George Lovejoy Rockwell
George Lovejoy Rockwell | |
|---|---|
Portrait of Rockwell, c. 1928 | |
| Born | March 19, 1889 Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. |
| Died | March 2, 1978 (aged 88) Brunswick, Maine, U.S. |
| Other names | Doc Rockwell |
| Education | Rhode Island School of Design |
| Occupations | Vaudeville performer, radio personality |
| Years active | 1910s–1940s |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3, including George Lincoln |
George Lovejoy "Doc" Rockwell (March 19, 1889 – March 2, 1978) was an American vaudeville performer and radio personality, active in performing from the 1910s to the early 1940s. Several of his acts involved bananas, leading to the quack doctor banana skit from which he gained his nickname. He appeared in two revues on Broadway, and appeared unbilled as himself in the 1937 comedy film The Singing Marine. Writer Anthony Slide described him as "one of the great 'nut' acts of vaudeville".
Rockwell created a series of comedy magazines entitled Ye Olde Mustard Plaster, later Dr. Rockwell's Mustard Plaster. He also had a short-lived radio show on the NBC Radio Network. Following his retirement in the 1940s, he wrote a column for Maine's Down East magazine, and worked as a sign painter. His eldest son, George Lincoln Rockwell, later became a notorious neo-Nazi and the founder of the American Nazi Party. While Rockwell disavowed his son's beliefs and actions, it nevertheless tarnished his name and reputation.