Eddie "Rochester" Anderson
| Eddie Anderson | ||
 Anderson as Rochester, c. 1947 | ||
| Background information | ||
| Born as: | Edmund Lincoln Anderson | |
| Born | Sep 18, 1905 Oakland, California, U.S. | |
| Died | Feb 28, 1977 - age 72 Los Angeles, California, U.S. | |
| Spouse(s): | Mamie Wiggins Nelson (1939 - 1954) died Eva Simon (1956 - 1973) divorced | |
| Children: | 4 | |
| Occupation: | Comedian, actor | |
| Years active | 1919–1973 | |
| Nationality: | American | |
Edmund Lincoln Anderson (✦September 18, 1905 – †February 28, 1977) was an American comedian and actor. To a generation of early radio and television comedy he was known as "Rochester".
Anderson entered show business as a teenager on the vaudeville circuit. In the early 1930s, he transitioned into films and radio. In 1937, he began his role of Rochester van Jones, usually known simply as "Rochester", the valet of Jack Benny, on his NBC radio show The Jack Benny Program. Anderson became the first African American to have a regular role on a nationwide radio program. When the series moved to CBS television in 1950, Anderson continued in the role until the series ended in 1965.
After the series ended, Anderson remained active with guest-starring roles on television and voice work in animated series. He was also an avid horse-racing fan who owned several racehorses and worked as a horse trainer at the Hollywood Park Racetrack. He was married twice and had four children. He died of heart disease in February 1977 at the age of 71.
Early life
Anderson was born in Oakland, California. His father, "Big Ed" Anderson, was a minstrel performer, while his mother, Ella Mae, had been a tightrope walker until her career was ended by a fall. He described himself as being a descendant of slaves who were able to leave the South during the Civil War through the Underground Railroad. At the age of ten, Anderson and his family moved from Oakland to San Francisco. He left school when he was 14 to work as an errand boy to help his family.
Stage-struck at an early age, he spent much of his free time waiting at stage doors and cutting up on street corners with his friend and brother, Cornelius. Anderson briefly tried being a jockey, but had to give it up when he became too heavy. Anderson started in show business as part of an all African American revue at age 14; he had previously won an amateur contest at a vaudeville theater in San Francisco. Anderson joined the cast of Struttin' Along in 1923 and was part of Steppin' High both as a dancer and as one of the "Three Black Aces" with his brother, Cornelius, in 1924. He later worked in vaudeville with Cornelius. Anderson began adding comedy to his song and dance act in 1926. During one of his vaudeville tours to the East Coast, Anderson first met Jack Benny; the men only exchanged greetings and shook hands.
Anderson's vocal cords were ruptured when he was a youngster selling newspapers in San Francisco. The newsboys believed those who could shout the loudest sold the most papers. The permanent damage to his vocal cords left him with the gravelly voice later familiar to both radio listeners and television viewers. Anderson was also a dancer and gained his show business start in this way, but it was his uniquely recognizable voice that brought him to stardom.
World War II
During World War II, Benny toured with his show, but Rochester did not, because discrimination in the armed forces would have required separate living quarters. However, during performances of the radio program staged before armed forces audiences at bases and military hospitals, the appearance of Rochester routinely drew enthusiastic applause that arguably often outstripped that received by other members of the cast, more so than in civilian audiences. Also referenced in Benny's posthumous autobiography, "Sunday Nights at Seven", was an episode at the conclusion of a broadcast originating at a military base that featured Rochester. Benny was reportedly at a table mingling with soldiers when one serviceman told Benny how he thought Rochester was really funny and one of his favorites. Benny asked if he would like to meet him, but the soldier declined to say that where he comes from, whites don't sit with people like Rochester. Appalled, Benny reportedly told him off and left the table.
In 1943, when Benny brought his entire radio show cast to Canada at his own expense to perform for those in the various branches of the Canadian services, Anderson and his wife received a warm welcome. Stateside, an incident was defused by Benny when, according to reporter Fredric W. Slater, Anderson was denied a room at the hotel where Benny and his staff were planning to stay in Saint Joseph, Missouri. When it was announced that Anderson could not stay there, Benny replied: "If he doesn't stay here, neither do I." The hotel allowed Anderson to remain as a guest.
It was not the only time a hotel refused Anderson a room. Soon after he became part of the permanent show cast, the program went on location to New York. When a couple from the South complained about staying in the same hotel as Anderson, the hotel manager tried to get him to find a room elsewhere. Hilliard Marks, the show's producer and also Jack Benny's brother-in-law, told the manager that Anderson would leave the hotel the next day. When he did, Jack Benny and the entire radio show cast and crew, totaling 44 people, joined Anderson in checking out of the hotel.
Among the most highly-paid performers of his time, Anderson invested wisely and became wealthy. Until the 1950s, Anderson was the highest-paid African American actor, receiving an annual salary of $100,000. In 1962, Anderson was on Ebony magazine's list of the 100 wealthiest African Americans. Despite this, he was so strongly identified with the "Rochester" role that many listeners of the radio program mistakenly persisted in the belief that he was Benny's actual valet. One such listener, after hearing Rochester's jokes about his low salary, drove Benny to distraction when he sent him a scolding letter concerning Rochester's alleged pay, and then sent another letter to Anderson, which urged him to sue Benny. In reality, Anderson did well enough to have his own valet.
The fact that Anderson was frequently seen at Benny's home may have helped perpetuate the idea that he was a valet to Benny. Benny held the first rehearsal of his weekly radio show at his home in Beverly Hills. Those riding the stars' homes tour buses in the morning often saw Anderson sitting on Benny's front steps, drinking from a quart of milk while waving and calling "Yoo Hoo!" to those on the tour bus. Anderson would not start rehearsal until after Benny's milkman arrived with some of his breakfast.
When Benny brought his show to television in 1950, Anderson as Rochester remained part of the cast until the television show left the air after the 1964–1965 season. In 1953, Anderson appeared as Rochester in an episode of The Milton Berle Show with the storyline being that Berle wanted to hire him away from Benny. He appeared on an episode of Bachelor Father in 1962 again as Rochester. The story was that the Gregg household had borrowed him, hoping some of the thrifty habits he learned working for Benny might cut their own expenses.
The high esteem in which Anderson and Benny held each other was evident. During a February 1958 taping of a Shower of Stars special to celebrate Benny's "40th birthday", Anderson suffered a mild heart attack. A Life magazine photo taken at the rehearsal after Anderson was taken to the hospital shows a concerned Benny, whose thoughts were not about the television show but about his friend. After the television show went off the air, it was four years before the two men worked together again. Though Benny was frequently working out of town during that time, he and Anderson still kept in touch; Anderson said, "We always exchange Christmas gifts and he's not as stingy as he pretends to be."
On the 1968 special Jack Benny's Bag, Benny introduced Anderson as "my lifelong friend, Rochester" and asked Anderson to work with him on a new television series. The plots brought up by Benny were of recent or current television shows, with Anderson reminding him that this had already been done. Benny then asked Anderson about coming back to work for him as his valet. Anderson replied, "Hold it, Blue Eyes, we don't do that any more." The following year, Rochester appeared again in the special Jack Benny's New Look, where Rochester drives Benny home in a Rolls-Royce after Benny's meeting with Gregory Peck to discuss appearing as a guest star.
- Benny: "Well Rochester, congratulate me. Gregory Peck said that he would be on my show"
- Rochester: "Good, good. I'll bet you had to pay him a lot of money"
- Benny: "You're wrong. He's going to do the show for nothing".
- Rochester: "How did you do that?"
- Benny: "Because I'm a very good salesman. I didn't come right out and ask him. I was very subtle"
- Rochester: "What did you do? Did you cut your wrist?"
At the conclusion of the trip, Benny remarks "Thanks for the ride, Rochester. And oh by the way, you have a beautiful car!"
Upon Benny's death in 1974, a tearful Anderson, interviewed for television, spoke of Benny with admiration and respect.
Other business ventures
Though Anderson had roles in films such as The Green Pastures and was a dancer at the Cotton Club in Culver City, California, when he first came to Hollywood, his real success did not arrive until he became a regular on The Jack Benny Program. Not long after he became a regular cast member on the Benny show, Anderson opened a nightclub in the Central Avenue section of Los Angeles. Anderson's nightclub was short-lived because he was too generous with his friends. The club was picking up the tab for too many guests and Anderson was forced to close the nightclub shortly after it opened.
During World War II, Anderson was the owner of the Pacific Parachute Company, an African American-owned and operated business that made parachutes for the Army and Navy. He also managed a boxer, Billy Metcalfe, in the 1940s.
Anderson had an astute business sense; in 1948, he saw the value and potential of Las Vegas as an entertainment center. With the idea of building and operating a hotel and casino there where African Americans would be welcome, he asked for investors to join him in the venture. Anderson failed to attract enough people willing to invest, and he was unable to complete the plan. When the Moulin Rouge Hotel, an integrated hotel and casino, opened in 1955, Anderson was brought in for its opening. He expressed regret at the thought that the hotel might have been his if he had the further financial backing.
Personal life
Marriages and children
On May 2, 1939, Anderson married Mamie (née Wiggins) Nelson. She was the daughter of Alonzo and Annie Wiggins of Eastman, Georgia. Mamie died on August 5, 1954, at 43, following a two-year battle with cancer. At the time of her death, she and Anderson had been married for 15 years, and her son Billy (Anderson's stepson) was playing professional football for the Chicago Bears. Billy was born George Billy Nelson to Mamie Wiggins and her previous husband on March 8, 1929, in Los Angeles. When Mamie married Eddie Anderson, Billy was adopted and took the surname Anderson.
Following Mamie's death, Anderson married Evangela "Eva" Simon on February 8, 1956, at Kingman, Arizona. The couple had three children: daughters Stephanie and Evangela Jr. ("Eva"), and son Edmund Jr. Simon and Anderson divorced in 1973 with Anderson retaining custody of his minor son and daughter.
Home
Like many African Americans in the entertainment industry, Anderson made his home in the West Adams district of Los Angeles. Previously, the district had been home to doctors, lawyers, and railroad barons. In the Depression era, the area had fallen into hard times, with many residents needing to either sell their homes or rent out rooms in them. By the 1940s, the African American entertainment community began purchasing homes in the district nicknamed "Sugar Hill". Some property owners reacted to their new neighbors by adding restrictive covenants to their deeds. The covenants prohibited African Americans from purchasing property or inhabiting it once purchased. The practice was declared illegal by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1948.
Since Anderson wanted to build a home designed by Paul Williams, he was limited in his choice of a site for it by these restrictive covenants. As a result, his large and luxurious home with a swimming pool where the neighborhood children were always welcome, stands in an area of smaller, bungalow-style homes. The street was renamed because 'Rochester' lived on it.
Hobbies
Anderson built model airplanes and racing cars but also designed a life-size sports car for himself in 1951. Anderson combined a Cadillac engine under the hood and a sleek, low-slung exterior to create a car he both drove and exhibited at various sports car shows throughout the country.
Anderson, who was the skipper of his own cabin cruiser, was missing and feared lost at sea in February 1946. When the boat developed engine trouble, Anderson and his two friends did everything sailors are expected to do to signal an SOS. They used mirrors, built fires, used lanterns, and flew the ship's flag upside-down to indicate they were in distress. They spent the night adrift until a fishing boat finally spotted them and towed them into Los Angeles harbor. Anderson did not realize he had caused great concern until he heard a news story on the radio that described the search for him was still continuing. On the following Sunday, Anderson was back on the "Lucky Strike Program," and joked with Jack Benny about the incident. ("That's the first time I ever had a 'lost weekend' on nothing but water!")
Horse racing
Anderson was the owner of racehorses. The best known of them was 'Burnt Cork', a Thoroughbred that ran in the 1943 Kentucky Derby, making him the first African American owner of a horse entered into the Derby. Having been given the following day off by Benny, Anderson and his wife, Mamie, traveled to Louisville, Kentucky to see their horse run in the Derby. Since segregation in public accommodations was practiced there, the Andersons were invited to be guests at the home of Mae Street Kidd, an African American Kentucky politician.
Both before and after the race, Anderson was accused of entering his horse in the race strictly for publicity purposes for himself, especially after 'Burnt Cork' finished last. Those making the statements believed this tarnished the name and history of the race. Jack Cuddy, a United Press International sports columnist, pointed out in his column that around the same time 'Burnt Cork' ran last for Anderson, King George VI's horse, 'Tipstaff', finished last at Ascot without any of the comments that surrounded Anderson.
When 'Burnt Cork' won an important race, Anderson came to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer for work dressed as a Kentucky colonel; he also insisted on being called "Colonel Rochester".
After the Benny television show had left the air, Anderson turned back to his love of horses and racing, working as a trainer at the Hollywood Park Racetrack until shortly before his death. He acquired much of his knowledge when one of his racing horses, 'Up and Over', was injured in a fall; it was suggested that the horse be euthanized due to the extent of those injuries. Anderson refused this and said he would take care of his injured animal. He spent extensive periods at the Paramount Pictures studio library, reading everything in their collection on equine anatomy. This led Anderson to a veterinary surgeon who was interested in helping 'Up and Over'; together, the two men got the thoroughbred back on his feet again.
Death
Anderson died of heart disease on February 28, 1977, at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Los Angeles, California. He was buried in Los Angeles in historic Evergreen Cemetery, the oldest existing cemetery in the city.
Legacy
In a last philanthropic gesture, he willed his sizable home to be used to help reform substance abusers. Three decades after his death, The Eddie Rochester Anderson Foundation in Los Angeles ("The Rochester House") helps troubled men transition into society and is an at-risk substance sober-living residence for homeless substance abusers. The Rochester House opened its doors at several neighboring properties in 1989 and is dedicated in memory of Eddie Anderson.
Anderson's son, Eddie Jr., later established The Eddie "Rochester" Anderson Foundation.
For his contribution to the radio industry, Eddie Anderson has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Radio, at 6513 Hollywood Blvd, in Hollywood. In 2001, Anderson was posthumously inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame.
- Wikipedia article: Eddie "Rochester" Anderson
Career
- Wikipedia article: Eddie "Rochester" Anderson Career
External links
- Eddie Anderson at the Internet Movie Database
- Eddie "Rochester" Anderson at All Movie Guide
- Eddie "Rochester" Anderson @ Find A Grave
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Note: Eddie "Rochester" Anderson was a volunteer at the Hollywood Canteen |
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