Richard Bernard "Red" Skelton was born on July 18, 1913 and ever since his birth he has entertained many people of all ages. He was and still is America's clown and he always will be.
"God's children and their happiness are my reasons for being"
"I'm nuts and I know it. But so long as I make 'em laugh, they ain't going to lock me up. "
"Today's comics use four-letter words as a shortcut to thinking. They're shooting for that big laugh and it becomes a panic thing, using four-letter words to shock people."
About Freddy the Freeloader: “I get asked all the time;
Where did you get the idea for Freddie the Freeloader, and who is Freddie really?
Well, I guess you might say that Freddie the Freeloader is a little bit of you, and a little bit of me, a little bit of all of us, you know.
He’s found out what love means. He knows the value of time. He knows that time is a glutton. We say we don't have time to do this or do that. There's plenty of time. The trick is to apply it. The greatest disease in the world today is procrastination.
And Freddie knows about all these things. And so do you. He doesn't ask anybody to provide for him, because it would be taken away from you. He doesn't ask for equal rights if it’s going to give up some of yours.
And he knows one thing ... that patriotism is more powerful than guns.
He’s nice to everybody because he was taught that man is made in God’s image. He’s never met God in person and the next fella just might be him.
I would say that Freddie is a little bit of all of us.â€
"I don't want to be called 'the greatest' or 'one of the greatest'; let other guys claim to be the best. I just want to be known as a clown because to me that's the height of my profession. It means you can do everything-sing, dance, and above all, make people laugh."
"So, until next week, I'll say good health, good life, and may God bless. Goodnight."
"I personally believe that each of us was put here for a purpose -- to build not to destroy. If I can make people smile, then I have served my purpose for God."
-Having Wonderful Time (1938)
-Seeing Red (1939) (short subject)
-Flight Command (1940)
-The People vs. Dr. Kildare (1941)
-Whistling in the Dark (1941)
-Dr. Kildare's Wedding Day (1941)
-Lady Be Good (1941)
-Ship Ahoy (1942)
-Maisie Gets Her Man (1942)
-Panama Hattie (1942)
-Whistling in Dixie (1942)
-DuBarry Was a Lady (1943)
-Thousands Cheer (1943)
-I Dood It (1943)
-Whistling in Brooklyn (1943)
-Radio Bugs (1944) (short subject) (voice)
-Bathing Beauty (1944)
-The Luckiest Guy in the World (1946) (short subject) (voice)
-Ziegfeld Follies (1946)
-The Show-Off (1946)
-Merton of the Movies (1947)
-The Fuller Brush Man (1948)
-A Southern Yankee (1948)
-Neptune's Daughter (1949)
-The Yellow Cab Man (1950)
-Three Little Words (1950)
-Duchess of Idaho (1950) (cameo)
-The Fuller Brush Girl (1950) (cameo)
-Watch the Birdie (1950)
-Excuse My Dust (1951)
-Texas Carnival (1951)
-Lovely to Look At (1952)
-The Clown (1953)
-Half a Hero (1953)
-The Great Diamond Robbery (1953)
-Hollywood Goes to War (1954) (short subject)
-Susan Slept Here (1954) (cameo)
-Around the World in Eighty Days (1956)
-Public Pigeon No. One (1957)
-Ocean's Eleven (1960)
-Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1965)
If you have not seen him yet, I would strongly recommend watching Tom Mullica's act of Red Skelton. He is very good and it was a pleasure to watch!