About Tony Pastor
Antonio Pastor was an American impresario, variety performer and theatre owner who became one of the founding forces behind American vaudeville in the mid-to-late-nineteenth century. He was sometimes referred to as the "Dean of Vaudeville". The strongest elements of his entertainments were an almost-jingoistic brand of United States patriotism and a strong commitment to attracting a "mixed-gender" audience, the latter being something revolutionary in the male-oriented variety halls of the mid-century. Although he was a performer and producer, Pastor is best known for "cleaning up" bawdy variety acts and presenting a clean and family-friendly genre called vaudeville. Although Pastor was referred to as the "Dean of Vaudeville", as mentioned before, he is best known for cleaning up variety acts. Antonio Pastor (May 28, 1837 – August 26, 1908) was an American impresario, variety performer and theatre owner who became one of the founding forces behind American vaudeville in the mid-to-late-nineteenth century. Pastor became a celebrated singing clown at a time when circus performances typically concluded with a variety revue.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.