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DAVE
KING - MAN OF LAUGHTER, SONG, TV AND FILM
Dave
King was born David Kingshott in Twickenham on June
23, 1929.
He
was interested in music from an early age, and joined
a group called Morton Fraser and his Harmonica Gang,
a variety act who based themselves on an identical
group in the United States Borrah Minevitch's Harmonica
Rascals.
He
left the group to do his national service in the RAF,
but rejoined afterwards. The group became very successful,
headlining theatres across Britain.
By
the middle part of the Fifties, he'd gone solo, and
was recording songs like Memories Are Made Of This,
which suited his laid back style. He was compared
to Perry Como and as he appeared on TV, the BBC decided
to give him his own show.
The
top joke writers of the day wrote for Dave King and
his show became immensely popular. He would talk with
the BBC announcers, something quite risqué
in those stiff upper lip days of the fifties. He combined
his humour with great timing. His show gave a break
to a young Tommy Cooper.
So
successful was he that ITV poached him off the BBC.
He became one of the first British acts to top the
bill at the London Palladium and his TV show was also
a hit in the US.
But when the inevitable finale came as it does with
most TV comedy shows, Dave King changed, chameleon
like, into another branch of showbusiness - acting.
He
appeared in a number of TV dramas, including, The
Sweeney, Bergerac, and Pennies From Heaven as a police
officer. He also starred in films including The Long
Good Friday with Bob Hoskins. He also had a cameo
role in the Crosby Hope film - The Road To Hong Kong.
As
a singer, as well as Dean Martin's classic, Dave recorded
many other cover versions of big American hits - High
Hopes and The Story Of My Life among them. His last
single release was in 1961 with the song Young In
Love, on the Pye label.
During
the Sixties, Dave worked in cabaret in the United
States, but by the end of the decade he was back in
Britain. It was during the seventies that he turned
his hand so well to British TV drama. And he won a
part in that long running and much loved TV soap opera
- Coronation Street, playing Clifford Duckworth.
Dave
King died on April 17, 2002, aged 72. His wife had
died some time before. Dave is survived by two daughters.
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