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Charles "Tiny" Burnett stands out in Seattle history for his popular orchestra leadership in the Orpheum Circuit vaudeville theaters here from 1915-1933. Known as "Tiny" because of his short stature, he was well-liked by performers on the circuit.

Charles Samuel Burnett, the son of Russian immigrants Thomas and Ida Burnett, was born July 25, 1888 in St. Joseph, Missouri. At the age of nineteen, he worked as an orchestra leader at the Crystal Theater in St. Joseph. In 1907, he led a concert orchestra at the Butler Hotel in Seattle, and in 1908, he became the manager of the Lois Theater in Seattle. In an interview in the Bremerton Sun in 1953, Burnett described working twelve to fifteen hour days as manager and making "no more money than when I was playing the piano and leading a band." According to Burnett, this situation led to his decision to go to Europe. He stayed there for two years studying music with Alberto Jonas. On his return, he worked as accompanist with the Seattle Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Henry Hadley.

Burnett's long career on the Orpheum Circuit began in 1915 when Carl Reiter, the manager of the Seattle Orpheum Theater, offered him the position of bandleader. Burnett undertook leadership of the orchestra with a twist; he decided to play the harmonium while conducting. In an interview, he described it this way: "I would lead the orchestra with my right hand, play with my left and pump with my feet." During this time, Burnett's parents moved from St. Joseph to Seattle, where his father owned a jewelry store on 4th Street.

Charles Burnett's energy was well-known. In the Seattle newspaper The Argus, a reporter wrote: "He does enough work for a half dozen men his size - or two of regular size." Burnett habitually conducted the orchestra from one o'clock p.m. to ten o'clock p.m. and then played other engagements with his own dance band into the small hours of the next morning.

Charles Burnett stayed with Orpheum Circuit vaudeville through its run in Seattle, as it moved from the Orpheum Theater to the Alhambra Theater, and then on to the Moore Theater. After the end of Orpheum vaudeville in 1933, Burnett moved to Hollywood to work for the Universal Studios music department. There he worked on soundtracks for "B" movies. These soundtracks were not original, but were cannibalized and spliced together from previously recorded tracks. While working for the studio, Burnett accompanied Deanna Durbin on her first film.

After two years in Hollywood, Burnett returned home to Seattle after the death of his mother. He later joined a friend named Henry "Doc" Schwartz in co-ownership of a Bremerton restaurant named "Tiny's." The restaurant closed in 1949. Burnett continued to do charitable work in Bremerton, coaching young musicians and maintaining his musical connections until his death in August 1974.

Over the years, Burnett amassed a large collection of souvenir photographs from the performers with whom he worked. Many of the photographs are studio portraits signed with fond notes by the performers, who range from novelty acts and circus attractions to opera singers and silent film actors.