Bobby Watson (born Robert Watson Knucher;[1] November 28, 1888 – May 22, 1965) was an American theater and film actor, playing a variety of character roles, including, after 1942, Adolf Hitler.
Gladys Miller, Bobby Watson and Eva Puck in Tuneful “Irene”
Born in Springfield, Illinois,[2] Watson, who was of German descent, began his career at age 15 performing a vaudeville act at the Olympic Theatre in Springfield. As a teenager, he toured the U.S. midwest with the "Kickapoo Remedies Show", a traveling medicine show. He then appeared on Coney Island in a Gus Edwards show.[citation needed] In 1918, he first played on Broadway when he was a replacement in the role of Robert Street in Going Up and then created the role of the flamboyant dressmaker "Madame Lucy" in the hit musical Irene (1919), later repeating the role. He continued to play on Broadway through the 1920s.[3]
Watson began to appear in films in 1925, playing various character roles. Some of them were inspired by his scene-stealing characterization from Irene -- the gag roles of fey choreographers, prissy interior decorators, and delicate couturiers fell to Bobby Watson. But he proved his versatility by playing professional men and officious types: military officers, hotel managers, detectives, carnival barkers, and manservants.[citation needed] Today's audiences know him as the enthusiastic diction coach in Singin' in the Rain (1952)[4] and Fred Astaire's butler in The Band Wagon (1953).
Watson also wrote for, and performed on, radio programs.[5]
Wilson, Scott. Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d ed.: 2 (Kindle Locations 25047-25048). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Kindle Edition.
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