View source for Frederick Hobson Leslie

{{Short description|English actor, singer, comedian and dramatist (1855–1892)}}
{{redirect|Fred Leslie|the American scientist and payload specialist|Frederick W. Leslie}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
[[Image:Goodoldgaietyhis00holluoft 129.jpg|thumb|Photograph of Frederick Leslie by [[W. & D. Downey]]]]

'''Frederick George Hobson''', known as '''Fred Leslie''' (1 April 1855 – 7 December 1892), was an English actor, singer, comedian and dramatist.

Beginning his career in [[operetta]], Leslie became best known for starring in, and writing (under the pseudonym '''A. C. Torr''', a pun on the word "actor"), popular [[Victorian burlesque|burlesque plays]] and other comic works of theatre.

==Biography==
Leslie was born in [[Woolwich]], London.  He was the youngest son of Charles Hobson, a wealthy military outfitter, and Sarah Hobson, ''née'' Pye.  Leslie was educated in Woolwich, [[Lewisham]] and [[Pas-de-Calais]].  As a young man, he performed in amateur plays while working in commerce.  He married Louisa (Louie) Agate in 1879.  The couple had three children.  The oldest of them, William Herbert Leslie Hobson (1880–1945), became a stage and film actor and singer also using the name "Fred Leslie".<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0504104/bio Fred Leslie's son's entry at the IMDB database]</ref><ref>[http://www.ibdb.com/person.php?id=49563 Fred Leslie's son's entry at the IBDB database]</ref>

===Career===
After briefly touring the British provinces, he made his first stage appearance in London at the [[Royalty Theatre]] as old Colonel Hardy in ''Paul Pry'' in 1878.<ref name=Timesobit>''[[The Times]]'' obituary, 8 December 1892, p. 5</ref> He was soon engaged by [[Kate Santley]] at the Royalty, where he played the title role in ''Mr Lewis''. At the same theatre in 1879, he played the part of Po-Hi opposite Santley in ''[[Tita in Thibet]]'', a two-act comedy musical by [[Frank Desprez]].  He next played Agamemnon (under the name of "Mr Leslie") in ''[[La belle Hélène]]'' by ''[[Jacques Offenbach]]''.  His vocal quality suited him to play the comic [[baritone]] roles in French operettas.<ref name=dnb>Gänzl, Kurt. [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/16487 "Leslie, Fred (1855–1892)"], ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004, accessed 18 September 2008, {{doi|10.1093/ref:odnb/16487}}</ref> He soon appeared in operettas such as ''[[Madame Favart]]'', ''[[La fille du tambour-major]]'' (1880)<ref>Adams, p. 515</ref> and ''[[Olivette (opera)|Olivette]]'';<ref name=Timesobit/> and he played [[Faust]] in ''[[Mefistofele]]'' (1880) with [[Constance Loseby]] as Marguerite and [[Lionel Brough]] as Valentine.<ref>[http://operetta-research-center.org/le-petit-faust-opera-bouffe-3-acts/ ''Mefistofele''], Operetta Research Center website, accessed 30 July 2014; and [https://www.kent.ac.uk/library/specialcollections/theatre/r.php/31437/show.html ''Mefistofele''], Theatre Collection of the [[University of Kent]], accessed 30 July 2014</ref> In addition, he played some leading roles in musical theatre pieces under the management of [[Selina Dolaro]] at the [[Toole's Theatre|Folly Theatre]] and at the [[Alhambra Theatre]] in ''The Bronze Horse'' (1891)<ref>Adams, p. 211</ref> ''La petite mademoiselle'' and ''Les manteaux noirs'', among others.<ref name=dnb/>

[[Image:LIttle Jack Sheppard.jpg|left|thumb|[[Fred Leslie]] and [[Nellie Farren]] in ''[[Little Jack Sheppard]]'']] 
In 1882, Leslie found wide success as the title character in the [[operetta]] ''[[Rip Van Winkle (operetta)|Rip Van Winkle]]'', by [[Robert Planquette]], at the [[Comedy Theatre]], also starring [[W. S. Penley]].<ref>Traubner, pp. 88–89</ref> In 1882 and 1883 he played in America at the [[Casino Theatre (Broadway)|Casino Theatre]] and elsewhere with the [[McCaull Comic Opera Company]] in ''The Merry War'' and ''[[The Beggar Student]]''.<ref name=NYTimesobit>[https://www.nytimes.com/1892/12/08/archives/fred-leslie-dead-the-english-actor-who-has-entertained-both.html "Obituary: Fred Leslie Dead"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', 8 December 1892</ref> In 1884 he played in ''Fay o' Fire'', which featured [[Marie Tempest]] in one of her first roles.  The same year, at the Comedy Theatre, he played in [[H. B. Farnie]] and [[Edmond Audran]]'s adaptation, ''The Great Mogul'' with [[Florence St. John]], [[Frank Wyatt (singer)|Frank Wyatt]] and [[Arthur Roberts (comedian)|Arthur Roberts]].<ref>Traubner, p. 91</ref><ref>''The Times'', 19 November 1884, p. 6, col. D</ref>

In 1885 Leslie joined the [[Gaiety Theatre, London]] company as Jonathan Wild in [[H. P. Stephens]] and W. Yardley's [[Victorian burlesque|burlesque]] ''[[Little Jack Sheppard]]'', with music by [[Meyer Lutz]], and also starring [[Nellie Farren]] as Jack.  The piece was a hit, and for the next seven years he and Farren were the pillars of the popular Gaiety Theatre burlesques.<ref>Hollingshead (1898), pp. 443–44</ref> In 1887, his ''[[Miss Esmeralda]]'' was successful; ''[[Frankenstein, or The Vampire's Victim]]'', in which he played a monster in touch with his feminine side, was a flop.  In 1888–89, Leslie, with Farren's Gaiety company, toured in the US and Australia, in ''[[Monte Cristo Jr. (Victorian burlesque)|Monte Cristo Jr.]]'' and ''Miss Esmeralda'' (together with [[Sylvia Grey]], [[Marion Hood]] and [[Letty Lind]]).<ref>Moratti, Mel. [http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~melbear/1888.htm "Theatre in Melbourne 1888"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060923055313/http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~melbear/1888.htm |date=23 September 2006 }} at the Gilbert and Sullivan Down Under site</ref> At the same time, Leslie played roles in other pieces, for example ''David Garrick'' by [[Thomas W. Robertson]] at the Gaiety in 1886.<ref>Adams, p. 381</ref>

[[Image:RuyBlasdrag.jpg|thumb|[[Nellie Farren]] and Fred Leslie performing the "Slate Duet" in ''[[Ruy Blas and the Blasé Roué]]'', [[Gaiety Theatre, London|Gaiety Theatre]]]]
Leslie's Don Caesar de Bazan in ''[[Ruy Blas and the Blasé Roué]]'' (1888, a take off of [[Victor Hugo]]'s play ''[[Ruy Blas]]''), was perhaps the most popular of his later parts, and he and Farren starred at the Gaiety and toured in this production and in ''Miss Esmeralda'', and ''Joan of Arc'' (1891).<ref>Traubner, pp. 196–97</ref> In 1891, Leslie and Farren again toured Australia with the Gaiety company in ''Ruy Blas'' and ''[[Cinder Ellen up too Late]]'' (with [[Sidney Jones (composer)|Sidney Jones]] as conductor).<ref>Moratti, Mel.  [http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~melbear/1891.htm "Theatre in Melbourne 1891"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060923100738/http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/%7Emelbear/1891.htm |date=23 September 2006 }} at the Gilbert and Sullivan Down Under site</ref> Leslie died while rehearsing for his last burlesque, ''Don Juan'' (with lyrics by [[Adrian Ross]]).<ref name=NYTimesobit/> His early death, coupled with Farren's illness and retirement in 1892, brought to an end the type of Gaiety burlesque associated with them, at the same time that [[Edwardian musical comedy]] came to dominate the London theatre.

Leslie was known for his versatility, agility, entertaining personality and talent as a mimic.<ref name=NYTimesobit/> His performances, including singing (he was a [[baritone]]), dancing, clowning and whistling, were noted for their "high spirits and ludicrous charm".<ref name=Timesobit/> Under the pseudonym of "A. C. Torr", he was part-author of many of his burlesques and also wrote the burlesque ''Guy Fawkes Jr'' for Arthur Roberts in 1890.<ref>Adams, p. 621</ref> Although Leslie is remembered best for the burlesques, he was a fine comic actor whom the critic [[Clement Scott]] called "one of the great lyric and comic artists of my time."<ref name=dnb/>

===Early death===
Leslie died of [[typhoid fever]] at his home in London at the age of 37.<ref name=NYTimesobit/> He was buried in [[Charlton Cemetery]] in [[Greenwich]], England.<ref name=dnb/>

==Notes==
{{reflist|2}}

==References==
*Adams, William Davenport.  [https://books.google.com/books?id=tjwOAAAAIAAJ&vq=Fred+Leslie&dq=%22faust+up+to+date%22+stone+florence+lonnen&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0 ''A Dictionary of the Drama''], Burt Franklin, 1904
*Gänzl, Kurt.  ''The British musical theatre'', 2 vols. (1986)
*Gänzl, Kurt.  ''The encyclopaedia of the musical theatre'', 2 vols. (1994) 
*Hollingshead, John.  [https://books.google.com/books?id=CzgOAAAAIAAJ&dq=john+hollingshead+gaiety+chronicles ''Gaiety Chronicles''] (1898) A. Constable & co.: London
*Hollingshead, John.  ''Good Old Gaiety: An Historiette & Remembrance'' (1903)  London:Gaity Theatre Co
*Traubner, Richard. ''Operetta: A Theatrical History'', Routledge, 2003  {{ISBN|0-415-96641-8}}
*Vincent, William Thomas and [[Clement Scott]].  [https://books.google.com/books?id=SVAOAAAAIAAJ&dq=%22Fred+Leslie%22+1892&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0 ''Recollections of Fred Leslie''], (1894) London: Kegan, Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co.
*{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Leslie, Fred|volume=16|page=492}}

==External links==
*{{commonscatinline}}
*[http://www.npg.org.uk/live/search/person.asp?LinkID=mp72900 Signed 1884 photo of Leslie]
*[https://search.slv.vic.gov.au/permalink/f/1cl35st/SLV_VOYAGER2418726 Lithograph of Fred Leslie in ''Ruy Blas'' at the Gaiety Theatre] (1889) [[State Library Victoria]]

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Leslie, Frederick Hobson}}
[[Category:1855 births]]
[[Category:1892 deaths]]
[[Category:English male stage actors]]
[[Category:19th-century English male singers]]
[[Category:English humorists]]
[[Category:19th-century English male actors]]