Paul Martinetti (June 22, 1846 – December 26, 1924) was a French-American entertainer and stage actor. He was popular in English

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was most popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850, through the World War I, Great War. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as Varie ...

s and

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment, generally combining gender-crossing actors and topical humour with a story more or less based on a well-known fairy tale, fable or ...

s between the 1870s and 1900s, and in retirement became a British national.

Biography

Martinetti was born in France, the son of Julien and Adele Martinetti, who were Italian subjects. Julien Martinetti (1821–1884) was from a long-established family of acrobats,

mime artist A mime artist, or simply mime (from Greek language, Greek , , "imitator, actor"), is a person who uses ''mime'' (also called ''pantomime'' outside of Britain), the acting out of a story through body motions without the use of speech, as a the ...

s and pantomime performers who travelled widely throughout Europe. With his brother Philippe (1829–1874), he joined with the equally famous family troupe led by Gabriel Ravel, and they travelled in 1848 to the United States, where they performed together for several years, sometimes in association with

Charles Blondin Charles Blondin (born Jean François Gravelet, 28 February 182422 February 1897) was a French tightrope walker and acrobat. He toured the United States and was known for crossing the Niagara Gorge on a tightrope. During an event in Dublin i ...

. After the Ravel family returned to France, Julien and Philippe Martinetti continued touring North and South America, and Australia, with their own troupe, including Paul and other family members performing on

tightrope Tightrope walking, also called funambulism, is the skill of walking along a thin wire or rope. It has a long tradition in various countries and is commonly associated with the circus. Other skills similar to tightrope walking include slack rope ...

s. Paul also performed in the character of

Harlequin Harlequin (, , ; , ) is the best-known of the comic servant characters (Zanni) from the Italian commedia dell'arte, associated with the city of Bergamo. The role is traditionally believed to have been introduced by the Italian actor-manager Zan ...

. Elena Mazzoleni, "Parisian Vaudeville in America: The Ravel and Martinetti Troupes", in Carole Salmon (ed.), ''Paris in the Americas: Yesterday and Today'', Vernon Press, 2022, pp.12-18
/ref> Following Philippe's death, Julien remained in the United States."Julian Martinetti", ''New York Clipper'', 31 May 1879
/ref> Julien's sons Paul and Alfred (27 December 1854 – 17 August 1924) travelled to England in 1876. Paul made in his London debut in a performance of ''

The Magic Flute ''The Magic Flute'' (, ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. It is a ''Singspiel'', a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue. The work premiered on ...

'' at the Princess's Theatre, and his first music hall appearance in February 1877 as a member of a comedy ballet troupe. With Alfred, he then formed his own pantomime company. Over the next thirty years, he became "one of music hall's biggest attractions", and presented a series of "lurid mime melodramas"Raymond Mander and Joe Mitchenson, ''British Music Hall: A story in pictures'', Studio Vista, 1965, p.203 often with his brother. The sketches included " Robert Macaire", "The Duel in the Snow", and "The Remorse". He also performed realistic

ape Apes (collectively Hominoidea ) are a superfamily of Old World simians native to sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia (though they were more widespread in Africa, most of Asia, and Europe in prehistory, and counting humans are found global ...

impressions, with the critic G.F. Scotson-Clark describing him in 1899 as "the finest pantomimist of his day... His work at best rises above mere agility. He is magnetic and versatile....".Bernard Ince, "Rise of the Monkey Tribe: Simian Impersonation in the British Theatre", ''New Theatre Quarterly'' 34(4):357-373, November 2018
/ref> Paul Martinetti remained in England. He became a leading member of the

variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

profession, and was 'King Rat' in the

Grand Order of Water Rats The Grand Order of Water Rats is a British entertainment industry fraternity and charitable organisation based in London. Founded in 1889 by the music hall comedians Joe Elvin and Jack Lotto, the order is known for its high-profile membership an ...

in 1899. In 1910, he and his wife were neighbours and friends of Dr. Crippen, and attended a dinner given by Crippen and his wife, Belle Elmore, on the evening when she was killed. Martinetti became an important witness at his trial for murder. ''The North China Herald'', March 7, 1925, p.414
/ref> In 1914, he gave up his American citizenship and became a

British national The primary law governing nationality in the United Kingdom is the British Nationality Act 1981, which came into force on 1 January 1983. Regulations apply to the British Islands, which include the UK itself (England, Wales, Scotland, and North ...

.UK Naturalisation Certificate A25205, 3 June 1914 After relocating to

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

on health grounds, he died in a hotel there in 1924 at the age of 78.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Martinetti, Paul 1846 births 1924 deaths French mimes French music hall performers French emigrants to the United States French vaudeville performers 19th-century French actors 20th-century French actors