Jerome Sykes (June 24, 1868 - December 29, 1903)[2][3] was an American stage actor, singer and comedian. He was perhaps best known for his performances as Foxy Quiller in two theatrical productions. His brother Albert S Sykes was also an actor.[citation needed]
Jerome Sykes | |
|---|---|
 Sykes as pictured in The Players Blue Book in 1901 | |
| Born | Jerome H. Sykes June 24, 1868 Washington, D. C., U.S.[1] |
| Died | December 29, 1903 (aged 35) Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Resting place | Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York City, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, comedian |
| Spouses |
|
Early life
editSykes was born in Washington, D.C.,[3] under the name of Henry Karl August Seitz and grew up in a house where part of the Library of Congress now stands.[4] He "was a member of a famous family of actors ..."[5]
Career
editSykes' professional debut came in the 1884-1885 season[6] in a performance of The Mikado with the Ford Opera Company in Baltimore.[3] His biggest Broadway success was The Billionaire (1902-03) which had in its cast May Robson and Sallie Fisher and was the New York debut of Marie Doro.[7] His other Broadway credits included Foxy Quiller (In Corsica) (1900), Chris and the Wonderful Lamp (1900), and The Three Dragoons (1899).[8]
Sykes portrayed Constable Foxy Quiller in The Highwayman, which became popular enough that it resulted in a sequel, Foxy Quiller.[9]
Death
editDuring a party feted for Sykes and The Billionaire in Chicago, Sykes caught pneumonia while wearing too few clothes in the dead of winter, and died at 35.[10] After his body was temporarily stored in a receiving tomb at Greenwood Cemetery, he was buried at St. James Episcopal Cemetery in St. James, New York, where his family had a summer residence for many years.[5]
Sykes was married twice, to Agnes Sherwood, who died in 1896 and to actress Jessie Wood.[11][unreliable source?]
References
edit- ^ The Washington Times; Sunday February 28 1904; STAGELAND FAVORITES WHO ARE NATIVES OF WASHINGTON
- ^ American and British Theatrical Biography p.895 c.1979 by J. P. Wearing ISBN 0-8108-1201-0
- ^ a b c "Dead Actor a Favorite Here". Sioux City Journal. Iowa, Sioux City. December 31, 1903. p. 6. Retrieved October 18, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ ...see The Hatching Cat
- ^ a b Fleming, Geoffrey K. (2006). St. James. Arcadia Publishing. p. 75. ISBN 9780738546100. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
- ^ Strang, Lewis Clinton (1900). Famous Stars of Light Opera. L.C. Page. pp. 154-167. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
Jerome Sykes.
- ^ Pictorial History of the American Theater: 1860-1985, p.69 c.1985 by Daniel Blum ISBN 0-517-562588
- ^ "Jerome Sykes". Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League. Archived from the original on 18 October 2018. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
- ^ Franceschina, John (2004). Harry B. Smith: Dean of American Librettists. Routledge. p. 130. ISBN 9781135949082. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
- ^ The Topeka State Journal December 30, 1903; JEROME SYKES IS DEAD, Comic Opera Star a Victim of Pneumonia
- ^ THE HATCHING CAT, True and Unusual Animal Tales of Old New York...[Sir Oliver the Parrot, the Mascot of the Lambs]
External links
edit
- Jerome Sykes at IBDb.com
- Macauley Theatre Collection[permanent dead link](Univ. of Louisville)
- Jerome Sykes(City Museum of New York)
- site concerning 1903 Iroquois Theater fire, Chicago