Chaz Chase

Charles "Chaz" Chase was born on March 6, 1901, in Kiev, then part of the Russian Empire, under the birth name Max Oskye, as recorded in the 1910 US census. He emigrated to the United States as a child alongside his mother and sisters, and the family settled in Chicago, where he was raised. His early training was in ballet, but he eventually redirected his ambitions toward vaudeville, developing a style of eccentric comedy influenced by entertainer Joe Frisco.

Chase built his vaudeville reputation around a singular and striking specialty act: consuming, or appearing to consume, an array of inedible objects including cardboard, paper flowers, lit matches, cigars, and cigarettes. His stage persona was further defined by baggy costuming, a recurring bit in which he walked in a circle while gradually crouching lower to the ground, and a comic striptease that sometimes closed his performances. This approach made him a popular fixture in vaudeville throughout the 1920s and 1930s.

His Broadway career spanned more than five decades, from 1925 to 1979, and included appearances in the Ziegfeld Follies of 1918, Ballyhoo of 1932, and High Kickers. The external record also places him in Ballyhoo of 1930 in 1930 and Saluta in 1934. His final Broadway engagements came with Sugar Babies, with last stage appearances in that production in 1982.

In 1928, Chase appeared in his own short film, Chaz Chase, the Unique Comedian. He also took on cameo roles in several feature films, including West of Zanzibar starring Lon Chaney in 1928, Aventure à Paris in 1936, Start Cheering in 1938, and The Man on the Eiffel Tower in 1948. Beyond film, he maintained extended engagements in Parisian cabaret, performing at venues including Le Crazy Horse, and participated in global USO tours alongside Bob Hope and others.

After a period of reduced visibility, Chase returned to prominence in the 1950s and continued making television appearances into the final years of his life. He performed on programs hosted by Ed Sullivan, Johnny Carson, and David Letterman in the United States, Rudi Carrell in Germany, and Tommy Cooper in Britain, and appeared on the British program The Good Old Days in 1979. Chase died in Los Angeles on August 4, 1983, at the age of 82.