George Grossmith Jr. (11 May 1874 – 6 June 1935) was an English actor, theatre producer and manager, director, playwright and songwriter, best remembered for his work in and with Edwardian musical comedies.

Born in London, he took his first role on the musical stage at the age of 18 in Haste to the Wedding (1892), a West End collaboration between his famous songwriter and actor father and W. S. Gilbert.

Grossmith established himself as a major producer, together with Edward Laurillard, of such hits as Tonight's the Night (1914), Theodore & Co (1916) and Yes, Uncle!

He wrote the long-running revue series that began with The Bing Boys Are Here (1916), scheduling these projects around his naval service in World War I.

(1919) and produced, co-wrote, directed and sometimes starred in, Kissing Time (1919), A Night Out (1920), Sally (1921), The Cabaret Girl (1922), The Beauty Prize (1923) and Primrose (1924), many of these featuring Leslie Henson.

[1] He was the eldest son of the writer and Gilbert and Sullivan star George Grossmith, and his mother was Emmeline Rosa, née Noyce.

Grossmith studied at University College School in London, and in Paris, and his parents hoped that he would follow an army career, but that was not to be.

[3][5] This was followed by appearances in Go-Bang (1894 as Augustus Fitzpoop) and in George Edwardes's production of A Gaiety Girl (1893 as Major Barclay).

[6] Edwardes then hired Grossmith to create the part of Bertie Boyd in the hit musical The Shop Girl (1894).

The 21-year-old actor wrote the lyrics to his character's hit song "Beautiful, bountiful Bertie", which he popularised in both London and New York.

[8] Grossmith then returned to Edwardes's company as leading comedian, touring in Kitty Grey, and then starred in the Gaiety Theatre's hit The Toreador (1901).

[9] Grossmith co-wrote the successful Havana (1908), while he moved to another Edwardes theatre to play Count Lothar in A Waltz Dream.

Grossmith was given writing credits for some of the Gaiety pieces, usually adaptations from French comedies (like The Spring Chicken) or collaborations with other writers (such as The Girls of Gottenberg), but he wrote the libretto to Peggy on his own.

Grossmith established himself as a major producer with Laurillard, bringing Potash and Perlmutter, by Montague Glass, to London in 1914 for a long run at the Queen's Theatre.

[10][11] Back at the Gaiety Theatre, Grossmith wrote, produced and starred in the hit Theodore & Co (1916), based on a French comedy.

They opened the theatre in 1919 with Grossmith and Leslie Henson starring in Kissing Time (1919, with a star-studded cast, a book by P.G.

Grossmith co-wrote some of the Winter Garden pieces, directed many of his own productions and starred in several, notably as Otis in Sally.

At the same time, in the early 1920s, while appearing less frequently in his own Winter Garden shows, he continued to appear in other shows, including The Naughty Princess (1920), the title role in a revival of The Gay Lord Quex (1923) and as Billy Early in the original British production of No, No, Nanette (1925).

As the anthem came to the normal stopping point, George started to sit down, but there is more, much more of the fine old chorale than is generally known.

[2] During a brief sojourn in Hollywood, he appeared in several films produced at the Fox Studios, including Women Everywhere (1930), for which he also supplied the story, and Are You There?

[18] In 1931–32, Grossmith was appointed managing director of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, producing The Land of Smiles and Cavalcade, but he resigned in 1932 to devote himself to cinema.

[19] Also in 1933, he wrote a memoir called G. G. The following year, he played Horner in The Country Wife at the Ambassadors Theatre.