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Danny Kaye (born David Daniel Kaminsky; January 18, 1911 – March 3, 1987) was an American actor, singer, dancer, and comedian. His performances featured physical comedy, idiosyncratic pantomimes, and rapid-fire novelty songs. Kaye starred in 17 movies, notably ''Wonder Man'' (1945), ''The Kid from Brooklyn'' (1946), ''The Secret Life of Walter Mitty'' (1947), ''The Inspector General'' (1949), ''Hans Christian Andersen'' (1952), ''White Christmas'' (1954), and ''The Court Jester'' (1956). His films were popular, especially his bravura performances of patter songs and favorites such as "Inchworm" and "The Ugly Duckling". He was the first ambassador-at-large of UNICEF in 1954 and received the French Legion of Honor in 1986 for his years of work with the organization. ==Early years== David Daniel Kaminsky was born to Ukrainian Jewish immigrants in Brooklyn on January 18, 1911 (though he would later say 1913).〔Dena Kaye interview on TCM January 18, 2013. Her father was actually born in 1911 but, for reasons unknown to her, changed it to 1913. FBI records and SSDI also show 1911.〕〔 Kaye was born the youngest of three boys for Jacob and Clara Nemerovsky Kaminsky. Jacob and Clara and their two sons, Larry and Mac, left Yekaterinoslav two years before his birth; he was the only son born in the United States. He attended Public School 149 in East New York, Brooklyn — which eventually was renamed to honor him〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://schools.nyc.gov/schoolportals/19/k149/default.htm )〕—where he began entertaining his classmates with songs and jokes, — before moving to Thomas Jefferson High School, though he never graduated.〔 His mother died when he was in his early teens. Not long after his mother's death, Kaye and his friend Louis ran away to Florida. Kaye sang while Louis played the guitar; the pair eked out a living for a while. When Kaye returned to New York, his father did not pressure him to return to school or work, giving his son the chance to mature and discover his own abilities.〔 Kaye said that as a young boy he had wanted to be a surgeon, but there was no chance of the family affording a medical school education.〔 He held a succession of jobs after leaving school, as a soda jerk, insurance investigator, and office clerk. Most ended with his being fired. He lost the insurance job when he made an error that cost the insurance company $40,000. The dentist who hired him to look after his office at lunch hour did the same when he found Kaye using his drill on the office woodwork.〔 He learned his trade in his teenage years in the Catskills as a tummler in the Borscht Belt.〔 Kaye's first break came in 1933 when he joined the "Three Terpsichoreans", a vaudeville dance act. They opened in Utica, New York, where he used the name Danny Kaye for the first time.〔 The act toured the United States, then performed in Asia with the show ''La Vie Paree''.〔 The troupe left for a six-month tour of the Far East on February 8, 1934. While they were in Osaka, Japan, a typhoon hit the city. The hotel where Kaye and his colleagues stayed suffered heavy damage; a piece of the hotel's cornice was hurled into Kaye's room by the strong wind, nearly killing him. By performance time that evening, the city was in the grip of the storm. There was no power, and the audience was restless and nervous. To calm them, Kaye went on stage, holding a flashlight to illuminate his face, and sang every song he could recall as loudly as he was able.〔 The experience of trying to entertain audiences who did not speak English inspired him to the pantomime, gestures, songs, and facial expressions that eventually made his reputation.〔〔 Sometimes he found pantomime necessary when ordering a meal. Kaye's daughter, Dena, tells a story her father related about being in a restaurant in China and trying to order chicken. Kaye flapped his arms and clucked, giving the waiter an imitation of a chicken. The waiter nodded in understanding, bringing Kaye two eggs. His interest in cooking began on the tour.〔 When Kaye returned to the United States, jobs were in short supply and he struggled for bookings. One job was working in a burlesque revue with fan dancer Sally Rand. After the dancer dropped a fan while trying to chase away a fly, Kaye was hired to watch the fans so they were always held in front of her.〔〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Danny Kaye」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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