Timmie Rogers (born Timothy Louis Ancrum July 4, 1915 – December 17, 2006) was an American comedian, singer-songwriter, bandleader and actor who appeared on many national TV shows in the 1960s and 1970s. Rogers was one of the first Black comedians allowed to directly address a white audience when he worked. Before Rogers, African-American funny men had to either work in pairs or groups, only conversing with each other, and they had to play a character, while popular white comedians, such as

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in Bob Hope filmography, more than 70 short and ...

and

Jack Benny Jack Benny (born Benjamin Kubelsky, February 14, 1894 – December 26, 1974) was an American entertainer who evolved from a modest success playing violin on the vaudeville circuit to one of the leading entertainers of the twentieth century with ...

got to play themselves. Rogers worked by himself, always dressed well, often wearing a tuxedo, and never wore blackface. His humor was clean, topical, and political. Rogers was inducted into the National Comedy Hall of Fame in 1993, and is often called the

Jackie Robinson Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color lin ...

of comedy, because he opened the door for other performers such as

Dick Gregory Richard Claxton Gregory (October 12, 1932 – August 19, 2017) was an American comedian, civil rights leader, business owner and entrepreneur, and vegetarian activist. His writings were best sellers. Gregory became popular among the Afr ...

and

Bill Cosby William Henry Cosby Jr. ( ; born July 12, 1937) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and media personality. He made significant contributions to American and African-American culture, and is well known in the United States for his eccentri ...

. As a singer, he often accompanied himself on a distinctive 10-stringed stringed instrument called a Martin

tiple A tiple (, literally treble or soprano), is a plucked typically 12-string chordophone of the guitar family. A tiple player is called a ''tiplista''. The first mention of the tiple comes from musicologist Pablo Minguet e Irol in 1752. Although ma ...

, including a 1975 television performance in a musical duet with

Redd Foxx John Elroy Sanford (December 9, 1922 – October 11, 1991), better known by his stage name Redd Foxx, was an American stand-up comedian and actor. Foxx gained success with his raunchy nightclub act before and during the civil rights moveme ...

on the

Sanford and Son ''Sanford and Son'' is an American sitcom television series that ran on the NBC television network from January 14, 1972, to March 25, 1977. It was based on the British sitcom ''Steptoe and Son'', which initially aired on BBC One in the Unite ...

series, playing a character named "Smiley Rogers."

Early life

Timmie Rogers was born in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

to Lillian Ancrum. At the age of eight, he was earning money by dancing on the street. At the age of 12, Rogers ran away from home and found a job as a dishwasher on a boat, where he learned the languages of the cooks; eventually, he spoke nine. Rogers would later write and record in French and German. Later he cleaned ashtrays at a local ballroom, absorbed what he saw and was invited to dance onstage before acts. By 1932, Rogers was part of a successful dance team, Timmie & Freddie, that performed on the vaudeville circuit. They split in 1944 as blacks across the country were developing a collective voice in the name of civil rights, and Rogers decided to try it on his own, his way.

Career

He was known as the Unknown Pioneer of (Black) Comedy. He insisted on not wearing

blackface Blackface is a form of theatrical makeup used predominantly by non-Black people, Black people to portray a caricature of a Black person. In the United States, the practice became common during the 19th century and contributed to the spread of ...

when performing his comedy act and stood firm with his conviction. His catchphrase was "Oh Yeah!" and it was a part of his act for over 50 years. Rogers starred in US television's first black prime-time show ''

Uptown Jubilee ''Uptown Jubilee'' was a short-lived American all-black variety show on CBS Television from September 13 to October 20, 1949. The show aired live on Tuesday nights from 8pm to 9pm ET during September, and on Thursdays from 8:30pm to 9pm ET during ...

'' on

CBS Television CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

in 1949. He was also a recurring guest star on ''

The Jackie Gleason Show ''The Jackie Gleason Show'' is the name of a series of American network television shows that starred Jackie Gleason, which ran from 1952 to 1970, in various forms. ''Cavalcade of Stars'' Gleason's first variety series, which aired on the DuMon ...

'' for over 12 years, and would continue to work with Jackie Gleason for the next thirty years. Rogers later credited Gleason for giving him national exposure which helped his career. Rogers also wrote music including "If You Can’t Smile and Say Yes", a song recorded by

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

. He also wrote songs for

Carmen McRae Carmen Mercedes McRae (April 8, 1920 – November 10, 1994) was an American jazz singer. She is considered one of the most influential jazz vocalists of the 20th century and is remembered for her behind-the-beat phrasing and ironic interpre ...

and Sarah Vaughan. In the late 1950s and living in Philadelphia, he recorded on Cameo and Parkway Records. His hits included "Back to School Again" and "I Love Ya, I Love Ya, I Love Ya".

Death

On December 17, 2006, Rogers died of undisclosed causes in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

at the age of 91. He was survived by two daughters, five grandchildren and one great grandchild.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rogers, Timmie 1915 births 2006 deaths 20th-century American male actors Male actors from Michigan African-American male comedians American male comedians American male film actors African-American male singer-songwriters American bandleaders Vaudeville performers African-American male actors American male television actors Singers from Detroit 20th-century American comedians 20th-century African-American male singers Singer-songwriters from Michigan