Throwback Thursday Musical Showcase: Stubby Kaye Sings "Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat" From "Guys & Dolls"

Bernard Solomon (Sholom) Kotzin (1918-1997), known as Stubby Kaye, was an American actor, comedian, vaudevillian, and singer, known for his appearances on Broadway and in film musicals.

Kaye was born on the last day of the First World War, at West 114th Street in the Morningside Heights section of Manhattan. His parents were first generation Jewish-Americans originally from Russia and Austria-Hungary. His father, David Kotzin, was a dress salesman, and the former Harriet "Hattie" Freundlish was his mother. He was raised in the Far Rockaway section of Queens and later in The Bronx, where he acted in student productions at DeWitt Clinton High School, and where he graduated in 1937. 

Kaye originated the roles of Nicely-Nicely Johnson in Guys and Dolls and Marryin' Sam in Li'l Abner, introducing two show-stopping numbers of the era: "Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat" and "Jubilation T. Cornpone." He reprised these roles in the movie versions of the two shows. Other well-known roles include Herman in Bob Fosse's Sweet Charity, Sam the Shade in Cat Ballou, and Marvin Acme in Who Framed Roger Rabbit.

In today's Throwback Thursday video, Kaye sings his show-stopping Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat from the 1955 movie version of Guys and Dolls.

Enjoy!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO. 

 

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The Great Jewish Comedians: Stubby Kaye Sings Political Satire in Li'l Abner

Bernard Solomon Kotzin (1918-1997), known as Stubby Kaye, was an American comic actor known for his appearances in Broadway and film musicals.

In 1939 he won the Major Bowes Amateur Hour contest on radio where the prize included touring in vaudeville, where he was sometimes billed as an "Extra Padded Attraction". During the Second World War he joined the USO where he toured battle fronts and made his London debut performing with Bob Hope. After the war he continued to work in vaudeville and as Master of Ceremonies for the swing orchestras of Freddy Martin and Charlie Barnet.

Directors viewed Kaye as a master of the Broadway idiom during the last phase of the musical comedy era. This was evidenced by his introduction of three show-stopping numbers of the era: “Fugue for Tinhorns” and “Sit Down, You’re Rockin’ the Boat” from Guys and Dolls (1950) and “Jubilation T. Cornpone” from Li'l Abner (1956). 

In 1953 he played in You Can't Run Away From It, a remake of It Happened One Night. Kaye is best known for defining the role of Nicely-Nicely Johnson in Guys and Dolls, first on Broadway and then in the film version. He also played Marryin' Sam in Li'l Abner, again on both stage and screen. In 1962, he played the title character in Michael Winner's The Cool Mikado.

In his role as Marryin' Sam in Li'l Abner, Kaye sang The Country's in the Very Best of Hands with Peter Palmer, who played the role of Abner. The song, a biting critique and parody of government and politics, is just as relevant today as when they sang it in 1959.

Enjoy!

(A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.)