Image Source: Wikipedia

Cal Stewart

Cal Stewart (b. 1856 Charlotte County, Virginia, d. December 7, 1919) was an American comedian and humorist who pioneered in vaudeville and early sound recordings. He is best remembered for his comic monologues in which he played "Uncle Josh" Weathersby, a resident of a mythical New England farming town called "Pumpkin Center" or "Punkin Center", leading to a number of small towns across the U.S. adopting those names.

Born in Charlotte County, Virginia in 1856, Stewart spent his early life working in circuses, medicine shows and vaudeville to great acclaim as "Uncle Josh Weathersby from Way Down East". It was on the road that he befriended Mark Twain and later Will Rogers, two men who shared similar wit in comedy.

Around 1897, Thomas Edison's studios hired him to cut several cylinder recordings of his famous speeches and songs. They were well received by the public, and launched an entire series of recordings based on the Uncle Josh character. Stewart's trademark on these recordings is the easily recognizable laugh that precedes his speeches.

Best-selling recordings included "Uncle Josh’s Arrival in New York" (1898), "I'm Old But I'm Awfully Tough (Laughing Song)" (1898), "Jim Lawson's Horse Trade With Deacon Witherspoon" (1901), "Uncle Josh's Huskin' Bee Dance" (1901), and "Uncle Josh Buys an Automobile" (1903). He wrote the song "Ticklish Reuben" in 1900.

Stewart continued recording on Edison, Columbia, Victor, and independent labels up until his death on December 7, 1919. He also wrote two books based on his monologues and performed in theaters across America with his wife Rossini Vrionides and her brother and sister.

Stewart is represented on the 2007 compilation Actionable Offenses: Indecent Phonograph Recordings from the 1890s.

Birth and Death Data: Born 1856 (Charlotte County), Died December 7, 1919

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1897 - 1928

Roles Represented in DAHR: speaker, author, vocalist, composer, lyricist

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 326-350 of 574 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Columbia 78451 10-in. 5/29/1919 Uncle Josh in a cafeteria Cal Stewart Comic monologue speaker, author  
Columbia 78452 10-in. 5/29/1919 Uncle Josh and the sailor Cal Stewart Comic monologue speaker, author  
Columbia 78453 10-in. 5/29/1919 Uncle Josh has his photo taken Cal Stewart Comic monologue speaker, author  
Columbia 78456 10-in. 5/29/1919 Uncle Josh in a department store Cal Stewart Comic monologue author, speaker  
Columbia 78457 10-in. 5/29/1919 Uncle Josh and the fire department Cal Stewart Comic monologue author, speaker  
Columbia 78463 10-in. 6/2/1919 Uncle Josh at the dentist Harry C. Browne ; Cal Stewart Comic scene author, speaker  
Columbia 78464 10-in. 6/2/1919 Uncle Josh invites the city folks down to visit him on the farm Cal Stewart Comic monologue speaker, author  
Columbia 78465 10-in. 6/2/1919 Uncle Josh and the Billiken Cal Stewart Comic monologue speaker, author  
Columbia 78466 10-in. 6/2/1919 Moving pictures at Pumpkin Center Cal Stewart Comic monologue author, speaker  
Columbia 78470 10-in. 6/5/1919 Uncle Josh on an automobile Frank Croxton ; Cal Stewart Comic scene speaker, author  
Columbia 78471 10-in. 6/5/1919 War talk at Pumpkin Center Cal Stewart Comic monologue, with organ speaker, author  
Columbia 78476 10-in. 6/11/1919 The courtship of Uncle Josh and Aunt Nancy Ada Jones ; Cal Stewart Comic scene, with organ speaker, author  
Columbia 78477 10-in. 6/11/1919 Jim Lawson's hogs Cal Stewart Comic monologue speaker, author  
Columbia 78478 10-in. 6/11/1919 Uncle Josh at Delmonico's Cal Stewart Comic monologue speaker, author  
Columbia 78479 10-in. 6/11/1919 Uncle Josh at a roller skating rink Cal Stewart Comic monologue speaker, author  
Columbia 78484 10-in. 6/11/1919 Evening time at Pumpkin Center Ada Jones ; Peerless Quartet ; Cal Stewart Descriptive scene, with male vocal quartet author, speaker  
Columbia 78485 10-in. 6/11/1919 Christmas time at Pumpkin Center Ada Jones ; Peerless Quartet ; Cal Stewart Descriptive scene, with male vocal quartet author, speaker  
Columbia 78488 10-in. 6/16/1919 Uncle Josh and the honey bees Cal Stewart Comic monologue author, speaker  
Columbia 78489 10-in. 6/16/1919 Uncle Josh at a meeting of the school house directors Cal Stewart Comic monologue speaker, author  
Columbia 78490 10-in. 6/16/1919 The opera at Pumpkin Center Cal Stewart Comic monologue speaker, author  
Columbia 78491 10-in. 6/16/1919 Uncle Josh and the insurance company Cal Stewart Comic monologue author, speaker  
Columbia 78492 10-in. 6/16/1919 Last day of school at Pumpkin Center Cal Stewart Comic monologue speaker, author  
Columbia 78493 10-in. 6/16/1919 Uncle Josh in a Chinese laundry Cal Stewart Comic monologue author, speaker  
Columbia 78494 10-in. 6/16/1919 Uncle Josh at the bughouse Cal Stewart Comic monologue speaker, author  
Columbia 78501 10-in. 6/18/1919 Uncle Josh and the labor union Cal Stewart Comic monologue author, speaker  
(Results 326-350 of 574 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Stewart, Cal," accessed May 2, 2024, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/103525.

Stewart, Cal. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved May 2, 2024, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/103525.

"Stewart, Cal." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 2 May 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/103525

Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license

Feedback

Send the Editors a message about this record.