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Ralph Riggs

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1911 photograph of Ralph Riggs.

Ralph Roland Riggs (February 12, 1885 – September 16, 1951) was an American actor, singer, and dancer. He worked primarily on stage as a musical theatre actor, light opera baritone, and dancer, but also occasionally appeared in straight plays. He appeared in several musical short films in the 1930s and at the very end of his career appeared on American television from 1949–1951.

Riggs was the son of actress Rose Stillman, and began his career as a child performer in his mother's theatre troupe. He was a member of the Boston Ideal Opera Company in the summer of 1902 and 1903, and performed as a member of the Ed Andrews Opera Company from 1902–1905. After making his Broadway debut in 1907 he formed a partnership with his wife, the dancer Katherine Witchie, with whom he toured in vaudeville and starred in several Broadway shows; among them the original productions of The Enchantress (1911), All Aboard (1913), The Princess Pat (1915), and Oh, Ernest! (1927). Without his wife he portrayed The Chief Justice in both the original 1931 production and the 1933 Broadway revival of George and Ira Gershwin's Of Thee I Sing; and appeared in the original Broadway casts of Louisiana Purchase (1941) and Oklahoma! (1943). His final stage appearance was in 1951 as Arvide Abernathy in the first national tour of Guys and Dolls. He died three weeks after leaving that tour in September 1951 at the age of 66.

Early life and career

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Ralph Riggs was born in St. Paul, Minnesota on February 12, 1885.[1] His father, Charles A. Riggs, was a cornettist, composer, and theatrical impresario and manager.[2] His mother was the actress Rose Stillman who had her own touring theatre troupe during the 19th century. He made his professional stage debut as a baby; playing the part of Eliza's child in Uncle Tom's Cabin when he was less than a year old.[3] His first speaking role in a professional stage play was at the age of three.[4] In his childhood and as an adult he assisted his parents in the business end of their various theatrical ventures; including aiding his father in managing a chain of theaters that the family owned on the Pacific Coast of the United States which was based out of Fresno, California.[4]

The Boston Globe stated that by the age of 10 Riggs was a "veteran actor" who had appeared in productions of Little Lord Fauntleroy and Ten Nights in a Barroom.[5] In 1895 he appeared in California theaters in the title role of a stage adaptation of the children's novel Editha's Burglar by Frances Hodgson Burnett,[6] and played the role of Oliver Twist in a stage version of the novel by Charles Dickens.[7] In 1896 he appeared with his mother's company as Sam Willoughby in The Ticket-of-Leave Man.[8] In the summer of 1898 he was appearing as a dancer and comedian in vaudeville in Texas in a program that included his mother and the actor and singer George Kunkel.[9] Riggs performed at this time as a solo dancer, and in a comedy sketch that he performed in partnership with the actress Grace Bell.[10]

Riggs resumed work in his mother's stock theatre troupe for performances in Oklahoma and New Mexico in the 1898–1899 season.[11][12][13] Other plays he performed in with his mother's company included The Pink Dominos (1899),[14] The Open Gate (1899),[15] and Charley's Aunt (1899).[16] In February 1900 the company organized performances in Albuquerque featuring contralto Sofia Scalchi at which time Ralph was listed alongside his mother as a co-manager of the comapny.[17] The following summer, advertisements and newspaper reviews for the company in Las Vegas and Texas had it billed as the Riggs Stock Company, but with mainly the same performers including Rose Stillman whose name was no longer used.[18][19] Plays in the company's repertoire at this time included Stanislaus Stange's Quo Vadis and Little Lord Fauntleroy.[18]

By January 1901 the family theatre troupe was once again going by the name the Rose Stillman Stock Company for performances in Louisiana.[20] Riggs's repertoire with the company in 1901 included Judge Lovelace in Justin Adams's T'riss; Or, Beyond the Rockies,[21] Lord Bobberly (a.k.a. Charley's Aunt) in Charley's Aunt,[22] Charles Shackleton in Jane,[23] Tegillenus in Quo Vadis, and Duke Serge in The Clemenceau Case after the novel by Alexandre Dumas.[24]

Operetta baritone and comedian

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1904 advertisement for Ralph Riggs as Hans Nix in The Telephone Girl.

By July 1902 Riggs had joined the Boston Ideal Opera Company (BIOC) with whom he first appeared as Knee-Ban in Gilbert and Sullivan's The Mikado.[25] By the following September he was performing in that same opera with the Ed Andrews Opera Company (EAOC), but in the larger part of Pish Tash.[26] Newspapers reported that he was a baritone with the company.[27] Other roles he performed with the EAOC in 1902–1903 included Nocky in Richard Stahl and Scott Marble's Said Pasha,[28] Giacomo in Daniel Auber's Fra Diavolo,[29] the Sheriff in Friedrich von Flotow's Martha,[30][31] the notary in Les cloches de Corneville,[32] and Florestein in The Bohemian Girl.[33] He rejoined the BIOC for their 1903 summer season in many of the same roles,[34] and then resumed performing with the EAOC for the 1903–1904 season.[35][36] This season included a new comic opera crafted by Andrews, Birds of a Feather, which featured Riggs's gifts as a dancer and comedian in the role of Sergeant Bonner.[37][38]

In April 1904 Riggs joined a touring production of The Telephone Girl in which he played the role of Snuffles[39] and his mother starred in the title role.[40] By the following September he had taken over the part of Hans Nix in the production.[41] In 1905 he resumed work with the EAOC; once again performing in Birds of a Feather[42] and as Tweedlepunch in Florodora.[43] He toured in the latter work in the latter part of 1906 in his own opera comany, the Ralph Riggs Opera Company.[44][45][46] In 1906 his opera company toured in productions of The Rajah of Altara with Riggs in the title role[47][48] and Edmond Audran's La mascotte.[49]

In the 1906–1907 season Riggs starred in a new musical, The College Boy,[50][51] in a cast that included his future wife, Katherine Witchie[52] whom he married in 1910.[53] The cast was largely made up of Riggs's relatives which included his mother portraying the role of his character's wife in the production. All told he was related to eight of the ten cast members, another one of which was his brother, Bernard Riggs, in the role of the professor.[54] A success, the family continued to tour the production in the 1907–1908 season,[55][56][57] and the company continued to keep the work in rotation in the 1908–1909 season alongside The Bachelor and the Maid and It's All on the Quiet.[58] Riggs and his wife then toured in Joseph E. Howard's musical Miss Nobody from Starland in 1910–1911. In this show Riggs portraying the lead male role of Preston Halliday opposite Olive Vail in the title part.[59][60][61][62][63][64]

Broadway and Witchie and Riggs

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Ralph Riggs as Bertie Ashland and Katherine Witchie as Gabrielle Fourneaux in The Princess Pat.

Riggs's 1951 obituary in the New York Daily News stated that he made his Broadway debut in 1907 but did not name the role.[65] Newspaper accounts from that year state that he starred in operetta revivals on the New York stage but did not provide further details.[56][51] However, The New York Times stated in its published obituary on his wife that the couple made their Broadway debuts together in 1911 in Victor Herbert's The Enchantress.[66] The couple performed together as a dance team known as Witchie and Riggs. They initially toured in vaudeville together in the Orpheum Circuit, before appearing together in several Broadway shows.[66]

In The Enchantress Riggs portrayed the comedic role of Troute, the buffoonish head of the secret service, and Witchie portrayed Nina, the maid. They performed these roles in the premiere of the operetta at the National Theatre in Washington, D.C. on October 9, 1911,[67] and remained with the production when it transferred to Broadway's New York Theatre later that month.[68] They later toured nationally in these parts from January 1912[69] through March 1913;[70] with the tour ending abruptly due to the impact of the Great Flood of 1913 which stranded the theatre company.[71]

In June 1913 Riggs and Witchie returned to Broadway in the premiere of E. Ray Goetz's musical All Aboard at the Lew Fields' 44th Street Roof Garden on June 5, 1913.[72] A work written as a starring vehicle for Lew Fields, Riggs portrayed the role of Mr. Ruff and was featured in the show singing the song "Captain Kidd" in addition to dancing with his wife who portrayed the part of Margot.[73] For this show the couple invented a new dance which they called the "tango bolero" which blended steps from the Argentine tango and the Spanish bolero.[74] After the production left Broadway they remained in the company for its 1913-1914 national tour.[75][76][77][4]

In August 1915 Riggs and Witchie ended a period touring in vaudeville when they were cast in Victor Herbert and Henry Blossom's new operetta The Princess Pat.[78] The operetta premiered at the Cort Theatre in Atlantic City on August 26, 1915,[79] and then played at the Lyric Theatre in Philadelphia.[80] It transferred to Broadway's Cort Theatre where it opened on September 29, 1915. It ran until February 12, 1916 with Riggs as Bertie Ashland and Witchie as Gabrielle Fourneaux. The couple had a featured dance, "Dance Divertisement", in the third act of the show.[81] The New York Tribune reported in its review that the couple's dance was so well received that they repeated it multiple times due to the audience's demand for several encores.[82] The couple toured North America in The Princess Pat after the end of its Broadway run in 1916.[83][84][85][86][87][88]

In 1917 Riggs and Witchie were headliners in the Orpheum Circuit in an act titled "Dance Divertisements".[89][90] The Oregonian review of their act compared Riggs favorably to Russian ballet dancer Vaslav Nijinsky.[91] In the Autumn of 1917 the couple appeared at the Empire Theatre in London's West End and at theatres in the British provinces in Albert de Courville's revue Here and There.[92][93][94] In 1919 they returned to Broadway in the The Passing Show of 1919. They toured together in Gilbert and Sullivan operettas in the years following World War I.[66]

References

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Citations

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  1. ^ Ralph Riggs in "Deaths Reported in New York City in 1951", New York, New York, U.S., Death Index, 1949–1965, page 439
  2. ^ "Veteran Showman in Reminiscent". Escanaba Morning Press. January 21, 1913. p. 7.
  3. ^ Associated Press (September 17, 1951). "Ralph Riggs Dies; Dancer and Actor". Daily Press. p. 11.
  4. ^ a b c "Very Busy Career: Ralph Riggs Born and Reared on Stage". The Boston Globe. January 19, 1914. p. 15.
  5. ^ "Ralph Riggs". The Boston Globe. September 17, 1951. p. 15.
  6. ^ "The Babby Wins Success". The San Bernardino County Sun. October 29, 1895. p. 4.
  7. ^ "To Play Oliver Twist". Daily Times-Index. October 30, 1895. p. 5.
  8. ^ "Ticket of Leave Man". The Modesto Bee. Apr 22, 1896. p. 3.
  9. ^ "Hyde Park Pavilion". Austin American-Statesman. July 1, 1898. p. 3.
  10. ^ "Hyde Park Pavilion". Austin American-Statesman. July 8, 1898. p. 3.
  11. ^ "The Rose Stillman Stock Company". The Purcell Register. December 23, 1898. p. 7.
  12. ^ "At M'Kennon's Opera House". The Oklahoma State Capital. January 5, 1899. p. 1.
  13. ^ "Rose Stillman Company". Albuquerque Journal. May 19, 1899. p. 5.
  14. ^ "Pink Dominos". Albuquerque Journal. July 19, 1899. p. 4.
  15. ^ "Rose Stillman Stock". The Albuquerque Tribune. June 6, 1899. p. 3.
  16. ^ "Charlie's Aunt". The Santa Fe New Mexican. July 27, 1899. p. 4.
  17. ^ "Scalchi". Albuquerque Journal. February 15, 1900. p. 2.
  18. ^ a b "Riggs Stock Company". Las Vegas Daily Optic. July 23, 1900. p. 1.
  19. ^ "The Riggs Stock Company". El Paso Herald. August 10, 1900. p. 4.
  20. ^ "An Excellent Performance: The Rose Stillman Company Continues to Give Entire Satisfaction". The Shreveport Journal. January 17, 1901. p. 6.
  21. ^ "Beyond the Rockies". The Shreveport Journal. January 21, 1901. p. 8.
  22. ^ "The Rose Stillman Company". The Vicksburg Herald. March 6, 1901. p. 6.
  23. ^ "Rose Stillman". The Tahlequah Arrow. July 27, 1901. p. 5.
  24. ^ "Edwards Opera House". Parsons Daily Eclipse. May 27, 1901. p. 4.
  25. ^ "George Andrews Here". Quad-City Times. July 8, 1902. p. 7.
  26. ^ "Mikado Please". Argus-Leader. September 3, 1902. p. 5.
  27. ^ "Edward Andrews". Devils Lake Inter-Ocean. October 23, 1903. p. 7.
  28. ^ "Opens for a Week". The Davenport Times. July 15, 1902. p. 4.
  29. ^ "Another Week of Opera". Quad-City Times. July 20, 1902. p. 8.
  30. ^ "Fra Diavolo Tonight". Quad-City Times. July 22, 1902. p. 6.
  31. ^ "The Theater". Argus-Leader. May 1, 1903. p. 3.
  32. ^ "Last Evening's Opera". Quad-City Times. July 25, 1902. p. 7.
  33. ^ "New Park Opens Saturday Night". The Muscatine Journal. August 6, 1902. p. 8.
  34. ^ "Light Opera At the Park". Green Bay Press-Gazette. July 9, 1903. p. 5.
  35. ^ "Town Gossip". Baraboo News Republic. September 4, 1903. p. 3.
  36. ^ "Grand Opera House". Winfield Daily Courier. February 23, 1904. p. 2.
  37. ^ "Last Night's Entertainment". Beatrice Daily Sun. December 5, 1903. p. 1.
  38. ^ "Birds of a Feather". Winfield Daily Courier. February 29, 1904. p. 3.
  39. ^ "The Telephone Girl At Grand". The Morning Examiner. April 13, 1904. p. 8.
  40. ^ "Do Not Miss It". Lead Daily Call. June 28, 1904. p. 4.
  41. ^ "Telephone Girl". The Pioneer. September 14, 1904. p. 2.
  42. ^ "Birds of a Feather". The Wakefield Republican. February 10, 1905. p. 1.
  43. ^ "In the Theatrical World". The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette. August 16, 1905. p. 7.
  44. ^ "Florodora At the Grand". Decorah Public Opinion. November 1, 1905. p. 2.
  45. ^ "Old Piece Draws A Large Crowd". Freeport Daily Bulletin. November 2, 1905. p. 4.
  46. ^ "Good Business Here". The Sioux City Journal. December 6, 1905. p. 8.
  47. ^ "The Rajah of Altara". The Nebraska Journal-Leader. February 1, 1906. p. 5.
  48. ^ "The Rajah of Altara". The Sioux City Journal. February 23, 1906. p. 7.
  49. ^ "Ralph Riggs". Green Bay Press-Gazette. June 25, 1906. p. 3.
  50. ^ "Mr. Ralph Riggs". The Cedar Rapids Republican. November 18, 1906. p. 13.
  51. ^ a b "Ralph Riggs". Tulsa World. March 1, 1907. p. 3.
  52. ^ "The Theater". Argus-Leader. September 4, 1906. p. 6.
  53. ^ "Married". The New York Dramatic Mirror. 63: 10. June 18, 1910.
  54. ^ "Family Was All There". The Maryville Tribune. January 3, 1907. p. 2.
  55. ^ "College Boy". Butler Daily Democrat. January 2, 1908. p. 3.
  56. ^ a b "Ralph Riggs". The Cedar Rapids Gazette. November 9, 1907. p. 4.
  57. ^ "The College Boys". The Arizona Republic. March 27, 1908. p. 10.
  58. ^ "Fine Plays for Fair Week". New Ulm Review. September 9, 1908. p. 1.
  59. ^ "Another Howard Show Coming". The Topeka State Journal. August 20, 1910. p. 3.
  60. ^ "Olympic, Garrick and Century Will Open Next Week". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. August 28, 1910. p. 19.
  61. ^ "Miss Nobody Is the Best Ever". The Kansas City Post. September 5, 1910. p. 7.
  62. ^ "At Tulsa's Theatres". Tulsa World. October 4, 1910. p. 12.
  63. ^ "Miss Nobody from Starland". Fort Wayne Daily News. January 2, 1911. p. 7.
  64. ^ "The Stage". Detroit Evening Times. January 12, 1911. p. 8.
  65. ^ "Ralph Riggs". New York Daily News. September 17, 1951. p. ML40.
  66. ^ a b c "Katharine Witchie Riggs, Member of Dance Team". The New York Times. April 21, 1967. p. 39.
  67. ^ "National: The Enchantress". The Washington Post. October 10, 1911. p. 4.
  68. ^ "Music That Charms by Victor Herbert; in The Enchantress, Which Raises Kitty Gordon to the Stars". The New York Times. October 20, 1911. p. 13.
  69. ^ "Chestnut St. Opera House". Coatesville Record. January 27, 1912. p. 3.
  70. ^ "Stage Jottings: The Opera House". The Lexington Herald. March 23, 1913. p. 30.
  71. ^ "Stranded by Flood". The Evening Chronicle. April 12, 1913. p. 3.
  72. ^ "ALL ABOARD' BIG HIT NEW ROOF DELIGHTS; An Exceptionally Fine Summer Show in Attractive Surroundings Atop 44th St. Theatre". The New York Times. June 6, 1913. p. 11.
  73. ^ Dietz 2021, pp. 219–220.
  74. ^ "The Ballroom Tango". The Buffalo Enquirer. August 7, 1913. p. 11.
  75. ^ "All Aboard! A Laugh Maker". The Brooklyn Daily Times. September 16, 1913. p. 3.
  76. ^ "Cubists Dance in Fields' All Aboard". The Cincinnati Post. November 29, 1913. p. 2.
  77. ^ "Lew Fields in All Aboard". The Kansas City Star. November 8, 1913. p. 4.
  78. ^ "Belle Baker at the New Brighton". The Brooklyn Citizen. August 3, 1915. p. 7.
  79. ^ "Victor Herbert Conducts Tonight". Press of Atlantic City. August 26, 1915. p. 10.
  80. ^ ""Princess Pat" Good Music and Blarney". Evening Public Ledger. September 7, 1915. p. 7.
  81. ^ Dietz 2021, pp. 323–324.
  82. ^ "Princess Pat is a Merry Colleen". New-York Tribune. October 1, 1915. p. 9.
  83. ^ "Dancer of Real Merit: Ralph Riggs and Katherine Witchie to Appear Here". The Brooklyn Citizen. February 16, 1916. p. 6.
  84. ^ ""Princess Pat" a Bit of the Good in Comic Opera". The Plain Dealer. March 8, 1916. p. 7.
  85. ^ "Garrick Theatre". The Windsor Star. April 1, 1916. p. 8.
  86. ^ "The "Princess Pat" at Apollo Tonight". Press of Atlantic City. September 11, 1916. p. 11.
  87. ^ "A Parlor Comic Opera at the Garrick". Chicago Tribune. October 3, 1916. p. 17.
  88. ^ ""The Princess Pat"". The Indianapolis Star. December 17, 1916. p. 54.
  89. ^ "Orpheum: Ralph Riggs and Katherine Witchie". The Calgary Albertan. January 15, 1917. p. 6.
  90. ^ "Orpheum". Oakland Tribune. February 18, 1917. p. 13.
  91. ^ "The Oregonian". February 5, 1917. p. 16.
  92. ^ "Dramatic Personae". The Observer. November 11, 1917. p. 5.
  93. ^ "Stage Gossip". Birmingham Gazette. October 20, 1917. p. 3.
  94. ^ "Palace Theatre". Hull Evening News. November 3, 1917. p. 2.

Bibliography

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