Entertainer. Edwards got the nickname "Ukulele Ike" during his youth in St. Louis, where he sang and played the ukulele in saloons. After scoring a national hit with the song "Ja Da," he became a Vaudeville headliner and then a Broadway star in the Ziegfeld "Follies" and George White "Scandals" revues of the 1920s. Edwards' warm, soulful tenor enlivened many early Hollywood musicals, including "The Hollywood Revue of 1929" (1929), in which he introduced the Nacio Herb Brown-Arthur Freed tune "Singin' in the Rain." His Hollywood career didn't match his stage success, however, and by the early 1940's he was playing supporting parts in B pictures. Edwards remains best known for providing the voice of Jiminy Cricket in Walt Disney's "Pinocchio" (1940), and singing its Oscar-winning song, "When You Wish Upon a Star." He apparently died broke. According to Valhalla personnel, Edwards' grave went unmarked for nearly 20 years before a plaque was donated by a fan.

Entertainer. Edwards got the nickname "Ukulele Ike" during his youth in St. Louis, where he sang and played the ukulele in saloons. After scoring a national hit with the song "Ja Da," he became a Vaudeville headliner and then a Broadway star in the Ziegfeld "Follies" and George White "Scandals" revues of the 1920s. Edwards' warm, soulful tenor enlivened many early Hollywood musicals, including "The Hollywood Revue of 1929" (1929), in which he introduced the Nacio Herb Brown-Arthur Freed tune "Singin' in the Rain." His Hollywood career didn't match his stage success, however, and by the early 1940's he was playing supporting parts in B pictures. Edwards remains best known for providing the voice of Jiminy Cricket in Walt Disney's "Pinocchio" (1940), and singing its Oscar-winning song, "When You Wish Upon a Star." He apparently died broke. According to Valhalla personnel, Edwards' grave went unmarked for nearly 20 years before a plaque was donated by a fan.

Bio by: Bobb Edwards