Joseph Grimaldi

He became successful at the Sadler's Wells Theatre the following year; his first major role was as Little Clown in the pantomime The Triumph of Mirth; or, Harlequin's Wedding in 1781, in which he starred alongside his father.

In his new association with the Covent Garden theatre, he appeared at the end of the same year in Thomas John Dibdin's Harlequin and Mother Goose; or, The Golden Egg, which included perhaps his best known portrayal of Clown.

Grimaldi's residencies at Covent Garden and Sadler's Wells ran simultaneously, and he became known as London's leading Clown and comic entertainer, enjoying many successes at both theatres.

He was later engaged by David Garrick to play Pantaloon in pantomimes at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, earning high praise,[8] and eventually became the ballet master there.

[11] On 16 April 1781, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, the manager of Drury Lane,[1] cast both Giuseppe and Grimaldi in the pantomime The Wizard of the Silver Rocks; or, Harlequin's Release.

[21][22] Although Grimaldi's stage career was flourishing, Giuseppe enrolled him at Mr Ford's Academy, a boarding school in Putney, which educated the children of theatrical performers.

[34][38] His stage performances over the next two years did not garner him the kind of success he had experienced under the management of his father,[39] and the role of pre-eminent Clown in London productions soon fell to Jean-Baptiste Dubois, a versatile French acrobat, horseman, singer and strongman, with a formidable repertoire of comic tricks.

Two years later, at Sadler's Wells, he played the role of Hag Morad in the Thomas John Dibdin Christmas pantomime The Talisman; or, Harlequin Made Happy.

The eldest daughter of the proprietor of the Sadler's Wells theatre, Richard Hughes,[48] Maria was introduced to Grimaldi by his mother, Rebecca Brooker, and a romance soon blossomed.

Clown's costume was "garishly colourful ... patterned with large diamonds and circles, and fringed with tassels and ruffs," instead of the tatty servant's outfit that had been used for a century.

[54] Despite Dubois' "endless bag of tricks [and] vast array of skills", his performance appeared artificial, in contrast to Grimaldi, who was better able to "draw the audience into believing the essential comedic qualities" of Clown.

[55] At Drury Lane later in 1800, he starred as an officer in The Wheel of Fortune by Richard Cumberland, a Jewish pedlar in The Indian, as Clown in Robinson Crusoe, and as the Second Gravedigger in Hamlet, alongside John Philip Kemble.

"[59] With the Christmas season approaching, and the success of Peter Wilkins still a topic of conversation within theatrical circles, Kemble decided to stage the first Drury Lane pantomime in three years, Harlequin Amulet; or, The Magick of Mona, with Grimaldi as Punch and then as Clown, instead of Dubois.

[62] The pantomime was a great success, running for thirty-three performances and having a second Drury Lane season at Easter 1801; as a result, Grimaldi became recognised as one of London's leading Clowns.

"[66] Grimaldi and Dubois appeared together again later that spring at Sadler's Wells in Dibdin's Harlequin Alchemist, which set up a mock duel between the two Clowns, with the audience deciding who could pull the most hideous face.

[76] Sadler's Wells closed for refurbishment at the end of its 1801 season and re-opened on 19 April 1802; Grimaldi returned to take a major role in the Easter pantomime, for which he designed the look of his recurring Clown character "Joey".

He starred as Rufo the Robber in Red Riding Hood, as Sir John Bull in New Broom and Aminadab in Susanna Centlivre's A Bold Stroke for a Wife.

[48] It prompted one critic from European Magazine to write: "We have not for several years witnessed a Pantomime more attractive than this: whether we consider the variety and ingenuity of the mechanical devices [or] the whim, humour, and agility of the Harlequin, Clown and Pantaloon".

[119] The following year, Grimaldi sang "Tippitywitchet" for the first time at Sadler's Wells in Charles Dibdin's pantomime Bang up, or, Harlequin Prime; it became one of his most popular songs.

[1][n 12] By 1812, despite Grimaldi's success as a performer, he was close to bankruptcy as a result of his wife's extravagant spending, a number of thefts by his accountant and the cost of maintaining both an idyllic country lifestyle and his son JS's private education.

[123] Grimaldi returned to London to star as Queen Ronabellyana with much success in the Covent Garden Christmas pantomime, Harlequin and the Red Dwarf; or, The Adamant Rock.

[125] That year he played the title role in Robinson Crusoe at Sadler's Wells, with his young son, JS, making his stage debut as Man Friday.

Grimaldi suffered two setbacks towards the end of the year, becoming housebound for a few months due to illness[127] and learning of the death of his friend, mentor and former father-in-law, Richard Hughes, in December.

Dibdin was annoyed at the tolerant attitude Grimaldi displayed in his position as the Chief Judge and Treasurer of the Sadler's Wells Court of Rectitude, a body set up to regulate the behaviour of performers.

Dibdin agreed to a salary increase but bristled at Grimaldi's other demands and eventually gave the position of resident Clown to the little-known Signor Paulo.

Now acting as an official understudy,[127] JS filled many of his father's other theatrical engagements, including a rerun of Harlequin and Mother Bunch; or, the Yellow Dwarf, in which he caused a scandal by threatening and verbally abusing a heckler in the audience.

In the first, he appeared as Hock the German soldier and a drunken sailor in Thomas Dibdin's melodrama The Sixes; or, The Fiends at Sadler's Wells to an audience of 2,000 people.

[168] In 1832, Grimaldi, Mary and their son moved to Woolwich,[169] but JS often abused his parents' hospitality by bringing home prostitutes and fighting in the house with his alcoholic friends.

[174] On 31 May 1837 he complained of a tightening of the chest but recuperated enough to attend his local public house, The Marquis of Cornwallis, where he spent a convivial evening entertaining fellow patrons and drinking to excess.

[1][107] Literary critic John Carey wrote: "He invented clown make-up as we know it today (the wide grin was designed to be visible from the back of Drury Lane's auditorium, the biggest in Europe).