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{{short description|
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2022}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Kenny Baker
| image = KennyBakerStageDoorCanteen.jpg
| caption = in the trailer for ''[[Stage Door Canteen (film)|Stage Door Canteen]]'' (1943)
| birth_name = Kenneth Laurence Baker
| birth_date = {{birth date|1912|9|30|mf=y}}
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| occupation = Film, radio, stage actor and singer
| yearsactive = 1933–1951
| spouse = Geraldyne Louise Churchill (1933-1968) (divorced, 3 children)<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-10-05-fi-1235-story.html | title=Benny Show Singer Kenny Baker Dies : Tenor Also Appeared in Hit Films and Broadway Musicals | website=[[Los Angeles Times]] | date=October 5, 1985 }}</ref><ref>https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/LCXS-DXC/geraldine-louise-churchill-1911-2001</ref>
| children = 3
}}
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==Film==
Before he became a star, Baker sang as a member of the [[Vitaphone]] chorus at [[Warner Bros.|Warner Bros]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Radio Idol Kenny Baker InNew Film |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/35726704/kenny_baker/ |
At the height of his radio fame, and after leaving the Benny show in 1939 (succeeded by [[Dennis Day]], whose [[tenor]] voice was very similar to Baker's), he appeared in 17 film musicals, including ''[[Mr. Dodd Takes the Air]]'' (1937), ''[[At the Circus]]'' (1939), and ''[[The Harvey Girls]]'' (1946). He also starred in the 1939 movie version of [[Gilbert and Sullivan]]'s ''[[The Mikado (1939 film)|The Mikado]]''. He later co-starred with [[Mary Martin]] in the original [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] production of [[Kurt Weill]] and [[Ogden Nash]]'s ''[[One Touch of Venus]]'' (1943).
==Radio==
Baker first appeared on [[The Jack Benny Program|Jack Benny's weekly radio program]] on November 3, 1935,<ref>Leff, Laura (2004): ''39 Forever – Volume 1: Radio May 1932 – May 1942''. p. 212.</ref> having been hired to replace singer [[Frank Parker (singer)|Frank Parker]].<ref>Fein, Irving A. (1977): ''Jack Benny – An Intimate Biography''. G. P. Putnam's Sons. p. 64.</ref> Parker had been very popular on the Benny program, and with his departure, it was widely believed that Benny would lose a large part of his audience; however, Kenny Baker is said to have won audiences over almost instantly, even surpassing Parker in popularity.<ref>Fein, Irving A. (1977): ''Jack Benny – An Intimate Biography''. G. P. Putnam's Sons. p. 64.</ref> Baker portrayed a high-voiced, innocent young man on the show, who would frequently cause the Jack Benny character frustration with his "silly" remarks.
After being on the Benny program 1935–1939, Baker returned to radio as a regular performer on [[Fred Allen]]'s ''[[Texaco Star Theater]]'' program (1940–1942). He was also heard on ''[[Blue Ribbon Town]]'' (1943–1944) and ''Glamour Manor'' (1945–1947). He had his own programs, the ''Kenny Baker Show'' (1954)<ref name=rs>DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 Through 1960''. McFarland & Company. {{ISBN|978-0-7864-2834-2}}. pp. 19–20.</ref> and ''Sincerely—Kenny Baker'' (1946).<ref>{{cite news|title=Kenny Baker and Donna Dae Star in WHP Musicale; Open Tuesday 6.15|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2283707/sincerely_kenny_baker/|work=[[Harrisburg Telegraph]]|date=April 6, 1946|page=19|via = [[Newspapers.com]]|accessdate = April 24, 2015}} {{Open access}}</ref> The latter was syndicated by the [[Ziv Company|Frederick W. Ziv Company]] via [[Electrical transcriptions|electrical transcription]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Ziv ad |url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1948/1948-05-17-BC.pdf |work=[[Broadcasting & Cable|Broadcasting]] |date=May 17, 1948 |pages=14 |access-date=20 August 2019}}</ref>▼
▲Baker's final regular appearance on Benny's radio show aired on June 25, 1939,<ref>Leff, Laura (2004): ''39 Forever – Volume 1: Radio May 1932 – May 1942''. p. 363.</ref> leaving the $3,000 per week job because he no longer wanted to play the character.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Cohn |first1=Art |author-link1=Art Cohn |title=Kenny Baker's Gamble Removes "Jerk" Label |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/415362704 |access-date=August 3, 2020 |work=[[Marysville, Ohio#Media|The Evening Tribune]] |agency=[[International News Service]] |location=[[New York City|New York]] |date=November 1, 1943 |publication-place=[[Marysville, Ohio]] |page=1}}</ref> He was subsequently replaced by singer [[Dennis Day]]. After
==Later years==
After retiring from performing in the early 1950s, Baker became a [[Christian Science|Christian Science practitioner]] and [[motivational speaking|motivational speaker]] and recorded a number of [[record album]]s of hymns for his church.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}
==Death==
Baker died of a [[myocardial infarction|heart attack]] in [[Solvang, California]], August 10, 1985, aged 72.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Folkart |first=Burt a |date=1985-10-05 |title=Benny Show Singer Kenny Baker Dies : Tenor Also Appeared in Hit Films and Broadway Musicals |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-10-05-fi-1235-story.html |access-date=2024-03-04 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref>
==Partial filmography==
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* ''[[The King and the Chorus Girl]]'' (1937)
* ''[[Turn Off the Moon]]'' (1937)
* ''[[52nd Street (film)|52nd Street]]'' (1937)
* ''[[The Goldwyn Follies]]'' (1938)
* ''[[At the Circus]]'' (1939) as Jeff Wilson
* ''[[The Mikado (1939 film)|The Mikado]]'' (1939)
* ''[[Hit Parade of 1941]]'' (1940)
* ''[[Doughboys in Ireland]]'' (1943)
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==External links==
{{Commons category|Kenny Baker (American performer)}}
* {{IMDb name|id=0048653|}}
* {{Amg name|198654}}
'''Audio files'''
* [http://jack_benny.podomatic.com/entry/eg/2008-09-22T23_12_18-07_00 Best of Jack Benny Spotlight Podcast! 1935-11-03
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20101010073803/http://jack_benny.podomatic.com/entry/2010-10-01T06_19_01-07_00 Fred Allen Podcast 1940-10-02 (ep 01) Grab It Or Leave It
{{Authority control}}
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[[Category:1985 deaths]]
[[Category:American male film actors]]
[[Category:American male pop singers]]
[[Category:American tenors]]
[[Category:American male radio actors]]
[[Category:American male musical theatre actors]]
[[Category:American radio singers]]
[[Category:American Christian Scientists]]
[[Category:Donaldson Award winners]]
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[[Category:Decca Records artists]]
[[Category:RCA Victor artists]]
[[Category:20th-century American male singers]]
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