This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Surnames: Tibbet, Tibbett Classification: Biography Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/JW.2ADE/7392.6 Message Board Post: The Bakersfield Californian, Wednesday, Dec. 2, 1964 Pg. 13 PIPEFULS by Jim Day Lawrence Tibbett electrified the music world overnight and became famous at the Metropolitan Opera in New York when, after understudying the great Scotti, he went on in the role of Ford for the opera Falstaff. He became a page-one story throughout the nation. But to those of us in Bakersfield and Kern County, where Tibbett was born, it was more than a musical sensation, it was a local boy making good and on his way to becoming one of the greatest baritones of all time. A few weeks ago an Australian girl wrote and asked me where she could get more records of Tibbett's magnificent voice. I queried Bert M. Tibbet Jr., here, a cousin of the late Lawrence, and who sang with him at the Metropolitan. As a result of this odd coincidence, coming about through a note from an Australian girl, I talked to Mr. Tibbet here and through his courtesy in the following story many details about the life of the late great Lawrence are revealed for the first time. Bert Tibbet, a last surviving relative, gives details of his cousin's life: Lawrence was the youngest of four children born to Ellen McKenzie Tibbet and William Tibbet - there were three boys and one girl, Jessie, Ernie, Lena and Lawrence. Jessie was the first Tibbet singer, a tenor, to appear in public. Lena was a lyric soprano with no desire to perform. Ellen and William, the parents, sang in church for years. William was a deputy sheriff of Kern County, Calif. He was killed in line of duty April 19, 1903. Both parents were of pioneer stock. The story of the gun battle with the outlaw McKinney has been told many times. Lawrence was born in Bakersfield, Kern County, Calif., Nov.16, 1896, at Eighth and K streets. The home is intact and is owned now by the Martinis. After the death of his father, Lawrence's mother moved the family to Long Beach, Calif. where she ran an apartment house for a time in 1906. Jessie studied vocal and piano at this point and became a beautiful McCormack-type singer in great local demand. He did not like the idea of his mother having to work so went to the mines in Chloride, Ariz., where they still tell of the boy who ran the hoist at the mine and would sing to the miners as they went in the shaft to change shifts. In later years Jess sang with Murphy's Comedians, however he would not stay with it. Ellen Tibbet was bound to have a singer in the family, so she started Lawrence on the piano, which he studied for years. He studied voice with Professor Dupwee, founder of the LA Orpheus Club of 90 male voices and with this club he was the soloist. The professor, after coaching Lawrence for years, advised him to go to New York, but did not live to hear or see his pupil's debut at the Metropolitan Opera. In the later years of Lawrence's boyhood his mother moved to Highland Park where she operated the Frances S. Beauty Shop to supply her and Lawrence with the necessities of life that he might continue his studies. He was a member of the famous wonder class in the LA grammar school that went through Manual Arts High and USC together. Some of whom were James Doolittle, great American ace, Ralph Bunce, the American peace negotiator, Goodwin Knight, former governor of Californian and many more. Lawrence sang at the Grauman's million dollar theater in downtown Los Angeles for $25 a week along with silent films. He won his doctor's degree in music. He also excelled in Shakespeare and won acclaim in the dramatic arts. He was an expert swimmer and a heavyweight boxer. The feeling of sponging from mother got him as it did Jess and in 1916 he joined the oil rush to Fellows, Calif. and went to work at the old Wallace refinery for the Wilshire Oil. His brother Ernie was plant superintendent. While running the pipe machine and covered with oil and dirt he quit and stated he would not work again - he would sing. World War I broke out and Lawrence joined the Navy, was assigned to the Asiatic fleet and after the war he took up his art in earnest. He went back to the Orpheus Club and the choir at the Wilshire Presbyterian church, James G. Warren, father of Eleanor Remick Warren, the composer, became interested in Lawrence at this period having been informed of the possibilities of the young singer by Rupert Hughes, the writer who had hired the first wife of Lawrence as his secretary to help the family along. Mr. Warren agreed to assist Lawrence financially if he would place himself under Mr. Warren's direction as to his career and hire Eleanor Remick Warren as his accompanist for the first year's concert tours. It was agreed and Lawrence had to post his life insurance with Mr. Warren. This was later returned and Lawrence kept his part of the bargain to the letter. He also paid back all the money loaned him except a check for $500 Mr. Warren kept for a memento. Mr. Warren stated to me that Lawrence did not know of the check being unpaid. Study began under this arrangement with Frank La Forge the great coach and accompanist of New York who had many friends at the opera. he had been accompanist to Madame Alda. After a time with La Forge the accompanist quit; so did Lawrence. He went to study with Rupert Hughes' brother Felix. Felix taught his pupils to bellow like bulls and Mr. Warren, hearing of the change in teachers, too Grace, the wife of Lawrence and flew post haste to New York. He met Lawrence i the hall at the Felix Hughes studio and informed Lawrence that all monies were withheld until Lawrence returned to La Forge. Lawrence fumed and so did Warren who headed back toward the elevator. Lawrence called to him stating he would go back to La Forge. Shortly after this incident La Forge arranged an audition before Guillo Gatti-Cazzi, the Met's impresario and husband of Madama Alda, the great soprano. Guillo, after hearing Lawrence, said that there was need for further study and more maturity. Madame Alda was furious. She declared the Met needed new blood and this young singer was just the one to give the needed shot in the arm. Guillo after some thought decided Lawrence could understudy Scotti who wanted to retire. During the playing of Faust, Scotti walked off the stage and told Lawrence to go on. He sang the Ave de Quitte and finished the role of Valentine. The plaudits were encouraging but Lawrence was still far from being forward and did not take his curtain calls. Later during the playing of Falstaff, he sang as Ford and with great gusto and beauty. During the curtain calls Caruso and Scotti pushed Lawrence onto the stage alone. John McCormack, the great Irish tenor was up in the gallery and he called out "Gibbet, the young American boy is the one you want," and the applause and bravos were deafening! He had his hear's desire - the world was his! Through the years after innumerable successes he was acclaimed the greatest dramatic baritone of all time along with Caruso as the greatest tenor. Lawrence was on the stage the last three performances of the great Caruso. He reported it was the most pitiful sight as the great singer bled at the mouth and attempted to finish the opera. Later he went to Italy to view the body of Caruso in Alcohol with a new suit and lying there as if alive. Lawrence was sick. He said they would never do that to him, that he would be cremated and he was cremated. Tibbett consulted with a numerologist and attached the extra "t" to his name making it Tibbett. He received the greatest remuneration of any single singer, a million dollars for five month's work in South America. He made the pictures Rouge Song with Katheryn Dale Owen, Cuban Love Song, with Lupe Velez, New Moon with the Met star Grace Moore, The Prodigal with Esther Ralston. I, Bert Tibbet, sang with my cousin in the Metropolitan. His concerts were all successful esthetically and economically. His concerts were particularly great because of the beauty of his voice and his robust vocal ability. His facial expressions on the concert stage were unexcelled. His records were high priced and good sellers but for some reason held off the market in later years. His 25 years with the Metropolitan Opera in New York were filled with many triumphs. The Met received it's "shot in the arm" from the greatest baritone of all time! He once stated that Rosa Ponselle, the great Met soprano with the long range, had the most perfect production vocally of any known human. She now lives in Baltimore, retires." Sharon Kern Co. Volunteer