Charles Rogers - Childhood and Family

Hi there Roach-readers!

How lovely it is to see so many more of you after Matthew Ross kindly let us write about the wonderful Charles Rogers in his amazing The Lost Laugh Magazine...if you haven't read it, here's the link! Matthew's blog and e-magazine is incredible. Thanks again Matthew!

Today, I'll be delving into the childhood, family, and early life of Laurel and Hardy's director, writer, and close-friend Charles (Charley/Charlie) Rogers. Whilst sadly Rogers was never interviewed regarding his childhood, and whilst there are no pictures that I've come across yet, I have been able to scour through Ancestry and the British Newspaper Archive to find some general and specific stories about his (very) early life.

From records on Ancestry, I discovered that Rogers lived with his aunt and uncle and attended school in Stafford Road, London as a child. There aren't any specific Rogers records from this time, but there are newspaper articles regarding the schools having all sorts of fun events from magic lantern shows to school productions starring the children - so it seems young Rogers would have had a very young, very fun introduction to performing on stage, as well as to projected stories and images!

Regarding Rogers' later childhood - I have a bit of an update/correction to give. If you've been a Lot of Fun Writers reader for some time, you may recall my previous post on Rogers' family and early life, The Rogers Family. In this blog, I acknowledged and drew from the excellent prior 1961 research of Claude Flory (assisted by Rogers' brother John) into Rogers' father - also Charles Rogers, a playwright. In this article, it was stated that the Rogers family were able to attend Taplow Grammar School based on their father's success - however, I found that this was not the case - and that the truth behind the real events is both heartbreaking and heartwarming.

When the senior Charles Rogers passed away at the tragically young age of 36 in 1899, his family financially suffered. With acts of immense kindness, the British theatre-world immediately rallied around the Rogers family to keep them afloat financially. 

In the May of 1899, an E.C.L of the Grand Theatre in Glasgow contacted The Era (theatrical newspaper) calling attention to the fact that the Rogers family were suffering financially, and asking readers to consider contributing financially to help them get by.

Following this, Mr Frank Rothsay of the Borough Theatre in Stratford opened a fund for the family, and listed in The Stage the thoughtful donors thus far as being C Dipple, W Davies, Ernest Stevens, Luke Forster, Weldon Watts, F. Fredericks, Mr Livesey (donating on behalf of the company performing 'The Ladder of Life', one of the plays penned by the senior Rogers), Miss Marie Auckland, Bellinder Clarke, Frank Howard, May St. Aubyn, E. Statham Staples, and J. Wilton Richards.

Further, it turns out that The Actors Orphanage Fund were in fact responsible for sending Charles and John Rogers to Taplow Grammar School, and updates were given on both the fund and the boys up until 1905 in various newspapers. 

This article, published in The Queen, The Lady's Newspaper in 1900, covers the discussions of the progress and accomplishments of the Actors Orphanage Fund at its fourth annual meeting. In it is mentioned that 'two delicate boys' had their fees reduced to attend Taplow Grammar School - whilst it's impossible to definitively confirm that this was the Rogers boys, the timeline (according to census records) and circumstances do suggest it was them.

This article published in The Referee in 1901 focuses on the struggles surrounding the income of the Actors' Orphanage Fund, and further details how renowned English actor/manager Cyril Maude personally visited and gave counsel to the boys at Taplow - this would have included Charles and John Rogers. Maude later became president of The Actors' Orphanage Fund in 1905, taking over the position from Sir Henry Irving. 

In 1905 comes perhaps the sweetest update of all - Maude had put forth the 'Perseverance Challenge Cup' to motivate the boys sent to Taplow Grammar School, and one of the Rogers boys won! It's tricky to say which one. It appears Charlie Rogers stated on census details that he attended Taplow for 4 years, meaning it is more likely to be John - however, having viewed many documents and details signed by Charlie, it does seem his memory for years could be a little wobbly from time to time - so it really could have been either! In any case, it's certainly heartwarming. 

As always, thank you so much for your interest in Charles Rogers, Hal Roach Studios, and in our blog. Matthew and I are always happy to chat to you all, and you can always contact us with suggestions and queries by emailing us at roachwriters@gmail.com, or via our social media. Please note our research and blog is a labour of love for us alongside our day-to-day lives, so our replies won't be instantaneous! 

Further - if you'd like to learn more about the Actors Orphanage - it still operates today as the wonderful Actors Childrens Trust, supporting actors and their families in the UK. Please click here to learn more or consider donating!

Thanks so much for following the blog and the Rogers story!

Written and researched by Holly Foskett.