (born Israel Gershovitz; December 6, 1896 – August 17, 1983) was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs in the English language of the ...
. Composers with whom he worked included Lionel Monckton,
Ivor Novello Ivor Novello (born David Ivor Davies; 15 January 1893 – 6 March 1951) was a Welsh actor, dramatist, singer and composer who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the first half of the 20th century. He was born into a musical ...
and
George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned jazz, popular music, popular and classical music. Among his best-known works are the songs "Swan ...
. Many of Thompson's shows became popular hits, including '' To-night's the Night'' (1914), ''
The Bing Boys are Here ''The Bing Boys Are Here'', styled "A Picture of London Life, in a Prologue and Six Panels," is the first of a series of revues which played at the Alhambra Theatre, London during the last two years of World War I. The series included ''The Bing B ...
'' (1916), '' The Boy'' (1917), '' Lady, Be Good!'' (1924), '' Rio Rita'' (1927), ''
Funny Face ''Funny Face'' is a 1957 American musical romantic comedy film directed by Stanley Donen and written by Leonard Gershe, containing assorted songs by George and Ira Gershwin. Although having the same title as the 1927 Broadway musical ''Funny ...
'' (1927) and '' Follow the Girls'' (1944).


Biography

Thompson was born in London and raised in
Newton Abbot Newton Abbot is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish on the River Teign in the Teignbridge, Teignbridge District of Devon, England. Its population was 24,029 in 2011, and was estimated at 26,655 in 2019. It grew rapidly in ...
,
Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...
, in the west of England. He attended the
Slade School of Fine Art The UCL Slade School of Fine Art (informally The Slade) is the art school of University College London (UCL) and is based in London, England. It has been ranked as the UK's top art and design educational institution. The school is organised as ...
in London and trained as an architect.Obituary, "Mr. Fred Thompson", ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'' 12 April 1949, p. 7
He was a skilled caricaturist, and in the early years of the 20th century he contributed regular theatrical caricatures to at least three London newspapers. He worked for three years as an actor, giving him an inside view of stagecraft, which he later put to use in his writing.


Early career

Thompson's first stage work was the book of the show ''The Lady Jockey'' in 1908. In 1913, he began a partnership with
George Grossmith Jr. George Grossmith Jr. (11 May 1874 – 6 June 1935) was an English actor, theatre producer and Actor-manager, manager, director, playwright and songwriter, best remembered for his work in and with Edwardian musical comedies. Grossmith was also a ...
with the
revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatre, theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketch comedy, sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural pre ...
''Eightpence a Mile'', praised by ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'' as "the brightest and swiftest, and on the whole the most entertaining of all the revues that have been produced in London". In May 1914, Thompson and Philip Braham collaborated on ''Violet and Pink'', described as "a miniature musical comedy … with plenty of singing and dancing, any amount of jokes, and some catching music." The first big joint success of the Thompson and Grossmith partnership was '' To-night's the Night'' in 1914 ( Broadway) and 1915 (London), with music by Paul Rubens and lyrics by Harry Greenbank. After this success, Thompson's services were in demand for new West End shows. In November 1916, the first production at the new St Martin's Theatre was Thompson's '' Houp La!'' His best-known shows in this period included the
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
sensations ''
The Bing Boys Are Here ''The Bing Boys Are Here'', styled "A Picture of London Life, in a Prologue and Six Panels," is the first of a series of revues which played at the Alhambra Theatre, London during the last two years of World War I. The series included ''The Bing B ...
'' (1916, in collaboration with Grossmith) and '' The Boy'' (1917, with Lionel Monckton and Howard Talbot). Other successes included ''Pell-Mell'' (1916), ''The Bing Boys On Broadway'' (1918, with Grossmith and H.M. Vernon – a West End show, despite the title), ''Who's Hooper'' (1919, based on a Pinero play, composed by
Ivor Novello Ivor Novello (born David Ivor Davies; 15 January 1893 – 6 March 1951) was a Welsh actor, dramatist, singer and composer who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the first half of the 20th century. He was born into a musical ...
) and ''The Golden Moth'' (1921, with
P. G. Wodehouse Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse ( ; 15 October 1881 – 14 February 1975) was an English writer and one of the most widely read humorists of the 20th century. His creations include the feather-brained Bertie Wooster and his sagacious valet, Je ...
, music by Novello)."Thompson, Fred"
''Encyclopedia of Popular Music'', Oxford Music Online, accessed 8 May 2010
In 1919, he was the author, or part-author, of six shows running in London. Although most of Thompson's early shows were premiered in the West End, other early Broadway productions included ''Good Morning, Judge'' (1919; an adaptation of Pinero's ''The Magistrate''), '' Afgar'' (1920), ''Vogues of 1924'' and ''Marjorie'' (1924). In 1924, Thompson had a big success in New York with a show written in collaboration with
Guy Bolton Guy Reginald Bolton (23 November 1884 – 4 September 1979) was an Anglo-American playwright and writer of musical theatre, musical comedies. Born in England and educated in France and the US, he trained as an architect but turned to writing. B ...
, '' Lady, Be Good!'', with music and lyrics by George and
Ira Gershwin Ira Gershwin (born Israel Gershovitz; December 6, 1896 – August 17, 1983) was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs in the English language of the ...
, and starring
Fred Astaire Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz, May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, actor, singer, musician, choreographer, and presenter, whose career in stage, film, and television spanned 76 years. He is widely regarded as the "g ...
and his sister
Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (; born 5 May 1988) is an English singer-songwriter. Regarded as a British cultural icon, icon, she is known for her mezzo-soprano vocals and sentimental songwriting. List of awards and nominations received by Adele, ...
(also playing strongly in London in 1926). This was followed in swift succession by two more Broadway shows with Gershwin songs, ''Tell Me More'' and '' Tip-Toes'' (both 1925). In 1927 Thompson had three shows running on Broadway simultaneously: '' Rio Rita'' (also with Bolton, songs by Harry Tierney and Joseph McCarthy), the Gershwin show ''
Funny Face ''Funny Face'' is a 1957 American musical romantic comedy film directed by Stanley Donen and written by Leonard Gershe, containing assorted songs by George and Ira Gershwin. Although having the same title as the 1927 Broadway musical ''Funny ...
'' (with Paul Gerard Smith), and ''
The Five O'Clock Girl ''The Five O'Clock Girl'' is a musical with a book by Guy Bolton and Fred Thompson, music by Harry Ruby, and lyrics by Bert Kalmar. Set in New York City and South Hampton, Long Island, it focuses on wealthy Beekman Place playboy Gerald Brooks and ...
'' (again with Bolton; it also played in the West End in 1929). In 1928, Thompson co-wrote '' Here's Howe'' and wrote another Gershwin musical, '' Treasure Girl''.Pollack, Howard
''George Gershwin: his life and work''
University of California Press (2006), p. 327 , accessed 9 May 2010
Thompson's last Broadway success of the inter-war years was ''Sons O' Guns'', in 1929.


Later years

Returning to London, Thompson continued to write musicals, with Bolton and others. None of his 1930s shows were smash hits like the Broadway shows of the late 1920s, but many were solid successes, including ''Seeing Stars'' (1935), ''Going Places'' (1936), ''Swing Along'' (1936) and '' Magyar Melody'' (1939). The last of these made history on 27 March 1939 as the first musical to be broadcast directly from a theatre and shown on television.''Magyar Melody''
at The Guide to Musical Theatre, accessed 9 May 2010
Thompson and Bolton had a final Broadway hit with '' Follow the Girls'', which ran for almost 900 performances in 1944. The cast included
Jackie Gleason Herbert John Gleason (born Herbert Walton Gleason Jr.; February 26, 1916June 24, 1987), known as Jackie Gleason, was an American comedian, actor, writer, and composer also known as "The Great One". He developed a style and characters from growin ...
. Thompson had a stage and screen hit (1936) with ''
This'll Make You Whistle ''This'll Make You Whistle'' is a 1936 British musical comedy film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Jack Buchanan, Elsie Randolph and William Kendall. The film was based on the stage musical of the same title which Buchanan had starred ...
'' in collaboration with
Eric Maschwitz Albert Eric Maschwitz Order of the British Empire, OBE (10 June 1901 – 27 October 1969), sometimes credited as Holt Marvell, was an English entertainer, writer, editor, broadcaster and broadcasting executive. Life and work Born in Edgbaston, ...
, and the two were working on a new show in 1949 when Thompson died suddenly. The obituary notice in ''The Times'' said of him: "To the heatricalprofession he was the man to whom all turned for years in the knowledge that from his pen there would come just the right mixture to give each member of the cast the chance to shine in his or her particular way and so ensure the success of a venture which, as with all musical comedy, for all its surface gaiety, is a serious business risk." Thompson died in London at the age of 65.


Notes


External links

*
Plays by Fred Thompson
at Great War Theatre {{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Fred 1884 births 1949 deaths Alumni of the Slade School of Fine Art English male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century English dramatists and playwrights 20th-century English male writers