Evening star., 1946-09-29

! WIlO1e community VIII Uc IellcCtcu
tomorrow at his funeral services in
st. Matthew's Cathedral where
plans are being made to accommo-
date large throng Burial will be
in Mount Olivet Cemetery
Tribute will be paid at the rites,
beginning at 10 am, to the spirit
of the business leader who, up until
his final hours, contributed so much
to the happiness and welfare of his
fellow Washingtonians.
| When Mr.. O'Connor died of q
heart attack about midnight Friday,
he had just returned to his home
at 1913 Cleveland avenue NV. after
attending long business session of
Group disqualification, Inc, of which
he was a trustee. He was 72 years
old.
Although he early won success as
title insurance attorney and rose
from messenger to president of one
of the leading firms IN this field, Mr..
O'Connor contributed his talent as
an entertainer to innumerable din
ners and benefits, and gave much
of bis, time to welfare work.
Friend of Presidents.
He numbered many Presidents
among his friends since the days of
Grover Cleveland and helped en-
tertain them at the White House or
at formal banquets, but perhaps his
fondest admirers were his audiences
at church socials, orphanages, hos
pitfalls, benefits and civic dinners.
M. O'Connor was a natural-born
comedian whose hrmor never car:
ried sting, and an amateur min
strel whose songs never contained
an off-color line. He made his
first stage appearance at the age
of and until a few days be-
fore his death was entertaining
gatherings ranging from church
workers to justices of the Supreme
Court.
During his lifetime Mr.. O'Connor
collected a rich store of the gay
Hitting and half-forgotten music of
another generation His scrapbooks,
dating from the early 80s. and bulg-
ing with programs, photographs,
news clippings and personal letters
from great men of his day, present
a vivid picture of his life and times.
Amid yellowing but carefully
tended pages is a photograph of
Little George O'Connor" at the
age of 7 singing comic ballad
from the stage of the old Opera
House at Frederick, Md, while
grouped about him are the Dewitt
sisters and other professionals, in
cluding Ethel Barrymore's stage
manager.
Five years later Little George"
hao become Master George OCon-
nor" according to handbill list
ing him with other stars as the
greatest, funniest, best Negro i'm
personator ever in jamestown,
N. Y"
Sang at Theatrical Benefits.
That same year, 1886, young
George sang quite successfully, ac-
|cording to his press notices, She
Caught Me for All l Was Worth" at
a theatrical benefit for the Mechan-
les Benevolent Association at the
old Albaughs Grand Opera House.
Two years later, at Roanoke, Va,
he was billed with the company of
Miss Lillian Lawrence in the. play
Chip" as character named Bel
month, who was anxious to become
tenor"
At this time the young enter
tainer, whose brother, the late Ed
ward O'Connor, was a professional,
was anxious to 60 on the stage.
| However, his parents, the late
Capt. Patrick E. O'Connor and FL
len Mccarthy OConnor, had other
plans for him.
The nearest George O'Connor got
to professional career was few
vacation tours, although he had
several f1attering offers.
| After appearances in nearby
States with cast whose repertoire
included Our American Minister" :"
cornet and violin selections, bird
limitations and two-act skit from
Gilbert and Sullivan's Mikado
George O'Connor got top booking
in Washington with the Around
the-World Company" as:
Positively the greatest blackface
comedian in the world"
He also played in the Mikado skit
as Ko Ko, the Lord High Execu-
toner, and in 1888 was billed as
George Washington Crank" in the
production, The Diplomat Astray.'
In 1894 the rising O'Connor was
cast as "Sir Toby Belch" in the
Twelfth Night. feature of Bard
of Avon series, and a year later
got a billing on a Shakespearean
program which starred Richard
| Mansfield.
Mr.. O'Connor helped open the
opera house at Alexandria in 1906
with a solo number, Little Dark
Brown Lou" and that same year
assisted the poor of st. Josephs
parish in . benefit play. "A Night