The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1891-07-19
NATIVE AMERICAN
DRAMATIC TALENT.
Growth Of HiShi0niG Authorship in This
Country.
What New York Managers Have Done to Fos-
ter Home Talent, and Their Faith in
the Ability of Our Authors.

houut uitccu years ago prominent papers
throughout the country were agitHting the
questions why have we no American
dramatists?" 1t was not intended to con-
vey the idea that there was or had been
no plays by American authors up to that
time, but that the vast prepondeIanee Of
those then being offered to the public were
of either French or English authorship. 1t
was considered surprising that country
which had already developed such an excel
lent and distinctive literature of its own in
every branch but the dramatic should ne so
sadly lacking in that one. To-day the ques-
ton need not be asked. We have our dis
tnctve dramatic work. and although all of
it may not lay claim to high literary merit
it is in no way initiative, and has 50 reached
the public taste that of the plays now being
produced by the five or six hundred COM
panles in the United States but small
proportion of them are of foreign origin.
The growth of dramatic authorship in this
country and the reasons for its apparent
slowness will be best understood by glance
at our dramatic history. Our plays and our
our foster country, and for years both
were hampered by the stamp of
''vagabondage" which had been set
upon them by the country whence they
came. Gradually, as good stock companies
were formed and began to be recognized in
the communities in which they existed and
men of bright attachments were associated
with the profession, local happenings gave
opportunity for satiriziDg. goOd-humoredly
ana otherwise, and they were written, pro-
duced upon the stage and died when the
cause which gave rise to them had diSap-
peared. Fifty years ago there was no stock
company which did not have its special
dramat!st' for this purpose, and Charles
Waleot, the father of the mem Der of the pres
ent Lyceum Theater Company of that name.
was one of that class. The position was not
lucrative one. Fame was usually its only
remuneration. Even when ambition had
led them TO aspire to something higher, S25
was considered ample for play which
would constitute whole evenings pro-
gramme, and though it should run for
weeks the author got no more for it, Think
OF that, We presenI-day dramatists, whose
play often yield more than that many thou
sands in one seasons royalties. the old
time 'dramatist" was sometimes an actor in
the company, sometimes a friendly lawyer
or physician. but never depended upon his
plays" for even portion OF his livelihood.
OF THE EARLIER PLAYS
Which were notable successes in their time
"Uncle Toms Cabin" and ''Neighbor jack
wood" both dramatizations of anttslavery
novels, were among the first. Frank Chan
frau's ''Scenes in New York" q satire on
the Volunteer Fire Department with him
self As Nose and Mary Taylor as Lie. came
soon after. OF higher stamp was the work
of DR.. Bird, kentnckian,. who wrote for
Edwin Forrest m ttamora" and THE Gladi-
ator," which latter play John Mccullough
purchased frcm the Forrest estate and made
his most prominent impersonation in later
nr Rir1 oicn stNiaH % ha
Woods" in which j. b. Proctor made his
reputation. Proctor is still alive, an old
man, and teaching elocutiOn in Boston.
Then Barney Williams, an Irish comedian,
came to this country and married one of the
Pray sisters, who were dancers between the
acts at various theaters. Charles Walcut,
above referred to, connected for them a
series of plays with characters of an Irish
boy and Yankee girl, aud Mr.. and Mrs.
Barney Williams made fortune. w. j.
Florence married the other sister, and
climbed into prominence with the same
plays.
success as Dundreary in Our American
Cousin" (Which was by an English author),
and had taken it to London, a New York
it called SAM" which Frank Chanfrau
played with success. This was entirely
different from the "Brother SAM after
ward played by, Sothern. Shortly after
ward Clifton w. Iayleure, a Charleston
editor, wrote for Chanfrau, Kit, the AT
kansaw Traveller" which was known
throughout the land. Tsyleure made many
adaptations from novels for Mrs. Chanfrau,
all good acting plays.
John BrOugham, one of our earlier DRAM
atists. first attracted attention with his bur-
lesque of "Pocahohtas," which was
travesty upon the Indian story with especial
reference to the politics of his day. He
made dramatization of lie Bossu,"
under the tile OF THE Dukes Motto"
His original dramas were The irish Emf
when the coal.oil discoveries were at their
height, and The Red Light" creditable
society melOdrama
Some time prior to the civil war Maggie
Mitchell blossom.d forth as star, ana, to
provide her with q repertory of her own,
Waidauer, a st. Louis musician, made
adaptations of the German plays Fan
chon," Little Barefoot" and THE Pearl of
Savoy" These are the accepted transla-
tions of those German originals to-day.
BIN 1867 Charles NJ. Barras made an adap-
tation from the German of a spectacular
play which he called
THE BLACK CROOK"
1t ran at Niblo's Garden for two wears.
and was probably the first instance of an
American writer receiving any great re-
Enumeration for his dramatic work His
royalties amounted to nearly $4,000. About
for specially stars" who were, perhaps,
more noted for their prolifcness than the
quality of their work. Among them were
j. J. McCloskey and John Poole, who
achieved the astonishing record of writing
one play week for several years. all OF
which were of better dramatic worth than
the transporting dramas to-day provided
for the same class of audiences in the minor
London theaterS.
Then came a decidedly better class Of
original work, comprising that of Frank
Murdoch. an actor. who wrote 'Davy Crock
ett'' for Frank Mayo, Lighthouse Cliffs"
for James A. Herne and "Only a Few" for
John L. Raymond; George Fawcett Rowe
in his own comedy of Brass: Leonard
Grover with '0ur Boarding house." Skies
and Sevens, My Son-in-law," and latterly
THE City," which received its first produc-
ton in San Francisco in February, 1883.
Lester Wallack then wrote .Rosedale" and
central Park" for his New York theate r.
Augustin DAILY. fresh from his work upon
the New York dailies, opened the FIRST Fifth
avenue Theater on the spot where the Madi-
son-square Theater now stands, and gave
his own plays OF Under the Gaslight,"
Flash of Lightning" Horizon" "Pioue"
and Divorce" Barley Campbell, a Pitts
burg reporter, gained hearing with MY
Partner" and followed it with Risks"
Peril. or Life at Long Branch" "My Ger
aldine," The White Slave" 1.-The Galley
Slave and Siberia" ali more or less sue
cessful.
San Francisco had its growth of native
dramatists during this time; prominent
among which were: Fred Lyster with
Ready" local play, at the California
Theater in 1870; w. Ii. l.. Barnes with
solid Silver at the same theater in De-
cember, 1871; j. G. Ford and j. +. Sears
with a dramatization called THE Red
Pocket book" at the Metro politan in Janr-
airy, 1872; Howard Taylor with Snowflake"
at the Grand Opera House in 1876:
porter" ut the same theater In 1877;
"The Soul Of an Actress" with Clara Nor
ris, at the Baldwin in February. 1880; Clay
of Fortune" November, iS77, and "Chispa."
December, 1880, at the Baldwin, and DIR.
Callaghan's adaptation from the French
entitled Deception" in July, 1880, at the
same theater. In all cases mentioned these
were first productions.
The present state of excellence of the
American drama may be said to have begun