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Dave King

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Overview

Dave King (born David Kingshott; 23 June 1929 – 15 April 2002) was an English comedian, actor and vocalist of popular songs. He is remembered for screen roles such as the corrupt policeman 'Parky' in the British gangster film The Long Good Friday (1980) and Clifford Duckworth in the soap opera Coronation Street. Life and career Born in Twickenham, Middlesex, England, King left school aged 12 and joined Morton Fraser's Harmonica Gang in his teens. He did his National Service in the RAF and was in the unit's repertory company. On being demobilised, he returned to variety and later became a solo act as a comedy impressionist in 1952. A television appearance on Easter Music Hall in April 1954 led to his compering the monthly BBC-TV series Showcase beginning on January 24, 1955 and being given a monthly series on the BBC starting on October 15, 1955. The next year he turned to singing, while continuing to perform on television. During the seaside summer season of 1956 he performed at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool. He starred in The Dave King Show. During the 1950s he also starred in the same show alongside Shani Wallis. In 1958, King moved to ITV with The Dave King Show which was song, dance and comedy with famous guests of the day. King scored four hits on the UK Singles Chart in the middle of the 1950s. The biggest were "Memories Are Made of This (No. 5, 1956) and "You Can't Be True to Two" (No. 11, 1956), both of which featured a backing group called the Keynotes. He also charted with "Christmas and You" (No. 23, 1956) and "The Story of My Life" (No. 20, 1958). He appeared on Decca Records' All Star Hit Parade charity record in 1956 along with other major Decca artists Dickie Valentine, Joan Regan, Winifred Atwell, Lita Roza and David Whitfield. That record charted at No. 2 in the UK Singles Chart. In 1959, he went to the United States and hosted the country's high-profile Kraft Music Hall on 19 occasions, but otherwise had limited success despite Mel Brooks joining his regular writers Sid Green and Dick Hills. On returning to the United Kingdom, he found that the public's taste in comedy had changed. Dave's Kingdom ran on ITV in 1964, again made by ATV, but was less successful than King's earlier TV work.

From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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Overview

Dave King (born David Kingshott; 23 June 1929 – 15 April 2002) was an English comedian, actor and vocalist of popular songs. He is remembered for screen roles such as the corrupt policeman 'Parky' in the British gangster film The Long Good Friday (1980) and Clifford Duckworth in the soap opera Coronation Street. Life and career Born in Twickenham, Middlesex, England, King left school aged 12 and joined Morton Fraser's Harmonica Gang in his teens. He did his National Service in the RAF and was in the unit's repertory company. On being demobilised, he returned to variety and later became a solo act as a comedy impressionist in 1952. A television appearance on Easter Music Hall in April 1954 led to his compering the monthly BBC-TV series Showcase beginning on January 24, 1955 and being given a monthly series on the BBC starting on October 15, 1955. The next year he turned to singing, while continuing to perform on television. During the seaside summer season of 1956 he performed at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool. He starred in The Dave King Show. During the 1950s he also starred in the same show alongside Shani Wallis. In 1958, King moved to ITV with The Dave King Show which was song, dance and comedy with famous guests of the day. King scored four hits on the UK Singles Chart in the middle of the 1950s. The biggest were "Memories Are Made of This (No. 5, 1956) and "You Can't Be True to Two" (No. 11, 1956), both of which featured a backing group called the Keynotes. He also charted with "Christmas and You" (No. 23, 1956) and "The Story of My Life" (No. 20, 1958). He appeared on Decca Records' All Star Hit Parade charity record in 1956 along with other major Decca artists Dickie Valentine, Joan Regan, Winifred Atwell, Lita Roza and David Whitfield. That record charted at No. 2 in the UK Singles Chart. In 1959, he went to the United States and hosted the country's high-profile Kraft Music Hall on 19 occasions, but otherwise had limited success despite Mel Brooks joining his regular writers Sid Green and Dick Hills. On returning to the United Kingdom, he found that the public's taste in comedy had changed. Dave's Kingdom ran on ITV in 1964, again made by ATV, but was less successful than King's earlier TV work.

From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).