Harry C. Browne

Harry Clinton Browne (August 18, 1878 – November 15, 1954) was an American banjo player and actor. He appeared on stage and in silent films and recorded for Columbia Records in the 1910s and 1920s.

Alice Calhoun and Browne in Closed Doors (1921, courtesy of Archeophone Records)
Harry C. Browne
BornAugust 18, 1878
DiedNovember 15, 1954

Biography

Browne was born in 1878 in North Adams, Massachusetts.[1] Before his acting career, he served in the Second Massachusetts U.S. Volunteers during the Spanish–American War and had a brief career campaigning for the Democratic Party. William Jennings Bryan, then the Secretary of State, offered Browne a diplomatic position in February 1914 but the latter declined. Browne later worked for a stock company as an actor, casting him in plays such as Arizona and Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm in the early 1900s.[2]

A skilled banjo player, Browne performed in vaudeville for seven years before recording a series of songs for Columbia Records, starting in 1916.[2] His first record, perhaps his most well-known, is a re-interpretation of the American folk song "Turkey in the Straw". Released in March 1916, Browne appropriated the standard as a coon song re-titled "Nigger Love a Watermelon, Ha! Ha! Ha!".[3] It is commonly referred to as one of the most racist songs in American music. The song relied heavily on the watermelon stereotype, a belief popularized in the 19th century that African-Americans had an unusual appetite for watermelons.[4] For the B-side, Browne chose to record the minstrel show favorite "Old Dan Tucker", marking the tune's first commercial appearance on a major label.[5]

Between 1906 and 1925, Browne appeared in at least 14 Broadway shows, including Oh, Lady! Lady!!.[6] His film debut is believed to have been in August 1914 with the release of The Eagle's Mate. During his acting career, Browne had roles in notable films such as The Unwelcome Mrs. Hatch, The Heart of Jennifer, and Closed Doors.[2] Afterwards, he worked as an announcer and production director for CBS radio, a position he resigned from in 1931.[7]

Browne died in 1954, aged 76.[1]

Partial filmography

References
  1. "Harry C. Browne Biography". IMDb. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  2. Bowers, David. "BROWNE, Harry (Actor 1915)". Thanhouser. Archived from the original on March 19, 2017. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  3. Boone, John (May 13, 2014). "The Ice Cream Truck Song Has a Racist History". E! News. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  4. Johnson, Theodore R., III (May 11, 2014). "Recall That Ice Cream Truck Song? We Have Unpleasant News For You". NPR. Retrieved March 18, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. Sullivan, Steve (2013). Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings, Volume 1. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. p. 516. ISBN 9780810882966.
  6. "Harry Browne", Internet Broadway Database, accessed May 23, 2017
  7. "Harry C. Browne - 1916". Dismuke.org. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
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