Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-05-14
dangling from the baited hook of those cruel
EACEErT N "FAISTaFF.

and truest Falstaf OF his time. 1t seems As IL
Shakespeare must have had him in his mind
when he created the peerless and portly person
atty of the jovial fat knight of Gad's Hill. the
selfish, SCOTTISH boastful old braggart. the lusty
| follower of Mrs. Ford and Mrs. Page. the sys-
tematic yictimiZer and venal hat.erer of good
Dame Quickly. the enthusiastic yotary OF both
Bacchus and SilenGs. Hackett represented sir
John, the sycophant and parasite of brave
| frlnce Hal, to the very life and letter OF the
familiar text. Mr.. Hackett was the father Of
| the late Recorder Haclett Of New York.
LESTER WALLACE.
1t was at the old Broadway Theater that John
Lester QLester Wallack) first appeared in New
York. Perfectly symmetrical. with the face of
Byron and the figure of Brummel. the
easiest, gayest, most graceful light comedian
this country ever saw with the questionable
exception OF young Montague, who was much
more supple. but not nearly so strong, Lester
fairly carried the town by Storm OF remark
able pedigree of histrionic talent he himself
was endowed by nature with every qualification
Tor the stage. The tradition of the London
footlShts belong 10 him by birth. Liston,
Munden, kean. Cooper. Ellston, Booth mus,
have been the daily themes of his thoughts and
words. Kemble and Nacreadv were familiar
names to him. James w. Wallack the elder,
Lester father, was one OF the most gifted and
graceful actors, both tragic and melOdramatic,
who has trod the British or American stage
Fanny kemble used TO say that lit would be
Impossible to conceive of a more romantic figure
than that of Mr.. Wallack in Pizarro'
In lSl9 Lester Wallack, then thirty years old.
played Edmond Dantes in The Count of Monte
| Cristo" When the Young Corsican fisherman
| stepped out of his boat TO the shore on the
| rocky banks of the Mediterranean he was one
| OF the finest specimens of Saxon sailor man.
| hood ever seen. He was ever the easy man OF
the world. As Frederick Bramblc in 1.-The
| Poor hc ba la-l
esquire to the life. manly. nonchalant and inn
| bued with the fullest spirit of light comedy
Lester Wallack was perhaps the only Young
Marlowe OF his day. II seems if Goldsmith
| must have had him in his eve when he wrote
''She Stops to Conquer" In the spirited
dash, the generous tone. the alternate bashful-
ness and boldness of that part he has ever beer
| without peer, and we think TO ourselves what
| splendid Tom Jones he would have made in
| Fieiding's immortal novel. Wallack's old thea
ter in Broadway, by Broome street. was really a
| representative London play house. Shakespeare
was here revived with very great care and every
possible advantage.
| JAMES W. WALLACE, sR.
James ". Wallack, sr., was a finished Shakes.
pearian scholar, and the results of his dramatic
studies were seen in everything pertaining to
his personal performances. His Shylock was
| great, greater than Henry Irving's. Two of his
/
| the mind-his Stranger and his Melancholy
Jaques. There WIS picturesqueness about him
| that took the fancy at once; made captive the
| imagination, and the sentiments soon followed
willingly III the wake of admiration. In Jaques,
| the melancholy misanthropy. affected OF
natural of that miserable minded gentleman
| acquired an ascetic though very human reality
| The elder Wallack's complete mastery of
| dramatic methods, both of the closet ard the
| thea,er, made him most grateful to eve and ear
at all times, giving to his lghtest stage attitudes
and attributes a significance not TO be impaired
| by any than an extraordinary and highly cult
waited intelligence
Wallnck's later theater near 18th street was a
next step and one in advance in the history OF
| this famous familys dramatic progress in New
| York. Based upon the best American models
| 1t furnished Gotham with the improved oppor-
tunity of witnessing the latest British noveitie:
| and some OF the finest foreign actors of the day
| Young Montague made his debu: here upon on,
soil and won all hearts (of the ladies in particu
| lar) by his charmingly frank and feeling por-
| trayals of me!odrama. Here John l.. Toole
Charles Dickens personal friend and favorite
comedian, filled profitable engagement. play
ing those honest. homely. humorous freside
characters so warming to the admirers of the
domestic drama. Here also appeared John Gil.
BERT as grand an old-schoci actor rs ever trod
| the boards since Liston and Munden: excellent
Mrs. Vernon. the accomplished Madame Ponis
and lovely young players. such as Madeleine
| Henriques. Nose Coghlan. Ada Dyas and Elfit
| Germon. together with fine low comedians such
as Holland. Stoddert. Fisher. Sothern. Polk and
host of others worthy of the old Park Theate,
at its palmiest and raciest hour.
| JAMES W. WALLACE. JR.
! Here James W. Wallack. jr. made a deserved
and decided hit in Henry Dunbar" where hi.
wonderful mobility was shown in one of the
greatest stage surprises known to the footlights
Here, too, Lester Wallack brought out Rose.
| dale, that dainty. romantic drama. together
with Robertsons beautiful military plav OF
| Ours" Likewise. here. the dram;atized French
| and English novel hOurished in sporadic har-
vests. The Romance of Poor Young Man. -
| for instance. and some of Miss Braddon's SEN
sational stories: Jesse Brown" and The
Veteran were dramas transpianted from the
old play house further down Broadway
James W. Waliack. jr.. possessed remarkably
diversified ard ripely developed talents of the
| old-fashioned melodramatic school He once
| appeared at the Old Bowery in Dumas Three
Guardsmen. Lester PLAYED ID Artagnan. Gil
| bert Porthos and Nallack Athos. an effective
and entertaining part. OF extremely bold and
| masculine presence. with strong. concentrated
voice and marvellous command of feature. and
with the terse and thoroughly posted methods
familiar to the Wallacks. but few actors of his
time aroused greater dramatic interest and
| such rapt attention. James w. Wailack 81
| awakened enthusiasm by his fine and intel
lectual flights: James w. Wallack, jr.. held you
to the end of the play by his earnest stimulation
and identification with the character imper-
sonated.
And Fannie Walack and Mary Taylor-how
many admirers had they among the audiences
| OF forty years ago, Nothing could excel the
giriish freshness of Mary Taylor in 1.-THE
| Alpine Maid as che came tripping lightly down
the steep mountain path with her basket OF
wild flowers and wide Swiss hat and merry
laugh and blithe carol. Miss Wallack as Nancy
Skies was vivid, tender and passionate by turns
| from love and fear of that burly brute Bill and
| worthily upheld the dramatic heritage of her
name. But both are gone fromThe stage they
| fitted SO well. and from that other stage where
all are merely players who have their exits and
their entrances. Yet other and happier changes
came about. Lizzie Weston. after an ephemer.ll
existence as Mrs. Davenport, became the wife
| of Charles Mathews, and Agnes Robertson
| graced transatlantic boards in the person OF
Mrs. Dion Boucicault. DAVID GRAHAM ADEE.
Bad Air in Theaters.
From the Engineering Magazine
Theater going constitutes the chief amusement