Summary
George Vere Hobart (1867–1926) was a Canadian-American humorist who authored more than 50 musical comedy librettos and plays as well as novels and songs.[1] At the time of his death, Hobart was "one of America's most popular humorists and playwrights".[2] Hobart gained initial national fame for the "Dinkelspiel" letters, a weekly satirical column written in a German-American dialect.[3][1] The Library of Congress includes several of his songs in the National Jukebox.[4]
George V. Hobart | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of George V. Hobart from the 1915 playbill for
Experience: A Morality Play of Today | |
| Born | George Vere Hobart January 16, 1867 Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada |
| Died | January 31, 1926 (aged 59) Cumberland, Maryland, USA |
| Occupation | Playwright, humorist |
| Period | 1890-1926 |
| Genre | Comedy, farce, satire |
| Notable works | Dinkelspiel |
| Spouse |
Sara De Vries
(m. 1897; died 1923) |
| Children | 2 |
Hobart also wrote under the pseudonym Hugh McHugh.[5] Many of his works were adapted into films.
Early life edit
Hobart was born 16 January 1867 in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada.[1] He immigrated to the Cumberland, Maryland to work as a telegraph operator for the United Press.[1]
Career edit
Hobart wrote humorous sketches and columns for the Sunday Scimitar and Baltimore News-American newspapers.[1] He then worked for a short time at the New York Journal, before turning his attention to writing musicals, librettos, novels and children's books.[1] Hobart is noted as an "exceptionally prolific" and versatile writer.[3]
His better-known stage plays include the morality tale Experience; Our Mrs. McChesney cowritten with Edna Ferber and starring Ethel Barrymore; Miss Prinnt with Marie Dressler; Sonny ; Hitchy-Koo of 1919 with music by Cole Porter ; Buddies and Sweet Sixteen.[1]
Among Hobart's notable books are John Henry, Down the Line, Back to the Woods, You Can Search Me and the 1904 novel Jim Hickey, A Story of the One-Night Stands.[2][6][7]
He wrote the lyrics to numerous songs.[8]
Hobart was also a member of the Lambs Club in New York City.[1]
Personal life edit
Hobart was married to the short story writer Sarah Humbird De Vries,[9] with whom he had two children.[10] She died in 1923. He died in Cumberland, Maryland, on 31 January 1926 following a "general break down" at age 59.[1]
Work edit
Songs edit
- "A Love-Lorn Lily" (1900)
- "By The Sycamore Tree" (1903)[11]
- "By The Old Oak Tree" (1904)
- "The Irish Girl I Love" (1905)
Plays edit
- A Million Dollars (1900)
- Broadway to Tokio (1900)
- Nell-Go-In (1900)
- Miss Prinnt (1900)
- The New Yorkers (1901)
- Sally in Our Alley (1902)
- The Jersey Lily (1903)
- Mother Goose (1903)
- Mrs. Black Is Back (1904)
- Coming Thro' The Rye (1906)
- Wildfire (1908)
- Alma, Where Do You Live? (1910)
- The Yankee Girl (1910)
- Welcome to Our City (1910)
- Experience (1914)
- Stop That Man (1915)
- Our Mrs. McChesney (1915)
- What's Your Husband Doing? (1917)
- Come-On, Charlie (1919)
- Buddies (1919)
- Hitchy-Koo of 1919 (1919)
- The Blue Flame (1920)
- Sonny (1921)
- Kissing Time, Broadway rendition
Bibliography edit
- Boobs
- John Henry (1901)
- Skiddoo
- You Should Worry
- Jim Hickey, A Story of the One-Night Stands (1904)
- Get Next! (1905)
- Down the Line With John Henry (1901)
- Back to the Woods : the Story of a Fall From Grace (1903)
- I'm from Missouri: (They Had to Show Me) (1904)
- The Silly Syclopedia (1905)
- Go to It (1908)
- D. Dinkelspiel: his gonversationings (1900)
- Out For the Coin
Films edit
- Mrs. Black Is Back, directed by Thomas N. Heffron (1914, based on the play Mrs. Black Is Back)
- Wildfire, directed by Edwin Middleton (1915, based on the play Wildfire)
- The Yankee Girl, directed by Jack J. Clark (1915, based on the play The Yankee Girl)
- The Wonderful Wager, directed by René Plaissetty (1916, short film, based on a story by George V. Hobart)
- Alma, Where Do You Live?, directed by Hal Clarendon (1917, based on the play Alma, Where Do You Live?)
- Madame Jealousy, directed by Robert G. Vignola (1918, based on a story by George V. Hobart)
- Our Mrs. McChesney, directed by Ralph Ince (1918, based on the play Our Mrs. McChesney)
- The Jungle Trail, directed by Richard Stanton (1919, based on a story by George V. Hobart)
- What's Your Husband Doing?, directed by Lloyd Ingraham (1920, based on the play What's Your Husband Doing?)
- Experience, directed by George Fitzmaurice (1921, based on the play Experience)
- Sonny, directed by Henry King (1922, based on the play Sonny)
- Welcome to Our City, directed by Leopold Wharton and Robin H. Townley (1922, based on the play Welcome to Our City)
- Wildfire, directed by T. Hayes Hunter (1925, based on the play Wildfire)
- Stop That Man!, directed by Nat Ross (1928, based on the play Stop That Man)
Screenwriter
- Mighty Lak' a Rose (dir. Edwin Carewe, 1923)
- Success (dir. Ralph Ince, 1923)
- The White Sister (dir. Henry King, 1923)
- Bad Company (dir. Edward H. Griffith, 1925)
References edit
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "G.V. Hobart, Humorist and Author Dies: Playwright and Author of Children's Books Has Break Down". The Fresno Morning Republican. Vol. 69, no. 32. Cumberland, MD. February 1, 1926. p. 1.
- ^ a b "George V. Hobart, Playwright and humorist, Is Dead". San Francisco Examiner. February 1, 1926. p. 5.
- ^ a b Kersten, Holger (1999). ""Nonsense, Satire, and Language Art: George V. Hobart's German-American Dialect Writing"". Thalia. 19 (1): 43–51 – via www.academia.edu.
- ^ "George V. Hobart". www.loc.gov.
- ^ Smith, Geoffrey D. (13 August 1997). American Fiction, 1901-1925: A Bibliography. Cambridge University Press. p. 320. ISBN 978-0-521-43469-0.
- ^ "Hobart, George V. 1867-1926 (George Vere) [WorldCat Identities]".
- ^ Acting version of Experience, produced by William Elliott, F. Ray Comstock and Morris Gest: A morality play of today. H.K. Fly Co. 1915.
- ^ "George V. Hobart (lyricist)'s scientific contributions". ResearchGate.
- ^ "The Creator of "Dinkenspiel"". The Texas Magazine. 1 (4): 47. February 1910.
- ^ "George V. Hobart, Playwright, Dies: Prolific Writer of Musical Comedy Librettos Succumbs After a Breakdown". New York Times. 1 February 1926. p. 19.
- ^ Hoffmann, Max; Hobart, George V. (January 1, 1903). By the Sycamore Tree. The Rogers Bros. Music Publishing Co – via digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu.
External links edit
Media related to George V. Hobart at Wikimedia Commons
- "George V. Hobart (Hobart, George V. (George Vere), 1867-1926) | The Online Books Page". onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu.
- Works by George V. Hobart at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)
