Biography
Born on 24 April 1892 in Ely, England, and passing away on 25 March 1978 in London, England, Jack Hulbert enjoyed a long career as an actor, singer, dancer, director, author, choreographer and producer. Onstage he cultivated a briskly cheerful persona that came across as quintessentially British, complete with the catchphrase “I say, old chap.” While an undergraduate at Cambridge University he first explored these talents through student shows. In 1913, during the West End run of The Pearl Girl, he encountered Cicely Courtneidge, daughter of producer Robert Courtneidge; the couple married three years later. That production marked the beginning of thirteen musicals in which the pair would appear side by side.
In the ensuing decade Hulbert built his reputation through a string of musical comedies and revues that included The Cinema Star, The Arcadians, The Light Blues—on which he also served as co-librettist—See-Saw, Bubbly, Bran-Pie, A Little Dutch Girl, Ring Up, Pot Luck and The Little Revue Starts At 9 (1923). Beginning in 1925 he increasingly took on the roles of co-producer, director and occasional choreographer, most often for vehicles in which he himself performed; among these were By The Way (seen in both London and New York), Lido Lady, Clowns In Clover, The House That Jack Built, Follow A Star (1930), Under Your Hat, Full Swing and Something In The Air (1943).
After the Second World War, the arrival of Oklahoma! and other large-scale American imports left less room for Hulbert’s urbane, light-comedy manner, yet he still guided Cicely Courtneidge to success in the 1951 hit Gay’s The Word. Over the years he introduced several well-known numbers, among them “The Flies Crawled Up The Window,” “My Hat’s On The Side Of My Head,” “She’s Such A Comfort To Me” and the duet “I Was Anything But Sentimental,” which he performed with his wife in their 1937 film Take My Tip. During the 1930s Hulbert and Courtneidge proved equally popular on screen, appearing together in light comedies such as Elstree Calling (1930), The Ghost Train, Jack’s The Boy, Bulldog Jack, Paradise For Two and Kate Plus Ten. Later screen credits were fewer and included Under Your Hat (1940), Into The Blue (1951), Spider’s Web (1960) and Not Now Darling (1973).
In the ensuing decade Hulbert built his reputation through a string of musical comedies and revues that included The Cinema Star, The Arcadians, The Light Blues—on which he also served as co-librettist—See-Saw, Bubbly, Bran-Pie, A Little Dutch Girl, Ring Up, Pot Luck and The Little Revue Starts At 9 (1923). Beginning in 1925 he increasingly took on the roles of co-producer, director and occasional choreographer, most often for vehicles in which he himself performed; among these were By The Way (seen in both London and New York), Lido Lady, Clowns In Clover, The House That Jack Built, Follow A Star (1930), Under Your Hat, Full Swing and Something In The Air (1943).
After the Second World War, the arrival of Oklahoma! and other large-scale American imports left less room for Hulbert’s urbane, light-comedy manner, yet he still guided Cicely Courtneidge to success in the 1951 hit Gay’s The Word. Over the years he introduced several well-known numbers, among them “The Flies Crawled Up The Window,” “My Hat’s On The Side Of My Head,” “She’s Such A Comfort To Me” and the duet “I Was Anything But Sentimental,” which he performed with his wife in their 1937 film Take My Tip. During the 1930s Hulbert and Courtneidge proved equally popular on screen, appearing together in light comedies such as Elstree Calling (1930), The Ghost Train, Jack’s The Boy, Bulldog Jack, Paradise For Two and Kate Plus Ten. Later screen credits were fewer and included Under Your Hat (1940), Into The Blue (1951), Spider’s Web (1960) and Not Now Darling (1973).