The Famous Faces of Clan Keith

The Keith family have proven themselves to have whip-smart intellect time and again throughout their history. One intelligent member that particularly sticks out is Arthur Berriedale Keith, who was born to a news agent in Edinburgh in 1879. He studied at the Royal High School and the University of Edinburgh, before his prowess earned him a spot at Balliol College, Oxford. There he gained first class degrees in Classics and Sanskrit in 1900 and 1901.

He was called to the English bar soon after graduating and also joined the Colonial Office; it is said that he won the highest marks ever achieved in the Home and Indian civil service examinations. In 1914, he returned to Scotland to serve as Regius Professor of Sanskrit and Comparative Philology at the University of Edinburgh.

He was recognised by a number of other organisations, receiving an honorary LLD from the University of Leeds in 1936 and being elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 1935, a position reserved for leading academics making distinct advances within their field.

Arthur also continued the Keith’s traditional, long-held proximity to royalty. In a parallel to King Charles II calling on the Earl Marischal Keith’s help to hide the Scottish Crown Jewels in the 1600s, Arthur was commissioned to aid the government during the royal abdication crisis of 1936.

He died on the 6^th October 1944 and is buried in Grange Cemetery, Edinburgh, alongside his wife, however, if you would like to learn more about this renowned figure, many of his works have been preserved by the University of Edinburgh. The University holds a large Arthur Berriedale Keith collection of around 1,600 books and more than 1,500 pamphlets! They mainly concern Sanskrit and other Indian literature, as well as history and politics.

There is also a number of items relating to Keith’s career and his personal life. Let us know if you take a trip to Edinburgh to have a look, we’d love to hear about it.

Our next famous Keith for today was once called ‘the most exciting woman in the world’ by Orson Welles.

Eartha Mae Kitt was born in 1927 as Eartha Mae Keith in a small town in South Carolina. Her mother was of Cherokee and African descent, and her father was white – although Kitt never found out who exactly he was. Eartha experienced frequent bullying as a young child and was sent from relative to relative, never feeling fully accepted or at home.

However, things started to look up slightly when she was sent to live with Mamie Kitt in Harlem, New York City, where she studied at the Metropolitan Vocational High School, beginning to hone her skills in the performing arts.

It quickly became apparent that she was multi-talented and would stand out in almost any arena within the performance field. She began her career on Broadway, appearing in the 1945 original production of the musical Carib Song, and soon after went on to release a flurry of hits as a solo artist. In the 1950s, she enjoyed 6 top 30 songs in the US, and a UK top 10 song, ‘Under the Bridges of Paris.’ In the 1960s, she starred as Catwoman in the final season of the TV show Batman, becoming one of the first black women to achieve mainstream TV success in the US. She even challenged racist stereotypes by acting as a love interest to her white co-star, Adam West.

Kitt was determined, bold, and unafraid of asserting herself. However, one instance of this admirable bravery threatened to end her career. In 1968 she passionately expressed her reservations about the Vietnam War while at a White House Luncheon, causing an enormous amount of backlash and criticism. As a result, she struggled to book jobs for years.

Thankfully Kitt managed to return to Broadway in 1978, starring in the original production of Timbuktu, earning a Tony Award nomination. Later, in the 2000s, Kitt was discovered by a whole new generation when she gained roles in the Disney films The Emperor’s New Groove, and Holes. She even won two Daytime Emmy Awards for her work in The Emperor’s New School from 2006 to 2008!

While Kitt’s career is impressive, her empathy and charitable spirit were also remarkable. She formed the Kittsville Youth Foundation, a non-profit organisation that supported young people living in poverty in Los Angeles, and was a vocal advocate for LGBTQ rights, including gay marriage. It is obvious that Kitt was driven by a strong moral code and passion for improving the world.

Kitt died of colon cancer on Christmas Day in 2008 at home in Connecticut with her daughter by her side. However, even posthumously, she continues to entertain and inspire to this day. Clan Keith is certainly lucky to count such a formidable character among their ranks!

Our final famous Keith for today also had a big impact on the entertainment industry, though in a different field. Alan Keith, born on the 19^th October 1908, was a beloved British radio presenter. At the time of his death, aged 94, he was named as the longest-serving voice on British radio!

Alan was born in Hackney, London, to Russian-Jewish parents and studied at Dame Alice Owen’s School in Islington until he gained a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 1926. He graduated in 1928 and by 1935 had already made a name for himself at the BBC, performing in numerous radio plays and acting as an interviewer for In Town Tonight.

He launched his most famous and well-loved venture in 1959, when he began the show Your Hundred Best Tunes. It was a simple premise: Keith would play his 100 favourite songs on air for the listening audience. At first, producers predicted that the show would run for a maximum of 6 months, but they changed their minds once they saw how quickly the programme was picking up steam. Listeners would write in to voice their opinions, so Keith challenged them to send in their own picks. This interactive format proved to be extremely popular, and Your Hundred Best Tunes turned into one of the longest-running radio shows of all time!

Keith was deservedly awarded an OBE for his extensive services to broadcasting in 1991, after having spent almost 60 years at the BBC. However, even after this, he continued to appear on the radio for more than a decade longer. In March of 2003, at the age of 94, he announced that he was retiring from his hit programme. Sadly, he did not have long to enjoy his well-earned retirement, as he died shortly after. It seems that he inherited an astonishing drive and work-ethic from the early, equally hard-working, members of Clan Keith!

Image Sources:

Arthur Berriedale Keith - Unknown author CC BY 4.0

Portrait of Eartha Kitt (October 19th, 1952) - Carl Van Vechten - Van Vechten Collection at Library of Congress

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art - Philafrenzy CC BY-SA 4.0