Sir Aubrey Smith was born July 21, 1863 in St. Stephen’s Hospital. As time went by he became a serious soccer player, but his real desire was to play cricket.

An opening brisk fast-medium bowler, he played for Charterhouse, Cambridge, Sussex and England. He debuted in 1882 for Sussex County Cricket Club and served as Captain in 1887, 1888, and 1890. He also captained two England Touring Sides — to Australia and South Africa.

He went to Hollywood in 1929 and, alongside Boris Karloff, taught cricket at UCLA in 1932. That same year, Arthur Mailey’s Australian team captained by Vic Richardson played Smith’s team of British actors at UCLA — Smith scored 24 runs against Don Bradman’s team.

The publicity from that tour was used to found the Hollywood Cricket Club and secure a permanent ground at Griffith Park in Burbank, officially opened on May 23, 1933 with four pitches.

Created a C.B.E. in 1938 at Buckingham Palace, he received a knighthood in 1944. Sir Charles Aubrey Smith died in Beverly Hills on December 20, 1948. He will always be remembered by Hollywood Cricket Club.