Stump and Stumpy

Stump and Stumpy were a dance/comedy/acting duo popular from the mid-1930s to the 1950s, consisting of James "Stump" Cross, and either Eddie Hartman or Harold J. Cromer as "Stumpy". Their act was mostly jazz tap, and comedy expressed through song and movement.^[1]

History

James 'Jimmy' Cross and Edward 'Eddie' Hartman, traveled around the United States on what was often called the 'Black Vaudeville' circuit, under management of Nat Nazarro. In 1943, Cross was cast in the United States Army's This Is the Army film, with William Wycoff as his 'partner'. Stump and Stumpy's first big success was appearing in the movie Boarding House Blues (1948), after which Hartman had become unreliable as a performer, and was replaced with Cromer.

Appearances

• Apollo Theater, Harlem, New York, Cab Calloway headlining – May 17–23, 1940
• Flatbush Theatre, Brooklyn, New York, Duke Ellington headlining – Nov 28-Dec 4, 1940^[2]
• Windsor Theatre, New York, (same as Flatbush show)
• Regal Theatre, Chicago, the Inkspots headlining – Nov 8, 1942^[3]
• The Strand, Lakewood, New Jersey (?), Billie Holiday headlining – 1948^[4]

Harold Cromer was the M.C. for numerous Irvin Feld-produced rock and roll package tours in the late 1950s. He danced with LaVern Baker as she sang "Jim Dandy" and thus was billed as Harold "Jim Dandy" Cromer for most of these tours.

Worked with

• Steve Allen
• Count Basie
• Milton Berle
• Irving Berlin
• Cab Calloway
• Duke Ellington
• Billie Holiday
• Martin and Lewis
• Frank Sinatra
• Dizzy Gillespie
• The Ink Spots

See also

• James Cross at the Internet Movie Database
• Stump and Stumpy Allmusic
• Secret Daughter PBS.org
• Stump and Stumpy in Vaudeville, Old & New

References

1. Bruce Weber (June 13, 2013). "Harold J. Cromer, Vaudeville Duo’s Stumpy, Is Dead". New York Times. Retrieved 2014-12-10. Harold J. Cromer ... died on June 8 at his home in Manhattan. He was in his early 90s.
2. http://www.depanorama.net/dems/04dems2b.htm, "On the Road and On the Air with Duke Ellington", New York Post Dec 5, 1940
3. http://inkspots.ca/ispress.htm, Chicago Defender Newspaper, Nov 9, 1942
4. New York Times, Jul 17, 1948