Cliff Edwards , also known as "Ukelele Ike", was an American singer and voice actor who enjoyed considerable popularity in the 1920s and early 1930s, specializing in jazzy renditions of pop standards and novelty tunes. He had a number-one hit with "Singin' in the Rain" in 1929. He also did voices for animated cartoons later in his career, and is best known as the voice of Jiminy Cricket in Walt Disney's Pinocchio . Edwards was born Clifton A. Edwards in Hannibal, Missouri. He left school at age 14 and soon moved to St. Louis, Missouri, where he entertained as a singer in saloons. As many... places had pianos in bad shape or none at all, Edwards taught himself to play ukulele to serve as his own accompanist . He got the nickname "Ukelele Ike" from a club owner who could not remember his name. He got his first break in 1918 at the Arsonia Cafe in Chicago, Illinois, where he performed a tune called "Ja-Da", written by the club's pianist, Bob Carleton. Edwards and Carleton made the tune a hit on the vaudeville circuit.
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| Birthdate: | June 14, 1895 |
| Birthplace: | Hannibal, Missouri |
| Date of death: | July 17, 1971 |
| Height: | 5' 5" |
| Also known as: | Cliff Edwards, Clifton A. Edwards, Ukulele Ike |