Harry Wiere(1906-1992)
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Harry Wiere was born in Berlin, Germany in 1906, into a family having a
long tradition in show business. He was the oldest of three brothers.
In 1922, he and his brothers,
Herbert Wiere and
Sylvester Wiere, formed
The Wiere Brothers comedy act
and began performing in theatres and on stages. They came to America
for the first time in 1935 and remained in 1937. The Wiere Bros. were
an exceptionally talented comedy team having the ability to play
numerous instruments, sing, dance and perform acrobatics, while being
extremely funny in the process. Their act was a headliner on the
theatre and night club circuit, and in films they are very funny, but
unfortunately were not used very frequently. Their first film
appearance was in
Vogues of 1938 (1937). Two of
their film appearances in 1943,
Swing Shift Maisie (1943) and
Hands Across the Border (1944),
both claim to "introduce the Wiere Brothers" to American audiences.
Their dancing and music routine is probably best captured on film in
Road to Rio (1947), starring
Bob Hope and
Bing Crosby. Their last film appearance was
in Double Trouble (1967), starring
Elvis Presley. In 1960, CBS commissioned
thirteen episodes of a television series starring the Wiere Brothers.
The series,
Oh! Those Bells (1962), was
initially directed by former Three Stooges director
Jules White. The show aired in the
Summer of 1962 and was not renewed after its first season. The Wiere
Brothers continued to appear in night clubs and regularly on television
throughout the fifties, sixties and, until 1970, when Sylvester Wiere
died. After Sylvester's death, Harry and Herbert went into
semi-retirement, but continued to work occasionally in television and
on stage. In January of 1992, Harry Wiere died. As of 1996, Herbert
Wiere is semi-retired and resides in California.