Marceline Orbes
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Isidro Marcelino Orbés Casanova (May 15, 1873November 5, 1927), best known simply as Marceline, was a world-renowned
clown A clown is a person who performs physical comedy and arts in an Improvisational theatre#Comedy, open-ended fashion, typically while wearing distinct cosmetics, makeup or costume, costuming and reversing social norm, folkway-norms. The art of ...
during the late 19th and early 20th century.Cullen, Frank et al
Vaudeville old & new, Vol. 1
p. 719 (2007)
(21 September 1913)
Merry Marceline's Magic Mimicry A Marvel
''Washington Herald''


Early life

Marceline was born in
Jaca Jaca (; in Aragonese language, Aragonese: ''Chaca'' or ''Xaca'') is a city of northeastern Spain in the province of Huesca (province), Huesca, located near the Pyrenees and the border with France. Jaca is an ancient fort on the Aragón (river), ...
,
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
in 1873, performed in Spain, France and other continental european countries, made his way to England by around 1895. He had success at the
London Hippodrome The Hippodrome is a building on the corner of Cranbourn Street and Charing Cross Road in the City of Westminster, London. The name was used for many different theatres and music halls, of which the London Hippodrome is one of only a few survi ...
and then enticed by producers Thompson and Dundy to come to the
New York Hippodrome The Hippodrome Theatre, also called the New York Hippodrome, was a theater located on Sixth Avenue between West 43rd and West 44th Streets in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. The theater operated from 1905 to 1939 ...
, where he arrived with great fanfare in 1905.(23 April 1905)
An "Acrobatic Clown"
''
New York Tribune The ''New-York Tribune'' (from 1914: ''New York Tribune'') was an American newspaper founded in 1841 by editor Horace Greeley. It bore the moniker ''New-York Daily Tribune'' from 1842 to 1866 before returning to its original name. From the 1840s ...
''
(16 December 1905)
For the Little Folks
''Evening Star''
He was a part of shows at the Hippodrome through 1915,(27 November 1910)
Marceline, Famous Hippodrome Clown, Made His Debut When Seven Years Old
''Pittsburgh Press''
by which time his pantomime routine and falling gags were falling out of favor with the public. He did reappear at the Hippodrome for some later shows, including ''
Good Times ''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans (actor), Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was televis ...
'' in 1920-21 and ''Better Times'' in 1922-23. Attempts to succeed in the restaurant business in New York and Connecticut both failed, Johnstone, Will B. (5 April 1918)
Marceline Back in Ring After Retiring To Gratify Eating and Cooking Ambition
''The Evening World''
and he lost money in real estate ventures. Out of work and out of savings, Marceline was found dead in his hotel room at the Hotel Mansfield on November 5, 1927, with photographs of his glory days on the bed, and a bullet through his head.(6 November 1927)

''
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Later years

After killing himself, he was buried at
Kensico Cemetery Kensico Cemetery, located in Valhalla, New York, Valhalla, Westchester County, New York was founded in 1889, when many New York City cemeteries were becoming full, and rural cemeteries were being created near the railroads that served the city ...
.(7 November 1927). [https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9E06E4D61F3FE733A25754C0A9679D946695D6CF Stage Folks View Marcelline's Body - Funeral Services for Famous Hippodrome Clown to Be Held at Campbell Chapel Tomorrow], ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' (subscription required)
He was survived by his wife, from whom he had been separated since 1925. Marceline was long admired by
Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is considered o ...
, who worked with Marceline at the London Hippodrome from December 1900 to April 1901, and is one of just a few performers from this period of his life that Chaplin discusses in his autobiography. Chaplin recounts seeing him years later in the United States with a circus, and though expecting to see him be a featured star, was surprised to see him only amongst other clowns.Scheide, Frank Milo
The history of low comedy
p. 244 (1990)
As Marceline performed before the film era, despite the many contemporary reports of his world fame, there is a lack of documentary evidence of his performances. A 1915
Thanhouser Company The Thanhouser Company (later the Thanhouser Film Corporation) was one of the first motion picture studios, founded in 1909 by Edwin Thanhouser, his wife Gertrude Thanhouser, Gertrude and his brother-in-law Lloyd Lonergan. It operated in New Yo ...
film short titled ''The Mishaps of Marceline'' is lost aside from a few still frames of the clown.


In popular fiction

Rod Rogers has a very short role as Marceline in the 1952 film ''
Million Dollar Mermaid ''Million Dollar Mermaid'' (also known as ''The One Piece Bathing Suit'' in the UK) is a 1952 American biographical musical drama film about the life of Australian swimming star Annette Kellerman. It was directed by Mervyn LeRoy and produced by ...
''.


References


External links

* *Reid, Darren
Silent Film Killed the Clown: Recovering the Lost Life and Silent Film of Marceline Orbes, the Suicidal Clown of the New York Hippodrome, 1905-1915
The Appendix (November 6, 2014) {{DEFAULTSORT:Orbes, Marceline 1873 births 1927 deaths People from Zaragoza Spanish clowns Spanish expatriates in the United States Spanish circus performers Spanish vaudeville performers 19th-century circus performers 20th-century circus performers 1927 suicides Suicides by firearm in New York City Burials at Kensico Cemetery