Jack Clifford (actor)

{{For|dancer and actor with the same name|Evelyn Nesbit#Later years}}

{{infobox person

| image = Rube Clifford, 45 minutes from Hollywood.jpg

| caption = Image of Clifford from the film 45 Minutes from Hollywood (1926)

| birth_name = John Clifford Cooley

| birth_date = {{birth date|1888|12|25}}

| birth_place = Elmira, New York, U.S."United States World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KZ6W-J5H : 24 December 2021), Jack Clifford Clifford, 1917-1918.[https://www.newspapers.com/image/314190524/?clipping_id=128328342 "Amusement Notices: Jack Clifford Has Held Many Jobs"]. The Nebraska State Journal. August 31, 1917. p. 5. Retrieved July 17, 2023.

| death_date = October 1974 (aged 85)

| death_place =

| restingplace = Rose Hills Memorial Park

| occupation = Film and stage actor

| spouse = Miriam Wills (née Moore)
(1915 – 1921)Nichols, Florence Elizabeth (October 3, 1915). [https://www.newspapers.com/image/197887465/?clipping_id=128231012 "Society"]. Statesman-Journal."Washington, County Marriages, 1855-2008", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPMJ-8XXF : 19 April 2021), Jack Clifford Cooley and Miriam Moore, 1915.Cline, William H. (March 18, 1921). [https://www.newspapers.com/image/897757793/?match=1&clipping_id=128248545 "Orpheum Breezes From Los Angeles"]. The Vaudeville News. p. 5. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
May Louise Ludwig
(c. 1925 – 1930 or 1931);{{Cite news|title=MARY KAWAL, 93; WAS ACTRESS AND RADIO HOST|author=|date=August 2, 1999|work=Philadelphia Inquirer|pages=45|quote=Mary Louise Clifford Kawal, 93, stage actress, former WCAU radio personality and widow of former Temple University head football coach Al Kawal, died Friday at a nursing home in Bensalem. Mrs. Kawal hosted a WCAU program in the mid-1950s and toured the United States as a stage actress. She spent several years performing with the comedian Charlie Chase. Born in Philadelphia, she entered show business at 19 as a chorus girl in New Orleans, where she met and married show headliner Jack 'Rube' Clifford. After separating from Clifford, she formed her own musical troupe, which included musician Toni Senna. He became her second husband. [...] Surviving are her daughter, Mary Louise Clifford Gabriel; three grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.|id={{ProQuest|1843866413}}}}[https://www.newspapers.com/image/635087007/?clipping_id=128226676 "She's Tickled With Her Chandler"]. Fort Worth Star-Telegram. September 9, 1928. p. 34. Retrieved July 15, 2023."United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XCVM-3CN : accessed 14 July 2023), Jack Clifford, Los Angeles (Districts 0001-0250), Los Angeles, California, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 69, sheet 18B, line 71, family 577, NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002), roll 134; FHL microfilm 2,339,869.
Virginia May Meldrum
(1931 – 1974)[https://www.newspapers.com/image/710200356/?clipping_id=128248943 "Virginia Meldrum-Jack Clifford Married"]. Eagle Rock Sentinel. August 7, 1931. p. 5. Retrieved July 15, 2023."California Death Index, 1940-1997," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VG1D-SGS : 26 November 2014), Virginia May Clifford, 22 Apr 1984; Department of Public Health Services, Sacramento.

| children = 3{{Cite news|title=Births|author=|date=July 5, 1932|work=Variety|pages=33|quote=Mr. and Mrs. Jack Clifford, twins, boy and girl, in Hollywood June 29. Father is the picture actor.|id={{ProQuest|1529343437}}}}"California Deaths and Burials, 1776-2000", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:HGC4-2GT2 : 8 April 2022), Jack Clifford in entry for Virginia Clifford, 1932."California Deaths and Burials, 1776-2000", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:HGCW-V6MM : 8 April 2022), Jack Clifford in entry for Jack Clifford, 1932."California, San Francisco County Records, 1824-1997", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QL4B-564G : Thu Jul 13 13:47:10 UTC 2023), Entry for Jack Clifford and John Clifford, .

}}

Jack Clifford (né John Clifford Cooley;[https://www.lordheath.com/menu1_333.html "Jack 'Rube' Cifford"]. LordHeath.com. December 25, 1888 – October 1974),"United States Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V9T2-C6J : 11 January 2021), Jack Clifford, Oct 1974; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing). See also:

{{Cite web|url=http://www.playbill.com/person/jack-clifford-vault-0000126449|title=Jack Clifford|website=Playbill}}
{{Cite web|url=https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/jack-clifford-497632|title=Jack Clifford|website=Internet Broadway Database}} also known as Jack "Rube" Clifford,{{Cite web|url=http://www.playbill.com/person/jack-clifford-vault-0000126449|title=Jack Clifford|website=Playbill}} was an American character actor and singer in vaudeville, theater, film, and radio, who became known for portraying rustic, unsophisticated characters (as were sometimes labeled rubes, hence the later-adopted stage name), whose radio work—or, more specifically, whose vaudeville character "The Sheriff" (originated onstage in the 1920's and subsequently popularized on radio)—has, in the 21st century, come to be regarded by at least some radio historians as the original inspiration for Robert McKimson's and Mel Blanc's anthropomorphic cartoon rooster, Foghorn Leghorn.Scott, Keith (2022). [https://books.google.com/books?id=aS-KEAAAQBAJ&pg=PT103&dq=%22Foghorn+Leghorn%22+%22jack+clifford%22 Cartoon Voices of the Golden Age, 1930-70; Vol. One: The Pioneers of Animation Acting]. Orlando, FL: BearManor Media.

Early life and career

Born in Elmira, New York, Clifford spent his formative years in Atlanta, Georgia. He later attended the University of Washington and eventually settled in San Jose, California.

Of the rustic character portraits at which he excelled,{{Cite journal |date=November 5, 1921 |title=The Orpheum |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UaxPAQAAMAAJ&q=jack+rube+clifford&pg=PA299 |journal=The Argonaut |publisher=Argonaut Publishing Company |via=Google Books}} perhaps the most acclaimed was his portrayal of the character, Anderson Crow, created by novelist George Barr McCutcheon.[https://books.google.com/books?id=UaxPAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA299&dq=%22Jack+Rube+Clifford%22 "Foyer and Box Office"]. The Argonaut. November 5, 1921. p. 299. Retrieved July 15, 2023. Reviewing Clifford's performance on April 16, 1923 at the Palace Theatre in New York, Billboard deemed it "as fine a characterization of an old rube detective as may be boasted of either on the vaudeville or the legitimate stage.

It would seem as if Anderson Crow, in the book of that name [...], had actually stepped from the pages of the author. Clifford is an artist de lux and knows how to plant his laughs and to time them with an uncanny sense of audience psychology. His vocal imitations, the banjo, steel guitar and the phonograph, registered exceedingly well. [...] The act stopped the show absolutely and Clifford was forced to respond with a speech of thanks. Perhaps the best act Clifford has ever presented in vaudeville and a characterization that will long remain as a classic."{{Cite news|title=New Turns and Return: Jack 'Rube' Clifford|author=|date=April 28, 1923|work=The Billboard|pages=18|quote=Jack 'Rube' Clifford, assisted by Russel Bird, gave as fine a characterization of an old rube detective as may be boasted of either on the vaudeville or the legitimate stage. It would seem as if Anderson Crow, in the book of that name by George Barr McCutcheon, had actually stepped from the pages of the author. Clifford is an artist de lux and knows how to plant his laughs and to time them with an uncanny sense of audience psychology. His vocal imitations, the banjo, steel guitar and the phonograph, registered exceedingly well. [...] The act stopped the show absolutely and Clifford was forced to respond with a speech of thanks. Perhaps the best act Clifford has ever presented in vaudeville and a characterization that will long remain as a classic.|id={{ProQuest|1505521014}}}}

Long before this, however (and before making "Rube" part of his stage name), Clifford had teamed with his first wife, Miriam Wills, between 1916 and 1921, in an act billed simply as Clifford and Wills, best known for the original skit, "At Jasper Junction."F.D.H. (January 8, 1916). [https://www.newspapers.com/image/606916941/?clipping_id=128436639 "Three Acts Register Hit at Modesto Theater"]. Modesto Morning Herald. p. 8. Retrieved July 18, 2023.Cline, William H. (April 1, 1921). [https://www.newspapers.com/image/897757828/?match=1&clipping_id=128437385 "Orpheum Breezes From Los Angeles"]. The Vaudeville News. p. 5. Retrieved July 18, 2023.

The fact that there was another, already well established vaudeville artist named Jack Clifford—namely, the dance partner and soon-to-be husband of Evelyn Nesbit—was not lost on the press. In particular, the presence of both Clifford-Nesbit and Clifford-Wills on the same bill at San Francisco's Orpheum Theatre in June 1917 was promptly noted by The San Francisco Examiner's Thomas Nunan, who jokingly proposed avoiding further confusion by referring to Miss Wills' partner as Jasper from that point forward.Nunan, Thomas (June 18, 1917). [https://www.newspapers.com/image/457450050/?clipping_id=128576339 "Orpheum Bill Has 'Punch'; Actors of Same Name Vie"]. The San Francisco Examiner. p. 7. Retrieved July 20, 2023. The following month, perhaps in response to this story, a mock do-over wedding of Clifford and Wills was conducted (or at least reported), wherein the other Clifford acted as best man, and Nesbit as matron of honor.St. George, George (July 6, 1917). [https://www.newspapers.com/image/608076816/?clipping_id=128399496 "St. George's Patter About Professionals"]. Los Angeles Evening Express. p. 15. Retrieved July 20, 2023.

In the months following the couple's 1921 divorce, Clifford himself became a headliner in the Orpheum Circuit,{{Cite news |date=1927-03-23 |title="Rube" Clifford Headlines New Hippodrome Bill |pages=11 |work=The Sacramento Bee |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/121768097/rube-clifford-headlines-new/ |access-date=2023-03-27 |issn=0890-5738}}{{Cite news |date=1926-08-30 |title=The Footlights |pages=13 |work=The Tribune |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/121768287/the-footlights/ |access-date=2023-03-27}}{{Cite news |date=1923-09-18 |title=Jack "Rube" Clifford a Scream at the Liberty |pages=4 |work=Lincoln Journal Star |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/121769192/jack-rube-clifford-a-scream-at-the/ |access-date=2023-03-27}} with the newly unveiled stage name "Jack 'Rube' Clifford" serving to pre-empt any further confusion as to his identity.[https://www.newspapers.com/image/605866579/?clipping_id=128645656 "Home Folk Hear Star; Footlight Favorite in City; Jack 'Rube' Clifford, Long Beach Young Man, Loaned By Orpheum for Short Stay at the State Theater in Long Beach"]. The Long Beach Press. September 5, 1923. p. 2. Retrieved July 24, 2023.

The following year, Clifford landed a leading role in the musical comedy, Glory, written by the same playwright-lyricist-composer tandem responsible for the hit show, Irene, three years earlier. Of Clifford's performance as Hiram Dexter, the New York Times wrote:

Jack Clifford, as the town miser, furnished a considerable part of the comedy, and his 'repentance,' when he gives away some of his wealth in the final scene, was a very pretty piece of very quiet comedy, unusual in this kind of play.{{Cite news|title='GLORY' MAKES HIT WITH PRETTY TUNES: New Musical Comedy by the Author of "Irene" Also Has Novel Plot; PATTI HARROLD CHARMING; Production Bids Fair to Be as Popular as Its Successful Predecessor|author=|date=April 28, 1923|work=The New York Times|pages=10|quote=|id={{ProQuest|100083474}}}}

Responding to that same performance, and to a perceived over-valuation of the then visiting Moscow Art Theatre at the expense of American stage actors deserving of equal or greater acclaim,[https://www.newspapers.com/image/229686857/?clipping_id=129125921 "Jack Clifford Gets New Fame; Son-in-Law of George Denton of Sioux Falls Compared With Russian Artists"]. Argus-Leader. February 26, 1923. p. 11. Retrieved July 30, 2023. Percy Hammond of the New York Tribune compiled a "baker's dozen" of such actors, including "[David] Warfield and Clifford, [plus] such artists as Miss Helen Menken, Miss Ruth Draper, Miss Haidee Wright, José Ruben, Laurence Hanray and Felix Aylmer."[https://www.newspapers.com/image/634482704/?clipping_id=129125615 "Jack Clifford, Known Here Since War Days, Draws Praise of New York Dramatic Writer"]. Fort Worth Star-Telegram. February 4, 1923. p. 23. Retrieved July 30, 2023.

In December 1923, reviewing his latest vaudeville routine, "Camera Eye Carter," at the Orpheum in Champaign, Illinois, Daily Illini critic Rudolph Kagey ranked Clifford, "without doubt, as one of the best solo comedians that has appeared on the Orph stage this year."Kagey, Rudolph (December 7, 1923). [https://idnc.library.illinois.edu/cgi-bin/illinois?a=d&d=DIL19231207.1.4&e=-------en-20--1--img-txIN-%22Jack+Rube+Clifford%22+--------- "The Fingerpost to Parnassus; Books :: Music :: Plays :: Art; And At The Orph"]. The Daily Illini. p. 5. Retrieved July 15, 2023.

For much of 1925, Clifford's sketch, alternately titled "The Idle Hour" and "Moving Picture Shows Twenty Years Ago," a well-received parodic recreation of cinema's early days, was presented as part of Fanchon and Marco's latest "Idea" (as the sister-and-brother team referred to each of its revues).Schwartz, Katherine (March 7, 1925). [https://archive.org/details/sfnewsletter106unse/page/n215/mode/2up?q=%22jack+rube+clifford%22+%22The+Idle+Hour%22 "Pleasure's Wand; Loew's Warfield"]. San Francisco Newsletter. p. 7. Retrieved July 31, 2023. [https://www.newspapers.com/image/843168243/?clipping_id=129204336 "Twenty Years Ago in Motion Pictures"]. Stockton Evening and Sunday Record. March 23, 1925. p. 9. Retrieved July 31, 2023.{{Cite news|title=Charley's Aunt $26,000 in Frisco; Granada's Biggest Week in Months; Estimates for Last Week: Loew's Warfield|author=|date=March 18, 1925|work=Variety|page=35|quote=Fanchon and Marco brought on Jack 'Rube' Clifford in travesty of the old-time picture house called 'The Idle Hour.'|id={{ProQuest|1505590391}}}}[https://www.newspapers.com/image/700367730/?clipping_id=129183430 "Film Palace of Days Gone By Depicted; 'The Idle Hour' Screamingly Funny; Is Also Realistic"]. Evening Vanguard. December 8, 1925. p. 2. Retrieved July 31, 2023.[https://www.newspapers.com/image/610161409/?clipping_id=129182760 "Hippodrome Has Made Hit With Vaudeville Fan; New Bookings for Week Win Approval of Audiences"]. Bakersfield Morning Echo. December 13, 1925. p. 2. Retrieved July 31, 2023.

Returning to the legitimate stage in 1926, Clifford appeared in Garrett Chatfield Pier's The Jeweled Tree, a lavishly produced but poorly received period piece that closed after 37 performances.Abel (October 13, 1926). [https://archive.org/details/sim_variety_1926-10-13_84_13/page/48/mode/2up?q=%22Jack+clifford%22 "Plays on Broadway: The Jeweled Tree"]. Variety. p. 48. Retrieved August 2, 2023.[https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-production/the-jeweled-tree-7860 "The Jeweled Tree"]. IBDb. The following year, helping comprise a company deemed by Daily News critic Burns Mantle "as perfect as casts can be," Clifford appeared in Bartlett Cormack's much more successful The Racket, alongside, most notably, a young Edward G. Robinson (whose performance helped launch his screen career), as well as actor-directors John Cromwell and Norman Foster.Mantle, Burns (November 26, 1927). [https://www.newspapers.com/image/412375730/?clipping_id=129324471 "Try 'The Racket' As Nerve Stimulant; Honest Drama for the Men, Thrills for the Girls"]. New York Daily News. p. 21. Retrieved August 2, 2023. See also:

Beck, Robert (2008). [https://books.google.com/books?id=HTGSCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA262 The Edward G. Robinson Encyclopedia]. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 262. {{ISBN|978-0-7864-3864-8}}.
Mantle, Burns; Sherwood, Garrison P., editors (1928). [https://books.google.com/books?id=lZQ9AQAAIAAJ&q=%22bartlett+cormack%22+%22the+racket%22+%22Burns+mantle%22+%22edward+g+robinson%22 The Best Plays and the Year Book of the Drama in America]. New York: Dodd, Mead and Company. p. 456.

Film

Portraying the father of protagonist Glenn Tryon in the 1926 two-reel comedy Long Pants, Clifford's "great work" is cited by Moving Picture World reviewer Sumner Smith, who writes, "Glenn's film father also gets into the limelight by falling for the girl himself. Crippled by rheumatism, he does quite a lot of low and lofty tumbling."Smith, Sumner (January 30, 1926). [https://archive.org/details/movpicwor78movi/page/n531/mode/2up?q=%22Jack+clifford%22 The Moving Picture World]. p. 473. Retrieved July 2, 2023. The Clifford/Tryon onscreen pairing/rivalry was reprised—with Clifford now cast as Tryon's "Grandpa"—in the 1926 two-reeler 45 Minutes from Hollywood,[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aPkzaV2VKk&t=15s "Laurel & Hardy - Film 2: Forty Five Minutes From Hollywood (1926)"].

The Laurel & Hardy Podcast. YouTube. a film now best known as one of the rare instances of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy appearing in the same film—albeit independently—prior to the team's official debut in 1927.Calman, Craig (2014). [https://books.google.com/books?id=D8Q2EAAAQBAJ&pg=PT100&dq=%22Glenn+Tryon%22+laurel+hardy+clifford+%2245+minutes+from+hollywood%22 100 Years of Brodies with Hal Roach: The Jaunty Journeys of a Hollywood ]. Albany, GA: BearManor Media. {{ISBN|9781593935771}}.

In July 1925, both Motion Picture News and Moving Picture World reported that Clifford had been assigned "[a]n important role" in The Winner[https://archive.org/details/motionpicturenew00moti_8/page/n295/mode/2up?q=%22Jack+Clifford+in+Next+Ray+Picture%22 "Jack Clifford in Next Ray Picture"]. Motion Picture News. July 18, 1925. p. 293. Retrieved August 1, 2023.[https://archive.org/details/movpicwor75movi/page/312/mode/2up?q=%22Jack+clifford%22 "Jack Clifford Signed; Vaudeville Star Will Play Charles Ray's New Picture"]. The Moving Picture World. July 18, 1925. p. 313. Retrieved August 2, 2023. (as was titled the Charles Ray vehicle ultimately released as Sweet Adeline{{Cite news|title=Movie Facts and Fancies|author=|date=August 23, 1925|work=Boston Daily Globe|page=A44|quote='Sweet Adeline' is the new title for Charles Ray's picture, made as 'The Winner.' This is the second of a series for Chadwick.|id={{ProQuest|963289463}}}}), in which Clifford portrays the protagonist's bullying older brother.{{Cite news|title=Ray Returns as Shy Hick Hero|author=Harpman, Julia|date=February 14, 1926|work=New York Daily News|page=45|quote=Gertrude Olmstead is pleasing as Adeline and Jack Clifford, former vaudevillian, is good as the bully brother.|id={{ProQuest|861316953}}}} He also has a significant role as the dog catcher in the 1931 Academy Award-nominated film Skippy,Abramson, Abraham; project mgr. (1970). [https://archive.org/details/newyorktimesfilm0001unse/page/710/mode/2up?q=%22jack+clifford%22+%22dog-catcher%22 The New York Times Film Reviews (1913–1931)]. New York: The New York Times & Arno Press. p. 711. {{LCCN|70-112777}}. and plays the sheriff in the 1945 Three Stooges western farce, Rockin' in the Rockies.{{Cite news|title=At the Laffmovie|author=Weiler, A. H.|date=July 5, 1945|work=The New York Times|page=7|quote=ROCKIN' IN THE ROCKIES, screenplay by J. Benton Cheney and John Grey; from a story by Louise Rousseau and Gail Davenport; directed by Vernon Keays; produced by Colbert Clark for Columbia; Cast: The Three Stooges ... Moe Howard, Jerry Howard, Larry Fine; June McGuire ... Mary Beth Hughes; Rusty ... Jay Kirby; Betty ... Gladys Blake; Tom Trove ... Tim Ryan; Sheriff Zeke ... Jack Clifford; Sam Clemens ... Forrest Taylor; Stanton ... Vernon Denton|id={{ProQuest|107311489}}}}{{Cite news|title=Columbia's 'Rockies' Speedy-paced Corn|author=Eng, Frank|date=November 28, 1945|work=The Hollywood Reporter|page=8|quote=The players: Mary Beth Hughes, Jay Kirby, Gladys Blake, Moe Howard, Jerry Howard, Larry Fine, Jack Clifford, Forrest Taylor, Tim Ryan, Vernon Dent, The Hoosier Hotshots ...|id={{ProQuest|2298663740}}}} In addition, Clifford received fourth billing and a good deal of screen time in the 1936 John Wayne western, King of the Pecos, as the gunslinging "chief accomplice" of Wayne's cattle baron nemesis.{{Cite news|title=Screenings: King of the Pecos|author=|date=January 29, 1937|work=The Daily Film Renter|page=6|quote=Cy Kendall makes a definite impression as the saturnine Stiles, while Jack Clifford as his chief accomplice and Frank Glendon as a crook lawyer both score.|id={{ProQuest|2594604625}}}}[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PL0cjxkn0Bc&t=51s "John Wayne: King of The Pecos (1936)"]. Western Films. YouTube. Retrieved August 3, 2023.

Regarding Clifford's performance in the 1931 western The Sunrise Trail, The Hollywood Reporter, in an otherwise lukewarm review, writes, "Jack Clifford, as Kansas, is very, very good. It's too bad that his part was not better written, for his acting deserved it."{{Cite news|title='THE SUNRISE TRAIL' RATHER TAME WESTERN|author=|date=December 26, 1930|work=The Hollywood Reporter|pages=3|quote=Jack Clifford, as Kansas, is very, very good. It's too bad that his part was not better written, for his acting deserved it. Bob Steele is O.K. as the hero. He has practically nothing to do, but his personality is pleasing. However, it is a bad error to let the supposedly he-man hero of a western be surrounded by men who tower over him and make him look puny by comparison. Blanche Mehaffey suffers well through the picture, but seems to be suffering even more than is called for by the written word.|id={{ProQuest|2296231009}}}} Variety, reviewing the action-packed 1937 oater, One Man Justice, wherein Clifford portrays one of a host of old friends and colleagues summoned by the film's protagonist in order to help "clear up the mess" in his crime-ridden hometown, states that "Clifford is easily the best of the cinematic constables with his dry, smooth delivery and believable performance."{{Cite news|title=FILM REVIEWS; One Man Justice|author=|date=October 13, 1937|work=Variety|pages=17|quote=This is probably the fist fightin'est western yet, which, coupled with some unusual story gimmicks and the Starrett moniker, should make for some of the best returns which the double-duty stands afford.[...] Jack Clifford is easily the best of the cinematic constables with his dry, smooth delivery and believable performance.|id={{ProQuest|1505773156}}}}

Radio

Clifford had recurring roles on KFWB's Hi-Jinks,{{Cite news|title=Another F&M Show in L.A. Theater|author=Helm.|date=April 1, 1933|work=The Hollywood Reporter|page=11|quote=Confident that the public is anxious to see their radio stars in person and pleased with the results of their first week of radio entertainment, Fanchon & Marco are this week presenting their second all-radio stage show at the Paramount Theater. On this week's lineup are Sally, Jack Clifford and Eureka, artists of KFWB's Hi-Jinks vaudeville program;|id={{ProQuest|1032035512}}}}{{Cite news|title=Radio Reports: Sunday Night Hi Jinks|author=Helm.|date=August 7, 1934|work=The Hollywood Reporter|page=32|quote=Jack Clifford, the hard-of-hearing sheriff, sticks too much to a staid set of situations to click strongly. Patter team of Billy Nelson and June Knight suffers from the same gag anemia.|id={{ProQuest|1475820398}}}} and on KNX (AM)'s The Gilmore Circus.[https://www.newspapers.com/image/380494319/?clipping_id=129354931 "Clifford drives an Old-Timer; Gilmore's 'Sheriff' Will Attend County Fair"]. The Los Angeles Times. September 17, 1933. Pt. VI, pg. 5. Retrieved August 3, 2023. See also:

[https://www.newspapers.com/image/563951924/?clipping_id=129376259 "Gilmore Circus Breaks Records at San Francisco Auto Show"]. The Napa Valley Register. January 25, 1934. p. 7.

= Foxhorn Leghorn =

More than one author has suggested that Clifford's "sheriff"–as heard on radio and/or witnessed in vaudeville reviews–served at least in part as the original inspiration for Warner Brothers' cartoon protagonist, Foghorn Leghorn.Brooker, John (2017). [https://books.google.com/books?id=IzutDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA313&dq=%22Foghorn+Leghorn%22+%22jack+clifford%22 The Happiest Trails]. CP Entertainment Books. p. 313. {{ISBN|978-1-365-74122-7}}. Voice actor Mel Blanc, speaking with radio historian Ben Ohmart, recalled:

When I created Foghorn, I remembered something that had happened as a kid. I saw a vaudeville act [or The Gilmore Circus] with a deaf sheriff who would say, 'Pay attenshun, I'm talkin' to you, boy.' So I stored that in my head, and when Foghorn came along, I used that style.Ohmart, Ben (2012). [https://books.google.com/books?id=p8KCDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT30&dq=%22mel+stated+when+I+created+foghorn%22 Mel Blanc: The Man of a Thousand Voices]. Duncan, OK: BearManor Media. {{ISBN|978-1-59393-259-6}}.

Return to the stage

In April 1950, near the end of his prolific but low-profile onscreen career, Clifford—assisted by his then wife, Virginia Meldrum—made a bid to recapture his stage success, performing at the Orpheum in Los Angeles. The new act netted at least one new fan in L.A. Mirror theater critic Jim San Filippo:

Another artist on the bill is Jack Clifford, whose act grows more compelling with the minutes and, though it is antique and old vintage, there is a real ol' opry house charm. His characterization of a Bowery bum getting a lift from a shot of narcotics is an authentic and magical drawing from life's passing parade. He is ably assisted by Virginia Meldrum. San Filippo, Jim (April 27, 1950). [https://www.newspapers.com/image/693333095/?clipping_id=128321652 "Talent to Fill Orpheum Bill and Till"]. The Los Angeles Mirror. p. 44. Retrieved July 17, 2023.

Elsewhere, reviews were mixed at best. Variety dismissed it altogether, as "another slow spot on the bill, failing to get over with either his railway junction sketch or his pantomime of a dope fiend."{{Cite news|title=FILM REVIEWS; One Man Justice|author=Brog|date=May 3, 1950|work=Variety|page=54|quote=Disappointing was Gloria Manners, who stayed on too long and failed to punch her novelty song material. Jack Clifford was another slow spot on the bill, failing to get over with either his railway junction sketch or his pantomime of a dope fiend.|id={{ProQuest|1285960910}}}}

On September 17, 1953, Clifford and several other veterans of vaudeville and silent film were featured on an episode of the weekly TV series, Before Your Eyes, broadcast on KTTV in Los Angeles.{{Cite news|title=On the Air|author=|date=September 15, 1953|work=The Hollywood Reporter|pages=6|quote=The Old Troupers Club of Hollywood gets the TV treatment Thursday on KTTV when 'Before Your Eyes' presents June Wood, Joe Bonner, Pat Carey, Jack Clifford, the 'Granny Dears' and Lucille Brown in a half-hour live show on a set duplicating the rehearsal hall of the Old Troupers Club.|id={{ProQuest|2338401964}}}}

Personal life

Clifford was married at least four times; in all but one case (that being Clifford's second wife, Laura Denton of Sioux Falls, South Dakota), his spouse was also his then current onstage partner. The first marriage, to Miriam Wills (née Moore), began in 1915 and ended in divorce in 1921. His marriage to Laura Denton commenced in Mexico on March 21, 1921 and continued at least until September 1923.[https://www.newspapers.com/image/228983898/?clipping_id=129127795 "Sioux Falls Girl Marries in Mexico"]. Argus-Leader. March 23, 1921. p. 14. Retrieved July 30, 2023.[https://www.newspapers.com/image/229698695/?clipping_id=129128223 "Jack Clifford, at Orpheum, is Husband S.F. Girl"]. Argus-Leader. September 27, 1923. p. 3. Retrieved July 30, 2023. May Louise Ludwig was married to Clifford from roughly 1925 until their separation in either 1930 or '31, having borne one child, a daughter.

On July 31, 1931, Clifford was married to Virginia May Meldrum and appears to have remained so until his death in 1974. Although the couple did have a pair of twins, a boy and girl, as reported in Variety in July 1932, it appears that within less than a month, both children had died.

Stage shows

= Vaudeville =

The Broadway Revue (1917), Majestic Theatre, Waco, Texas; in "At Jasper Junction"[https://www.newspapers.com/image/960259244/?clipping_id=128433188 "Majestic–Big Time Vaudeville; Auditorium Theatre"]. The Waco Times-Herald. December 23, 1917. p. 28. Retrieved July 18, 2023.
Elizabeth Brice's Overseas Revue (1919), Orpheum Theatre, Kansas City, Missouri; in "At Jasper Junction"{{Cite journal |date=June 28, 1919 |title=Orpheum |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1UZJAQAAMAAJ&q=jack+clifford+rube&pg=PA12-IA2 |journal=The Independent (Kansas City Newspaper) |via=Google Books }}
At the Country Club (1924) Majestic Theatre, San Antonio, Texas{{Cite news |date=1924-01-26 |title=Au Revoir! |pages=12 |work=The Houston Post |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/121769844/au-revoir/ |access-date=2023-03-27}}
Sciots Follies (1924), Reavis G and S Theatre, Santa Rosa, California; in "Camera Eyed Carter" [sic][https://www.newspapers.com/image/609224408/?clipping_id=129278531 "Reavis G and S Theare Tonight"]. Sant Rosa Republican. November 3, 1924. p. 2. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
High C's Revue (1927), Colonial Theatre, Allentown, Pennsylvania; with Mae Ludwig in "The Sheriff"{{Cite news|title=Keith Vaudeville and Feature Pictures: Wilmer & Vincent's Colonial; Two Big Shows for One Admission|author=|date=June 23, 1927|work=The Allentown Morning Call|page=10|quote=Return to Vaudeville From the Movies: Jack 'Rube' Clifford with Miss Mae Ludwig in 'The Sheriff,' An Absolute Mirth-Quake of Laughter|id={{ProQuest|2339561647}}}}
All Aces Revue (1933). Warfield Theatre, San Francisco, California[https://www.newspapers.com/image/458035616/?clipping_id=128626624 "'Grand Slam' Opens Friday at Warfield"]. The San Francisco Examiner. March 30, 1933. p. 11.

= Broadway =

Glory (1922), Vanderbilt Theatre, Manhattan, New York; as Hiram Dexter
The Jeweled Tree (1926), 48th Street Theatre, Manhattan, New York; as Fourth Guard
The Racket (1927), Ambassador Theatre, Manhattan, New York; as Clark
Frankie and Johnnie (1930), Theatre Republic, Manhattan, New York; as Frank{{Cite web|url=https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/jack-clifford-497632|title=Jack Clifford|website=Internet Broadway Database}}
Orchids Preferred (1937), Imperial Theatre, Manhattan, New York; as Henry Warrenton{{Cite news|title=The Play: Yesterday's Orchids Preferred|author=Atkinson, Brooks|date=May 12, 1937|work=The New York Times|page=26|quote=|id={{ProQuest|102309101}}}}

Filmography

The Squaw Man (1914)Stephens, E. J.; Christaldi, Michael; Wanamaker, Marc (2013). [https://books.google.com/books?id=NxWXGpEAmEkC&pg=PA105&dq=%22jack+clifford%22+%22squaw+man%22 Early Paramount Studios]. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing. p. 105. See also:
{{Cite news|title=Screen-Feature Pioneers Assemble|author=|date=December 29, 1935|work=Los Angeles Times|page=6|quote=The twenty-second anniversary of the world's first feature-length film, 'The Squaw Man,' was celebrated by surviving members of the original company at a Paramount studio luncheon given yesterday by Cecil B. De Mille. Shown above they are: Front row, Oscar Apfel, Cecil B. De Mille; second row, Bert Longenecker, Mrs. Fred Montague, Utahna La Reno, Hal Craig; third row, Hosea Steelman, Peter J. Griffin, Jack Clifford, Billy Elmer; rear row, Dick La Reno, Dick L'Estrange, Tex Driscoll.|id={{ProQuest|164523940}}}}
Long Pants (1926)
Sweet Adeline (1926 film) (1926) as Bill Wilson
45 Minutes from Hollywood (1926)
The Sunrise Trail (1931) as Kansas
Skippy (film) (1931) as Mr. Nubbins, Dog-Catcher
The Sin of Madelon Claudet (1931) as Head of orphan asylum, uncreditedMiller, Llewellyn (June 25, 1931). [https://www.newspapers.com/image/678067575/?clipping_id=128611836 "Stage Revue at Los Angeles; Colleen Moore May Be Gilbert Lead; Road to Reno Minus Miss Barnes"]. Los Angeles Evening Post-Record. p. 9. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
The Law of the Sea (1931) as First Mate, uncredited
The Lost Special (serial) (1932) as Doran
Tombstone Canyon (1932) as Newt
One Track Minds (1933)
The Poor Rich (1934) as Station Agent
The Revenge Rider (1935) as Ludlow
Gallant Defender (1935) as Sheriff Luther{{Cite book |last=Silva |first=George Batista Da |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lFoMEAAAQBAJ |title=O Faroeste Pioneiro |date=2020-06-30 |publisher=Clube de Autores |pages=41 |language=pt-BR}}
Pan Handlers (1936)
King of the Pecos (1936) as Henchman Ash{{Cite book |last=Orwoll |first=Mark |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YAgQEAAAQBAJ |title=John Wayne Speaks: The Ultimate John Wayne Quote Book |date=2021-11-09 |publisher=St. Martin's Griffin |isbn=978-1-250-81584-2 |pages=216 |language=en}}
Timothy's Quest (1936 film) as Ed
S.O.S. Coast Guard (1937) as carver, uncredited{{Cite book |last1=Orwig |first1=Gail |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z_mZEAAAQBAJ |title=Fantastic Serial Sites of California: Science Fiction, Horror and Fantasy Locations, 1919-1955 |last2=Orwig |first2=Raymond |date=2022-11-02 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-1-4766-4589-6 |pages=122, 127–128, 243 |language=en}}
Racketeers in Exile (1937) as Thyrus
High, Wide and Handsome (1937) as Wash Miller Abramson, Abraham; project mgr. (1970). [https://archive.org/details/newyorktimesfilm0002unse/page/1410/mode/2up?q=%22Jack+Clifford%22+%22racketeers+in+exile%22 The New York Times Film Reviews, 1913-1968; Volume II (1932-1938)]. New York: The New York Times & Arno Press. p. 1410. {{LCCN|70-112777}}
One Man Justice (1937) as Sheriff Ben Adams
Carnival Queen (film) (1937) as Deputy Constable
Wild West Days (1937) as Corey
The Road to Reno (1938 film) as Trucker
Yukon Flight (1940) as Whispering Smith
Sky Bandits (1940 film) as Whispering Smith
Beyond the Sacramento (1940) as Sheriff
Ragtime Cowboy Joe (film) (1940) as Clayton
The Green Hornet Strikes Again! (1941) as homeowner thug, uncredited
Arizona Cyclone (1941) as Johnson
Confessions of Boston Blackie (1941){{Cite book |last1=Nollen |first1=Scott Allen |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sdjHDwAAQBAJ |title=Chester Morris: His Life and Career |last2=Nollen |first2=Yuyun Yuningsih |date=2019-12-26 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-1-4766-7729-3 |pages=269 |language=en}}
The Old Texas Trail (1944) as Sheriff Thomas
The Great Alaskan Mystery (1944), as Agent Dunn who poses as a trapper, a serial{{Cite book |last=Webb |first=Graham |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZGDwDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA220 |title=Encyclopedia of American Short Films, 1926-1959 |date=2020-07-10 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-1-4766-3926-0 |pages=220 |language=en}}
Honeymoon Ahead (1945) as Gus
Senorita from the West (1945) as Motor cop
Unconquered (1947) as "frontiersman"{{Cite book |last1=Nollen |first1=Scott Allen |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=--YSEAAAQBAJ |title=Karloff and the East: Asian, Indian, Middle Eastern and Oceanian Characters and Subjects in His Screen Career |last2=Nollen |first2=Yuyun Yuningsih |date=2021-01-13 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-1-4766-8063-7 |pages=371 |language=en}}

References

= Articles =

[https://www.newspapers.com/image/309648503/?clipping_id=128658747&fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjMwOTY0ODUwMywiaWF0IjoxNjkxMzI1MzcyLCJleHAiOjE2OTE0MTE3NzJ9.r9bgH59dYlnHJm5cQLsetD2W8ys9E_w8hZv3OcHpRBc "Rube Dickinson Killed in Crash; Crushed Under a Scaffold in Kansas City as He Walked Along Street"]. The Lincoln Star.
[https://www.newspapers.com/image/689476655/?clipping_id=128247349 "She's a 12 O'Clock Beauty From a 9 O'Clock Town"]. The Salt Lake Herald-Republican. August 14, 1917. p. 5.
[https://www.newspapers.com/image/118516701/?clipping_id=128402104 "Theaters: B.F. Keith's—Vaudeville"]. The Indianapolis Star. March 11, 1919. p. 5.
Nunan, Thomas (May 12, 1919). [https://www.newspapers.com/image/457676747/?clipping_id=128402338 "Novel Stunt Makes Hit at Orpheum"]. The San Francisco Examiner. p. 19.
[https://www.newspapers.com/image/94914537/?clipping_id=128405418 "Hist! Dark Villain 'Poisons' the Milk; Actor Takes Liberty With Wife's Beverage, Swears 'Never Again"]. The Houston Post. August 12, 1919. p. 2.
[https://www.newspapers.com/image/970557496/?clipping_id=128406426 "The Comstock Mystery, With Eight Roles, Tops Bill at the Lyric Theater"]. The Atlantic Journal. December 23, 1919. p. 7.
[https://archive.org/details/sim_variety_1920-09-10_60_3/page/8/mode/2up?q=%22moving+picture+world%22+%22Jack+clifford%22 "Chicago Notes"]. Variety. September 9, 1920. p. 8. "The Conrad Music Co. purchased from Jack Clifford of the vaudeville team Clifford and Wills a new song called 'My Old Kilkenny Home.' Joseph Conrad, head of the Conrad Music Co., is making a tour from coast to coast to put the number over."
[https://www.newspapers.com/image/897757522/?clipping_id=128407746 "Orpheum Breezes From California"]. The Vaudeville News. November 12, 1920. p. 7.
[https://www.newspapers.com/image/357570539/?clipping_id=128220470 "Career of Stage Sleuth Reads Like Modern Romance"]. Austin-American Statesman. January 31, 1924. p. 2.
Easter, Millicent (November 12, 1927). [https://idnc.library.illinois.edu/cgi-bin/illinois?a=d&d=VVN19271112.2.76&e=-------en-20--1--img-txIN-%22Jack+Rube+Clifford%22+--------- "From Our Correspondents: Columbus Chatter"]. Vaudeville News.

= Books =

Ramsaye, Terry, editor; Rovelstad, Ernest A., associate editor (1938). [https://archive.org/details/international193738quig/page/214/mode/2up?q=%22clifford+jack+actor%22 1937-38 International Motion Picture Almanac]. New York: Quigley Publishing Company. p. 214.