Eddie Morton was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of actor C.H. Morton, who was in the original cast of "The Black Crook". From about 1898 until about 1905, he worked for the Philadelphia Police Department, leading to his later billing as "The Singing Cop". He then became a variety performer, and in 1907 appeared at the Madison Square Roof Garden in New York City in the cast of "The Maid and the Millionaire", a musical comedy. The following year he toured as part of M. M. Thiese's Rollickers burlesque show, and then became a popular attraction in the vaudeville shows run by Benjamin Franklin Keith and Sylvester Z. Poli.