Eddie Cantor Biography Quotes 5 Report mistakes

Early Life
Eddie Cantor was born Israel Iskowitz on January 31, 1892, on New York Citys Lower East Side. Orphaned as a small child, he was raised by his grandmother, Esther Kantrowitz, whose surname helped shape the stage name he would later adopt. The bustling immigrant neighborhood, with its pushcarts, street songs, and constant hustle, was his first training ground. He learned early that he could make people stop, look, and laugh, and that talent soon opened doors beyond the tenements. As he moved through public school and amateur contests, he refined a style built on quick chatter, musical novelty, and endlessly expressive, wide eyes that would become his trademark.

Vaudeville and Broadway
Cantors professional break came in vaudeville, especially through Gus Edwards, a prolific scout and producer of young talent who nurtured many future stars. By the mid-1910s, Cantor was already an audience favorite for his nimble patter and comic songs. He joined Florenz Ziegfelds Ziegfeld Follies in 1917, appearing alongside headliners such as Fanny Brice, W. C. Fields, and Will Rogers, and he stayed a vital part of that glamorous revue in subsequent editions. On Broadway he cultivated a persona of the impish, overgrown boy whose mischief never soured into meanness. He married Ida Tobias in 1914, a union that endured for decades and shaped both his personal and professional identity; he often serenaded her from the stage with "Ida! Sweet as Apple Cider". Together they raised five daughters Marjorie, Natalie, Edna, Marilyn, and Janet whose presence figured into the affectionate family imagery of his publicity and jokes.

Cantor consolidated his stardom with hit shows such as Kid Boots (mid-1920s) and Whoopee! (1928). He helped popularize songs that became American standards, including "If You Knew Susie", "Yes Sir, Thats My Baby", "My Baby Just Cares for Me", and "Makin Whoopee!" His comic technique combined speedy wordplay, playful self-mockery, and precision timing, bowing to vaudeville traditions while leaning toward the new, radio-ready intimacy then coming to define popular entertainment.

Hollywood Films
The arrival of talking pictures made Cantor a natural for the screen. Under producer Samuel Goldwyn he headlined a run of lavish 1930s musical comedies that showcased his singing, dancing, and visual clowning. Whoopee! (1930), photographed in early Technicolor, brought Broadway material to film audiences and cemented his "banjo eyes" persona for the camera. Palmy Days (1931), The Kid from Spain (1932), Roman Scandals (1933), and Kid Millions (1934) followed, each mixing topical jokes, sentimental ballads, and elaborate production numbers. Choreographer Busby Berkeley lent eye-popping spectacle to several of these films, and the "Goldwyn Girls" choruses included future luminaries such as Lucille Ball in early appearances. Among notable collaborators in these years were lyricist Gus Kahn and composer Walter Donaldson, whose songs perfectly matched Cantors buoyant, conspiratorial delivery.

Radio Stardom
Radio made Eddie Cantor a household name. Beginning in the early 1930s, he headlined top-rated network programs that brought his catchphrases, ditties, and monologues into living rooms coast to coast. The Eddie Cantor Show became a Sunday-night habit for millions, and his theme of "time to smile" captured the blend of uplift and mischief that audiences craved in Depression-era America. He nurtured talent on-air, notably giving a decisive early boost to singer Dinah Shore. Comic foils were essential to his format: Bert Gordon, known as the "Mad Russian", and Harry Einstein, performing as Parkyakarkus, became indispensable parts of the ensemble, their characters sparking Cantors quick retorts. Sponsors and formats changed over the decade, but his mix of songs, sketches, and topical patter remained reliably popular.

Philanthropy and Public Influence
Cantor used his fame to champion causes, most memorably the fight against polio. Working closely with President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Roosevelt's associate Basil OConnor, he helped galvanize public support for the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis. His on-air appeals inviting listeners to send dimes to aid research and care popularized the phrase "March of Dimes" and turned small contributions into a national action. During World War II he performed for service members and lent his voice to bond drives, joining a broad front of entertainers who mobilized morale and resources. His philanthropy burnished a public image already defined by family devotion and playful optimism.

Television and Later Career
Cantor transitioned to television as it matured in the late 1940s and early 1950s. He was a rotating host of The Colgate Comedy Hour, sharing the marquee with acts like Abbott and Costello and Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. The medium rewarded his directness and expressive face, and he adapted the radio template of music and sketches to the new visual stage. Health setbacks interrupted his momentum; he suffered a serious heart attack in 1952, recovered, and returned to performing. A deeply felt tragedy struck in 1958 at a Friars Club testimonial dinner in his honor when Harry Einstein, moments after delivering a triumphant set as Parkyakarkus, collapsed and died backstage. The shock reverberated through the comedy community; friends such as Milton Berle and others in attendance tried to steady the shaken room, and Cantor himself was profoundly affected.

Personal Character and Style
Eddie Cantors performing style was built on intimacy. He made audiences feel like confidants, wheedling and winking his way through verses and stories with a conspirators grin. The famous "banjo eyes" could widen into a childs wonder or narrow into comic mock suspicion. He was a meticulous craftsman who rehearsed obsessively yet kept the end result spontaneous. Offstage he was defined by steadiness: his long marriage to Ida, devotion to their five daughters, and a work ethic forged in the precarious economy of vaudeville. He prided himself on mentoring younger performers, and many who rose to prominence later remembered his encouragement and generosity.

Contemporaries and Collaborators
Cantor came of age among giants and was comfortable in their company. Florenz Ziegfeld gave him a rare platform; Fanny Brice and W. C. Fields were colleagues and friendly rivals in the Follies. In Hollywood he benefited from Samuel Goldwyns resources and Busby Berkeleys spectacle. Songwriters like Gus Kahn and Walter Donaldson found in him a canny interpreter who could make a novelty number sparkle or a lullaby land with tenderness. On radio, Dinah Shore, Bert Gordon, and Harry Einstein formed a creative circle that extended his appeal across generations. In public campaigns he worked within the orbit of Franklin D. Roosevelt and Basil OConnor, learning how the persuasive tools of show business could be harnessed to civic purpose.

Final Years and Legacy
Ida Cantor died in 1962, and Eddie followed on October 10, 1964, after years marked by intermittent heart trouble. By then he had spent half a century at the center of American entertainment, crossing the great divide from vaudeville stages to Broadway spotlights, from the footlights of Hollywood musicals to the microphones of radio and the cameras of early television. His legacy endures in standards he helped make famous, including "Makin Whoopee!", "If You Knew Susie", and "My Baby Just Cares for Me"; in the template he set for personality-driven variety shows; and in the philanthropic model that turned celebrity into a conduit for mass participation. Generations later, the image persists: a slight figure with bright, eager eyes, singing to Ida, joshing with a studio orchestra, or addressing a nation through a loudspeaker, always intent on getting one more laugh and leaving the audience a little lighter than before.

Our collection contains 5 quotes who is written by Eddie, under the main topics: Puns & Wordplay - Live in the Moment - Success - Wedding - Marriage.

Other people realated to Eddie: W. C. Fields (Comedian), Jack Benny (Comedian)