Randall Williams (showman), Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

Randall Williams (showman)

Date of Birth: 17-Jul-1846

Place of Birth: Liverpool, England, United Kingdom

Date of Death: 14-Nov-1898

Zodiac Sign: Cancer

Randall Kay Williams (17 July 1846 – 14 November 1898) was a Victorian showman noted for popularising moving pictures on British fairgrounds.
The first known reference to Williams exhibiting films in his show was at Rotherham Statute Fair on 2 November 1896. Williams toured Britain for 25 years, first with a ghost illusion show, and then with a bioscope.
He reached the height of his career in the summer of 1897 when he exhibited at the Victorian Era Exhibition in Earl's Court, London.
His show that year was designed specifically to pay homage to Queen Victoria's sixty year reign with a programme that included an "original Pepper's Ghost" performance, ‘animated photographs’ of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Procession (filmed 22 June 1897), and a Tableau vivant presentation representing the Queen surrounded by the flags of all nations.Williams was also an outspoken advocate for the travelling show community and a founding member of the United Kingdom Van Dwellers’ Protection Association, the fairground trade organization known today as the Showmen's Guild of Great Britain.