King, Dennis

King, Dennis [ Dennis Pratt] (1897–1971), British-born actor and singer who spent most of his life in America. He made his first appearance in 1916 in a small part at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre. His first London appearance was in 1919, and in 1921 he made his New York début with Ethel and John Barrymore in Clair de Lune, based on Victor Hugo's novel L'Homme qui rit. He played several further roles in New York before achieving stardom there in two famous musicals by Friml: as Jim Kenyon in Rose-Marie (1924) and François Villon in The Vagabond King (1925). In 1928 he was seen as D'Artagnan in another Friml musical The Three Musketeers, based on the novel by Dumas père (Drury Lane, 1930). He played the title role in a revival of Peter Ibbetson (1931) based on the novel by George Du Maurier, and Gaylord Ravenal in a revival of Kern and Hammerstein's Show Boat (1932). Thereafter he appeared mainly in straight plays, ranging from Ibsen, Chekhov, and Shaw (General Burgoyne in The Devil's Disciple, 1950) to modern parts such as Richard II in Gordon Daviot's Richard of Bordeaux (1934). He was also seen in N. C. Hunter's A Day by the Sea (1955), Ustinov's Photo Finish (1963), and Osborne's A Patriot for Me (1969). He made rare returns to the musical stage in Rodgers and Hart's I Married an Angel (1938) and Kern's Music in the Air (1951).