Wonga Philip Harris (June 24, 1904 – August 11, 1995) was an American actor, bandleader, entertainer and singer. He was an orchestra leader and a pioneer in radio situation comedy, first with The Jack Benny Program, then in The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show in which he co-starred with his wife, singer-actress Alice Faye, for eight years. Harris is also noted for his voice acting in animated films. As a voice actor, he played Baloo in The Jungle Book (1967), Thomas O'Malley in The Aristocats (1970), Little John in Robin Hood (1973), and Patou in Rock-a-Doodle (1991). As a singer, he recorded a number one novelty hit record, "The Thing" (1950).
Early life and career
Harris was born in Linton, Indiana on June 24, 1904,[1] but grew up in Nashville, Tennessee,[2] and identified himself as a Southerner. His hallmark song was "That's What I Like About the South." He had a trace of a Southern accent and in later years made self-deprecating jokes over the air about his heritage. His parents were circus performers. His father, a tent bandleader, gave him his first job as a drummer with the circus band.[3]
His unusual first name "Wonga," is said to derive from a Cherokee word meaning "messenger of fleet" or, perhaps more accurately translated, "fast messenger."[4]
Harris began his music career as a drummer in San Francisco, in the mid-1920s playing drums in the Henry Halstead Big Band Orchestra. He formed an orchestra with Carol Lofner in the latter 1920s[a] and started a long engagement at the St. Francis Hotel. In the 1930s, Lofner-Harris recorded swing music for Victor, Columbia, Decca, and Vocalion. The partnership ended by 1932, and Harris led a band in Los Angeles for which he was the singer and bandleader.
Harris, Faye, and their two daughters, Alice and Phyllis, in 1948
Radio
In 1936, Harris became musical director of The Jell-O Program Starring Jack Benny singing and leading his band, with Mahlon Merrick writing much of the show's music. When Harris exhibited a knack for snappy one-liners, he joined the cast, portraying himself as a hip, hard-drinking Southerner whose good nature superseded his ego. He gave the others nicknames, such as "Jackson" for Jack Benny.[4] (Addressing a man as "Jackson" or sometimes "Mr. Jackson" became popular slang in the early 1940s.)[8] His signature song was "That's What I Like About the South." Many of his vocal recordings were comic novelty "talking blues," similar to the songs of Bert Williams, which are sometimes considered a precursor to rap.[citation needed]
In 1942, Harris and his band joined the U.S. Merchant Marine and served for 16 weeks.
In 1946, Harris and wife Alice Faye began co-hosting The Fitch Bandwagon, a comedy-variety program that followed the Jack Benny show on Sunday nights. On The Fitch Bandwagon and its later incarnation as The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show, Harris played a vain, stumbling husband, while Faye played his sarcastic but loving wife. Gerald Nachman has written that Harris was a soft-spoken, modest man off the air. In On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time RadioJohn Dunning wrote that Harris's character made the show popular.[9]The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show appeared until 1954. Harris continued to appear on Jack Benny's show from 1948 to 1952.
Recording career
Harris was recording songs as early as 1931.[10] He sang with a deep baritone voice. Songs by Harris include the early 1950s novelty song, "The Thing".[7] The song describes the hapless finder of a box with a mysterious secret and his efforts to rid himself of it.
Harris spent time in the 1970s and early 1980s leading a band that appeared often in Las Vegas, often on the same bill with bandleader Harry James.[14]
Personal life
On September 2, 1927,[15] Harris married actress Marcia Ralston (then known as Mascotte Ralston) in Melbourne, Australia, where his band had a long engagement. The couple adopted a son, Phil Harris Jr. (b. 1935). Harris and Marcia divorced in September 1940.[16]
Harris and Alice Faye married in 1941; it was a second marriage for both (Faye had been married briefly to singer-actor Tony Martin) and lasted 54 years, until Harris's death.
Harris was a benefactor of his birthplace of Linton, Indiana, establishing scholarships in his honor for promising high school students, performing at the high school, and hosting a celebrity golf tournament in his honor every year. Harris and Faye donated most of their show business memorabilia and papers to Linton's public library. Harris was inducted into the Indiana Hall of Fame.[citation needed]
^"Radiography". Los Angeles Times. 20 September 1936. p. 62. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
^ ab"Phil Harris, Comic, Bandleader". The Press-Enterprise. Riverside, California. August 13, 1995. p. B5.
^ abc"Benny Show's Phil Harris Dies at 89". Los Angeles Times. August 13, 1995. Retrieved July 27, 2022. Phil Harris, the bandleader who became famous by portraying himself as a flashy, hard-drinking musician on the old Jack Benny radio show, died. … He was 89.
^"Advertising". The Herald (Melbourne). No. 15, 450. Victoria, Australia. 24 November 1926. p. 8. Retrieved 25 August 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
^"Advertising". The Herald (Melbourne). No. 15, 721. Victoria, Australia. 7 October 1927. p. 7. Retrieved 25 August 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
^Voice actor decisions – Baloo and KitJymn Magon, co-creator of TaleSpin who initially cast Harris for the role of Baloo: "his age was a factor. He didn't have the slick, con man timing anymore. I loved working with Phil, so I was distraught to inform management that he just wasn't going to work out for 65 episodes. (Besides, we had to chauffeur him to and from Palm Springs for the recording sessions – a 4 hour round trip!!)", Animationsource.org
^Motion Picture and Television Magazine, November 1952, p. 33, Ideal Publishers
^Henderson, Moya; Palm Springs Historical Society (2009). Images of America: Palm Springs. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing. p. 102. ISBN978-0-7385-5982-7.
^Brooks, Patricia; Brooks, Jonathan (2006). "Chapter 8: East L.A. and the Desert". Laid to Rest in California: a guide to the cemeteries and grave sites of the rich and famous. Guilford, CT: Globe Pequot Press. p. 245. ISBN978-0762741014. OCLC70284362.
