Jackie Gleason was a very animated actor. He is most famous for his portrayal of the character Ralph Kramden on "The Honeymooners".
Gleason was born in 1916 in Brooklyn, NY. The future star was born to a household of Irish immigrants that were not wealthy. Jackie's father was an insurance clerk who abandoned the family when Jackie was only 9 years old. When Jackie was 19 his mother Mae Kelly Gleason passed away. To add to this, Jackie's only sibling, Clemence, contracted Tuberculosis when Jackie was just a toddler. It's solid to say that Jackie Gleason had a hard and lonely childhood. Jackie dropped out of school in his teens and began hanging around with a local group of hoodlums. Jackie might have been considered fat, but he was actually a very gifted athlete as a teenager. He loved boxing and excelled at it. It was easy to see that Jackie was going to be a gifted entertainer as well. Jackie began acting in all kinds of church & school plays, and was given an award for one performance of a comedy routine he had written. After this, he became a master of ceremonies at a vaudeville theater called Folly. Jackie then floated around from job to job in New York, taking work as it came. He also worked in hotels in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
After working in other various jobs, he married Genevieve Halford, a dancer, in the year 1936. They had two daughters, Geraldine and Linda, the only children he ever had. The marriage didn't last, and the couple split up in 1954 after several breakups. In 1941 Jackie was signed to a contract with Warner Brothers, and he headed off to Hollywood. His early movies did not gain much following, and Warner brothers released him from his contract claiming he was drunk when he signed it. Jackie wound up moving back to the East, and he grew to associate L.A. with his failures in the films. This was a sad time for Jackie, and he returned to public performing. He performed in nightclubs, plays and did a brief stint on the radio. Just when everything seemed to be at its worst, fate turned. Jackie's agent George Durgom suggested he try television. Things were about to change.
Producers chose Jackie to star as The Life of Riley. The show was cancelled quickly as Gleason was left to find another role. His television career really began when he signed on with the DuMont network as the summer host of Cavalcade of Stars. After two episodes, he was signed on as permanent host. This show was a creative outlet for Gleason. It was here that he came up with characters that would make him a star. Jackie parlayed this into other hosting gigs, and wound up signing on with CBS to have his own show. He took the Ralph Kramden character and made the Honeymooners into a show in 1955. Today, this is one of the most beloved sitcoms, even making number 3 on TV Guide's recent The 50 Best TV Shows of All Time. Gleason continued to make films, including the Hustler which earned him an Academy Award Nomination. Gleason did all of his own billiard shots in the Hustler. Jackie even got into music, and did some recordings as well. In 1962 Jackie made his way back to the small screen with the return of the Jackie Gleason show. In 1970 Jackie married Beverly McKittrick, but they only stayed together until their divorce in 1974. He then married Marilyn Taylor in 1975. After working on a series of movies throughout the 80's, Gleason died on June 24Th, 1987, of colon and liver cancer. His demise saddened many in the entertainment business, as well as all of those who watched him for his many years on television.
More celebs at the official Club Stork website
