Hal Le Roy

Hal Le Roy
Hal Le Roy
Born	John LeRoy Schotte; December 10, 1913; Cincinnati, Ohio, United States
Died	May 2, 1985 (aged 71); Hackensack, New Jersey, United States
Other names	Hal LeRoy; Hal Leroy; Harold Teen
Occupations	Actor; dancer; singer;
Years active	1928–1982
Spouse	Ruth Hedwig Dod

Hal Le Roy (born John LeRoy Schotte, December 10, 1913 – May 2, 1985) was an American tap dancer, actor, and singer appearing on stage, in film, and on television.

Life and career

Hal Le Roy was born John LeRoy Schotte in Cincinnati, Ohio, on December 10, 1913.^[1]^[2]

Le Roy danced in amateur productions as a youth, spurring his mother to take him to New York where he broke into the theater as a dancer. His dancing teacher, Ned Wayburn, got him his first job, in Hoboken Hoboes in 1928.^[2] Le Roy quickly worked his way into Broadway roles, where his tap dance style created a sensation in the 1931 Ziegfeld Follies. On April 12, 1934, he married Ruth Hedwig Dod (March 13, 1911 – July 1, 1979), who had been one of his dance partners.^[3]

Le Roy also began doing a series of musical film shorts for Vitaphone and Warner Brothers Pictures. Aside from his work on Broadway and in film, he performed in revues and vaudeville and as a featured entertainer in New York's nightclub scene. He was selected as a feature performer by Bob Hope for Hope's TV Premier appearance. In 1954, Le Roy was cast in the pilot film for the Blondie television series based on the comic strip with Hal Roach, Jr. producing. While his appearance was similar to Arthur Lake, who starred in the long running Columbia movie series, Le Roy's characterization was seen as uneven and awkward. The series was revised three years later and recast, recalling Lake to reprise his original role as Dagwood Bumstead. The series ran for one season on NBC, going to syndicated reruns for a short period afterward.

Le Roy died on May 2, 1985, in Hackensack, New Jersey, of complications following heart surgery.^[2] With his wife predeceasing him, he left no descendants and was interred in a private funeral.^[2]

In 2021 Le Roy was inducted posthumously into the International Tap Dance Hall of Fame.^[4]

Broadway

The Gang's All Here (1931)
Ziegfeld Follies of 1931 (1931)
Strike Me Pink (1933)
Thumbs Up! (1934–1935)
Too Many Girls (1939–1940)
Count Me In (1942)

Complete Filmography

The High School Hoofer (1931 short) as Hal Le Roy
Tip Tap Toe (1932 short) as Hal Evans
The Way of All Freshmen (1933 short) as Hal
Use Your Imagination (1933 short) as Hal
Mr. Broadway (1933) as Hal Le Roy
Picture Palace (1934 short) as Hal
Hollywood Newsreel (1934 short) as Himself (uncredited)
Wonder Bar (1934) as dancer in blackface
Harold Teen (1934) as Harold Teen
Private Lessons (1934 short) as Hal Le Roy
Syncopated City (1934 short) as Hal Le Roy
In the Spotlight (1935 short) as Hal
Main Street Follies (1935 short) as Hal
Oh, Evaline! (1935 short) as Hal
Wash Your Step (1936 short) as Hal Rogers
Rhythmitis (1936 short) as Hal
Swing for Sale (1937 short)
Ups and Downs (1937 short) as Hal Smith
Start Cheering (1938) as 'Tarzan' Biddle
The Prisoner of Swing (1938 short) as Rudolph, King of Sulvania, and Mr. Razzenstill
The Knight Is Young (1938 short) as Hal
Public Jitterbug No. 1 (1939 short) as Hal Sturges
Too Many Girls (1940) as Al Terwilliger
The Star-Spangled Revue (1950 TV movie) as Himself

References

^ Appelbaum, Stanley; James Camner. 1981. Stars of the American Musical Theater in Historic Photographs. New York, New York: Dover Publications, p. 140. ISBN 0-486-24209-9
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Hal Le Roy, Dancer in Clubs, Musicals and Several Movies". The New York Times. May 4, 1985. p. 33. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
^ "Hal Leroy Weds Ruth Dod". The New York Times. April 13, 1934. p. 22. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
^ "Hall of Fame Index".