George Formby

George Formby, egentligen George Hoy Booth, född 26 maj 1904 i Wigan, Lancashire, död 6 mars 1961 i Preston, Lancashire, var en brittisk sångare, musiker, skådespelare och komiker.

Biografi

Musik
George Formby blev spådd en framtid som professionell jockey, och red sitt första race vid blott tio års ålder. Hans far George Formby Sr. (1875-1921), var en framstående komiker och sångare inom music hall, från vilken han senare tog sitt artistnamn. Sonen hann aldrig se sin far uppträda, men när fadern avlidit 1921 övergav han jockeykarriären. Istället tog han sin fars material, började sjunga och spela själv och blev minst lika populär som sin far.

Först spelade han ukulele på sin fritid, men en bekant slog vad med honom om att han inte skulle duga att spela offentligt på den, vilket fick till följd att det var just det Formby gjorde. Formby blev känd som "The Ukulele Man" men var minst lika känd för sitt spelande av banjolele. George Formby spelade in sin första skiva 1926, och under de nästkommande åren spelade han in flera av de sånger som pappan gjort succé med.

Film och senare liv 
Redan 1915 spelade George Formby in stumfilmen By the Shortest of Heads. Den senare filmkarriären tog dock fart i och med filmen Boots! Boots! från 1934. I och med den svenska premiären av filmen It's in the Air under namnet Flygmalajen fick han smeknamnet Flygmalajen i Sverige. Flera äldre filmer fick därefter också svenska titlar med ordet Flygmalajen i sig (se filmografin nedan). Runt 1940 var Formby Englands mest välbetalda artist, med en årsinkomst på över 100 000 pund. 

George Formby besökte Sverige två gånger, den 14 maj 1946 och den 7 maj 1950, då han båda gångerna uppträdde på Nöjesfältet som låg vid Allmänna gränd, mitt emot Gröna Lund. 

Redan 1951 fick Formby sin första hjärtattack, som han klarade sig ur. År 1960 avled hans hustru, den tidigare dansaren Beryl Ingham i leukemi och 1961 dog han själv på sjukhus, efter en sista hjärtattack. Drygt 100 000 människor följde honom till hans sista vila.

Utmärkelser och minnen 
Han erhöll Brittiska imperieorden 1946. 

Det finns en bronsstaty av George Formby lutad mot en lyktstolpe på Ridgeway Street, nära korsningen vid Lord Street, i Douglas, Isle of Man. Den 15 september 2007 avtäcktes ytterligare en bronsstaty och detta i Formbys födelsestad i Wigan, Lancashire, i köpcentrumet Grand Arcade.

Filmografi 

 By the Shortest of Heads (1915)
 Boots! Boots! (1934)
 Off the Dole (1935)
 No Limit (1936)
 Snurren direkt (1936; Keep Your Seats, Please)
 Flygmalajen frisksportar (1937; Keep Fit)
 Formby i toppform (1937; Feather Your Nest)
 Flygmalajen (1938; It's in the Air)
 På hal is (1938; I See Ice)
 Formby klarar skivan (1939; Trouble Brewing)
 Flygmalajen till häst (1939; Come on George!)
 Flygmalajen till sjöss (1940; Let George Do It)
 Akta're för polisen (1941; Spare a Copper )
 Formbys finurliga fru (1941; Turned Out Nice Again)
 Dubbelgångaren från Sydamerika (1942; South American George)
 Much Too Shy (1942)
 Flygmalajen i hemvärnet (1943; Get Cracking)
 Flygmalajen rensar stan (1944; He Snoops to Conquer)
 Flygmalajen i flottan (1944; Bell-Bottom George)
 De' va' inte jag (1945; I Didn't Do It)
 Flygmalajen muckar (1946; George in Civvy Street)

Formbys studioinspelningar (i kronologisk ordning) 

 The Man Was A Stranger To Me
 Rolling Around Piccadilly
 John Willie's Jazz Band
 I Parted My Hair In The Middle
 John Willie Come On
 I Always Was A Willing Youn Lad
 All Going Back
 In The Congo
 Our House Is Haunted
 Do De O Do
 Chinese Laundry Blues
 The Old Kitchen Kettle
 I Told My Baby With The Ukulele
 If You Don't Want The Goods, Don't Maul'Em
 John Willie At The Licensing Office
 I Could Make A Good Living At That
 Let's All Go To Reno
 Why Don't Women Like Me?
 Running Round The Fountain In Trafalgar Square
 Sitting On The Ice In The Ice Rink
 Levi's Monkey - Mike
 With My Little Ukulele In My Hand
 As The Hours And The Days And The Months And The Years Go By
 She's Never Been Seen Since Then
 Swimmin' With The Wimmin'
 Sunbathin' In The Park
 The Wedding Of Mr Wu
 I Went All Hot And Cold
 Baby
 My Ukulele
 Believe It Or Not
 In A Little Wigan Garden
 You Can't Keep A Growing Lad Down
 It's No Use Looking At Me
 John Willie's Jazz Band
 There's Nothing Proud About Me
 The Best Of Schemes
 Madame Moscovitch
 John Willie Goes Carolling
 Fanlight Fanny
 The Fiddler Kept On Fiddling
 Share And Share Alike
 I Do Do Thing, I Do
 The Pleasure Cruise
 The Isle Of Man
 The Wash House At The Back
 Riding In The TT Races
 Gallant Dick Turpin
 A Farmer's Boy
 Radio Bungalow Town
 George Formby Medley (part 1 & 2)
 Ring Your Little Bell
 Quick-Fire Medley
 The Window Cleaner
 Sitting On The Sands All Night
 Keep Your Seats, Please
 Five And Twenty Years
 Dare-Devil Dick
 Bunkum's Travelling Show
 I'm A Froggie
 The Ghost
 Oh Dear, Mother
 You're A Li-a-ty
 When We Feather Our Nest
 With My Little Stick Of Blackpool Rock
 Hindoo Man
 Trailing Around In A Trailer
 Said The Litle Brown Hen
 My Little Goat And Me
 Trailer For "Keep Your Seats, Please"
 The Lancashire Toreador
 My Plus Fours
 Easy-Going Chap
 The Window Cleaner No 2
 Somebody's Wedding Day
 I Don't Like
 Keep Fit
 Biceps, Muscle And Brawn
 Leaning On A Lamp Post
 Hi-Tiddley-Hi-Ti Island
 Trailer For "Keep Fit"
 You Can't Stop Me From Dreaming
 She Can't Say No
 Remember Me
 Maybe I'll Find Somebody Else
 Does Your Dream Book Tell You That?
 Like The Big Pots Do
 I Blew A Little Blast On MY Whistle
 Wunga Bunga Doo
 Have You Ever Heard This One?
 Springtime's Here Again
 Noughts And Crosses
 The Joo-Jah Tree
 Mother, What'll I Do Now?
 In My Little Snapshot Album
 Our Sergeant-Major
 They Can't Fool Me
 It's In The Air
 Sitting Pretty With My Fingers Crossed
 Tan Tan Tivvy Tally-Ho
 I Wonder Who's Under Her Balcony Now
 Kiss Your Mansy Pansy
 Rhythm In The Alphabet
 Frigid Air Fanny
 Little Wooden Tollshed In The Garden
 Hill Billy Willie
 It's Turned Out Nice Again
 I Can't Tell It By My Horoscope
 Hitting The High Spots
 Swing It George (part 1 & 2)
 I'm The Husband Of The Wife Of Mr Wu
 It's A Grand And Healthy Life
 Goodnight, Little Fellow, Goodnight
 Pardon Me
 I'm Making Headway Now
 I Couldn't Let The Stable Down
 Dan, The Diary Man
 The Blue-Eyed Blonde Next Door
 The Low-Down Lazy Turk
 The Lancashire Hot-Pot Swingers
 Swinging Along
 A Lad From Lancashire
 The Lancashire Romeo
 Imagine Me In The Maginot Line
 Grandad's Flannelette Nightshirt
 Mr Wu's A Window Cleaner Now
 Count Your Blessins And Smile
 Oh! Don't The Wind Blow Cold
 You've Got Something There
 I Always Get To Bed By Half-Past Nine
 On The Wigan Boat Express
 Down The Old Coal Hole
 I'm The Ukulele Man
 On The Beat
 Letting The New Year In
 Bless 'Em All
 Guarding The Home Of The Home Guards
 I Wish I Was Back On The Farm
 Formby Favourites For The Forces
 Thanks, Mr Roosevelt
 Bless 'Em All (version 2)
 It Might Have Been A Great Deal Worse
 You'd Be Far Better Off In A Home
 I Did What I Could With My Gas Mask
 Delivering The Morning Milk
 The Emperor Of Lancashire
 You Can't Go Wrong In These
 Auntie Maggie's Remedy
 You're Everything To Me
 I'd Do It With A Smile
 The Left-Hand Side Of Egypt
 Who Are You A-Showing Of?
 The Barmaid At The Rose And Crown
 I Played On My Spanish Guitar
 Swing Mama
 George Formby's Crazy Records 1 & 2
 Formby Film Favourites 1 & 2
 Katy Did, Katy Didn't
 Frank On His Tank
 Smile All The Time
 Out In The Middle East
 Andy The Handy Man
 They Laughed When I Started To Play
 Talking To The Moon About You
 Got To Get Your Photo In The Press
 Mr Wu's An Air Raid Warden Now
 Sally The Salvage Queen
 Thirty Thirsty Sailors
 Hold Your Hats On
 The Cook House Serenade
 You Can't Love Two Girls At The Same Time
 Under The Blasted Oak
 When The Lads Of The Village Get Crackin
 When The Waterworks Caught Fire
 The Baby Show
 Home Guard Blues
 Oh! You Have No Idea
 Spotting On Top Of Blackpool Tower
 Sentimental Lou
 British Isles Medley
 American Medley
 On The HMS Cowheel
 Bunty's Such A Big Girl Now
 It Serves You Right (You Shouldn't Have Joined)
 If I Had A Girl Like You
 Swim, Little Fish
 Bell Bottom George
 The "V" Sign Song
 The Old Cane Bottom Chair
 Our Fanny's Gone All Yankee
 Unconditional Surrender
 Blackpool Prom
 Mr Wu's In The Air Force
 The Dancing Young Man
 I'd Like A Dream Like That
 She's Got Two Of Everything
 Up In The Air And Down In The Dumps
 Excerpt From "Get Cracking"
 You Don't Need A Licence For That
 The Mad March Hare
 It Could Be
 We've Been A Long Time Gone
 Auntie Maggie's Remedy
 Leaning On A Lamp Post
 When I 'm Cleaning Windows
 Come Hither With Your Zither
 Saving Up For Sally
 Pleasure Cruise
 Ordinary People
 Zip Goes A Million
 It Takes No Time To Fall In Love
 Nothing Breaks But The Heart

Alternativtagningar inspelade 1932-1944 (utgivna 2005) 
 Do De O Do
 Chinese Laundry Blues
 Baby
 You Can't Keep A Growing Lad Down
 You Can't Keep A Growing Lad Down
 It's No Use Looking At Me
 John Willie's Jazz Band
 There's Nothing Proud About Me
 Madame Moscowitch
 Sitting On The Sands All Night
 Dare-Devil Dick
 The Ghost
 Mother, What'll I Do Now?
 Hitting The High Spots
 Under The Blasted Oak
 Oh! You Have No Idea
 The "V" Sign Song

Referenser

Externa länkar 

 

Födda 1904
Avlidna 1961
Män
Brittiska sångare
Brittiska musiker
Brittiska skådespelare under 1900-talet
Brittiska komiker
Personer från Wigan
Ukulelespelare