Red Skelton
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The son of a former circus clown turned grocer and a cleaning woman, Red Skelton was introduced to show business at the age of 7 by Ed Wynn, at a vaudeville show in Vincennes. At age 10, he left home to travel with a medicine show through the Midwest, and joined the vaudeville circuit at age 15. At age 17, he married Edna Marie Stilwell, an usher who became his vaudeville partner and later his chief writer and manager. He debuted on Broadway and radio in 1937 and on film in 1938. His ex-wife/manager negotiated a seven-year Hollywood contract for him in 1951, the same year The Red Skelton Hour (1951) premiered on NBC. For two decades, until 1971, his show consistently stayed in the top twenty, both on NBC and CBS. His numerous characters, including Clem Kaddiddlehopper, George Appleby, and the seagulls Gertrude and Heathcliffe delighted audiences for decades. First and foremost, he considered himself a clown, although not the greatest, and his paintings of clowns brought in a fortune after he left television. His home life was not completely happy--two divorces and a son Richard who died of leukemia at age 9--and he did not hang around with other comedians. He continued performing live until illness, and he was a longtime supporter of children's charities. Red Skelton died at age 84 of pneumonia in Rancho Mirage, California, on September 17, 1997. Red is interred at Forest Lawn Cemetery, Glendale, California, in the Great Mausoleum, Sanctuary of Benediction.
Known for
Credits
Ocean's Eleven (1960)
as Self
Around the World in 80 Days (1956)
as Drunk in Barbary Coast Saloon
Bathing Beauty (1944)
as Steve Elliott
Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines or How I Flew from London to Paris in 25 Hours 11 Minutes (1965)
as The Neanderthal Man
That's Entertainment! (1974)
as (archive footage) (uncredited)
That's Dancing! (1985)
as From 'Bathing Beauty' (archive footage)
I Dood It (1943)
as Joseph 'Joe' Rivington Renolds
The Fuller Brush Girl (1950)
as Red Skelton - Fuller Brush Man (uncredited)
Ziegfeld Follies (1945)
as J. Newton Numbskull (segment "When Television Comes")
Twenty Years After (1944)
as (archive footage)
That's Entertainment, Part II (1976)
as (archive footage)
Du Barry Was a Lady (1943)
as Louis Blore / King Louis
Rudolph's Shiny New Year (1976)
as Father Time / Baby Bear (voice)
Television: The First Fifty Years (1999)
as Buffalo Bob Smith / Howdy Doody (archive footage)
Susan Slept Here (1954)
as Oswald from North Dakota (uncredited)
The Clown (1953)
as Dodo Delwyn
Neptune's Daughter (1949)
as Jack Spratt
Three Little Words (1950)
as Harry Ruby
Half a Hero (1953)
as Ben Dobson
Seeing Red (1939)
as Red / Doorman / Coatroom Attendant / Waiter / Emcee
Whistling in the Dark (1941)
as Wally Benton
The Fuller Brush Man (1948)
as Red Jones
Flight Command (1940)
as Lieut. 'Mugger' Martin
Lady Be Good (1941)
as Joe 'Red' Willet
The Dean Martin Christmas Show (1968)
as Self (uncredited)
Panama Hattie (1942)
as Red
The Big Parade of Comedy (1964)
as Aubrey Filmore in 'A Southern Yankee' (archive footage)
Hollywood's Funniest All-Star Bloopers (1985)
as Self (archive footage)
Clown Alley (1966)
as Freddie the Freeloader
Pioneers of Primetime (2005)
Actor
Ship Ahoy (1942)
as Merton K. Kibble
Thousands Cheer (1943)
as Red Skelton
The Great Diamond Robbery (1954)
as Ambrose C. Park
The People Vs. Dr. Kildare (1941)
as Vernon Briggs
Swing Out, Sweet Land (1970)
as Self
The Show-Off (1946)
as J. Aubrey Piper
Texas Carnival (1951)
as Cornie Quinell
Inside the Dream Factory (1995)
as Self
Watch the Birdie (1950)
as Rusty Cammeron / Pop Cammeron / Grandpop Cammeron
Merton of the Movies (1947)
as Merton Gill aka Clifford Armytage
Having Wonderful Time (1938)
as Itchy
Whistling in Dixie (1942)
as Wally Benton
A Southern Yankee (1948)
as Aubrey Filmore
Jack Benny's 20th Anniversary TV Special (1970)
as Self (uncredited)
Public Pigeon No. 1 (1957)
as Rusty Morgan
Lovely to Look At (1952)
as Al Marsh
Excuse My Dust (1951)
as Joe Belden
The People's Command Performance: '77 (1977)
as Self
Dr. Kildare's Wedding Day (1941)
as Vernon Briggs
Honor America Day (1970)
as Self
A Brave Engineer: Buster Keaton's Last Ride (2026)
as Self (Archival)
Whistling in Brooklyn (1943)
as Wally 'The Fox' Benton
The Hollywood Clowns (1979)
as (archive footage)
Maisie Gets Her Man (1942)
as Herbert P. 'Hap' Hixby
The Yellow Cab Man (1950)
as Augustus 'Red' Pirdy
The Man in the Funny Suit (1960)
as Self
Freddie the Freeloader's Christmas Dinner (1981)
as Freddie the Freeloader
The Country Husband (1956)
as Self - Announcing Next Week's Show
America on Parade (1976)
as Host
The Broadway Buckaroo (1939)
as Red
Red Skelton: Bloopers, Blunders, and Ad Libs (2001)
as Himself (Host)/Various Characters
Red Skelton: America's Greatest Clown (2005)
as Red Skelton
A Tribute to Houdini (1987)
as Self
Red Skelton: A Royal Command Performance (1984)
as Himself
Red Skelton Christmas Classics (1955)
as Main