CARLE, RICHARD

(1871-1941)

   Born Charles Nicholas Carleton in Somerville, Massachusetts, Carle made his debut in a minor role in Niobe at New York's Bijou Theatre in 1891. Two years later, he played the same theatre in the featured role of Worthington in A Mad Bargain. His comic character portrayals made him extremely popular on Broadway, on the road, and in London. Carle's comic songs in musicals often stopped the show. He wrote or adapted a great deal of his material, including The Tenderfoot (1904), The Spring Chicken (1906), and Mary's Lamb (1907). After his last Broadway appearance—in The New Yorkers (1930)—Carle capped his nearly 40 years on stage with a decade of motion picture acting in character roles.

   See also comedy.