Allan Jones was born Theodore Allen Jones in Old Forge, Pennsylvania. A
coal miner's son, he worked in the mines until 1926. At that point in
time, he received a scholarship from Syracuse University, but chose
instead to study music at New York University with Claude Warford and
then with Felix Leroux in Paris and Sir Henry Wood in London.
Classically trained in opera, the handsome Jones worked on Broadway and
in operettas until 1935. At that point, Jones was signed by MGM Grand.
He is best remembered for his roles in the two Marx Brothers movies
A Night at the Opera (1935) and
A Day at the Races (1937), and for his costarring
role in
Show Boat (1936). The movie
The Firefly (1937) produced the
song "Donkey Serenade", which became Jones's signature song. Jones was
relegated to minor roles at MGM after this. He moved to Universal
Studios in 1940, and he starred or appeared in several B musicals there
and at Paramount.
During the war years, Jones was one of the first entertainers to
volunteer to sing for the troops overseas. In 1945, Jones left
Hollywood and toured Great Britain for two years. He returned to the
stage and toured with several off-Broadway musicals. Over the next
twenty years, he worked the nightclub circuit, appeared in summer-stock
and off-Broadway productions, and recorded extensively, including
several short "songfests", meant to be fillers in the early days of TV.
In the mid 1960s the busy Jones managed to fit a few appearances on
television and in movies into his busy theater, nightclub, and
recording career. In 1971, he took on the role of Don Quixote in "Man
of La Mancha", a role he would perform off and on for the next eight
years. He also was very successful on the lecture circuit.
In 1982, the 75-year-old Jones cut yet another LP, his voice belying
his age: as clear and vibrant as singers a third his age.
Jones continued to work for the remainder of his life, finishing a
successful tour of Australia a few weeks before his death, at 84, in
1992.
The Love Boat(1977)as Richard Braddock
A Man Called Sledge(1970)as Matt
A Swingin' Summer(1965)as Mr. Johnson
Stage to Thunder Rock(1964)as Mayor Ted Dollar
77 Sunset Strip(1958)as Endicott Fellows
Radio Days(1987)
Monsanto Night Presents Jack Jones(1974)
That's Entertainment!(1974)
MGM Parade(1955)
Looks Familiar(1970)as Self - Guest
The Mike Douglas Show(1961)as Self, Self - Dr. Jones, Self - Father of Jack
Special Collector's Edition(2010)as Ricardo
Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History - The 1930s: Dancing Away the Great Depression(2009)as Self
Remarks on Marx(2004)as Ricardo Baroni
On Your Marx, Get Set, Go!(2004)as Gil Stewart
Inside the Marx Brothers(2003)as Riccardo Barone (clip from A Night at the Opera (1935))
