St. Paul daily globe., 1892-06-07
KISSING BY R0TE.
How the Art Of Oscillation Is
Practieed on the
Stage.
Every Prominent Actor Has
* Ideas Of How 1t Should
s2s Be Done.
Actresses, Too, Seem to Have
- Strong Views on the
Subject.
Sometimes They Don't Agree,
o~l TLo1 IT. Eo-o T. E,,o
Sometimes They Don't Agree,
and Then There Is Fun
- for an Audience.

sweetness long drawn out, neither Is
it unreal. Harriet Martineau says, "A
Kiss of the mouth often tOucheth not the
heart" a definition that fits the whole
catagory of stage kisses. Every play
has its kisses and every player his Idea
OF bcStowing them, modified in many
instances to suit the actress or song
stress. kissing, like the rest of the stage
business, is carefully rehearSed, and
great artists have 40 hesltanCy i'll tell
ing leading man, or atcn0r, wLe:e and
how they wish 10 be kissed. Almost
any actor can kiss the heroine to whom
he is making love, but it takes an artist
to put the revereut affection in the Kiss
imprinted on the brow and cheek of the
lady playing the role Of mother or sis
ter.
There is not more k2sable woman
on the American stage than Miss Selma
Fetter. She has very pretty mouth,
uncommOnlY fine teeth. and the beauty
and charm of health and refinement.
Her share of stage kisses as well as her
good taste enables her to speak intelli-
gently on the subject.
"A kiss to be artistic must be imper-
sonal," she says, "otherWise it is apt to
be quite as disgusting to the audience
as {, company kiss to a third party.
There was considerable kissing in the
'Henrietta' during its long run, but it
would have been impossible to make it
more delicate. played the part of the
widow. and when | tainted in the
brokers' arms be kissed ne, but SO
lightly that the touch of his lips was
scarcely ptrceptib!e. MI Crane is too
tO 4 ;ctt inn
"When Mr.. Robson. as BERTHE tie
Lamb. kissed Agnes. he charmed his
audience. He told her lie was going to
kiss her: she hung her head, biuShed
and yielded. Then lie pecked at her
pretty face, first at her forehead, then
her cheek and again at her lips. They
were in perfect keeping with the char
acter, and, while the audience always
rOared with amusement, the sentiment
was there. and it WAS appreciated. All
winter | played III Don Caesar Alex
ander SalYini made love to NE ami
kissed me at every performance. lie
used makeup to strengthen his mus
tache, and, as aresult, imprinted small
circle or a iarge-Sized period in the
center of my cheek. In Friends Mr..
Lewis Henderson and / are cast for
lovers. One scene calls for very strong
portrayal and very delicate work. 1t is
The actor WHO beStOWS the first Kiss
upon the lips of his sweetheart, and it IS
the actress who is Influenced by the pas
sion that SWeetenS it, but neither the
man nor the woman has any feeling in
the matter. Ii they had tie audience
would be placed i'll an embarrassing pO-
SitiOn and the play would suffer"
J. Glendinning played leading parts
with Mrs. KenGa! On the other side. He
had many nice things to say Of her and
her devotion to art.
Il remember the first time | played
with her in'Ihe White Lie. She wanted
good deal of realism in it. and to tell
the truth / was a little timid about
making the advance the party called
for. She saw at once my ditfidence
and graci0usly came to my rescue.
Now, MIR. Glendinning,' she said, !
want you TO feel us uncOnStrained to-
wards me as you 90 towards your wife.
You are to show me just as much at
fectionate attention. Don't hesitate in
the least to smooth my har or careas
me This at once put me at my ease, ,and
| kissed her face and her hair and
her fingers, and when my kisses were
not definite enough she told me so and
| modified them. This is what every
u Et dItiSI NOCS. itttC IL ttCoOIOlClS
no more feeling in the matter than there
is in Offering the leading lady chair or
returning her fan"
When Miss Emma VaderS PLAYED
with Mr. Booth she always began to get
uncomfortable about kissing him ami to
face away from the house. IN "kath-
crime of Petruchio" MIR. Booth depend
e;i on Egyptian black for his WhlSkerS,
and part of his comedy was 10 leave a
mustache on the ShreW'S face where
eype he happened to kiss her.
Jean de kezke lad a tender way of
taking the sopranos face between his
hands. bending down and kissing the
part in her blonde wig that was very
effective. Mr. Bell. Maud HarrisOn's
husband, is always the chval-
rous. high-minded lover, and de-
pOoitS his careSSeS OH the SOU
brette's front hair. In his whole
stage career he has never been known
to get nearer her lips than her bang.
Mr.. Edwin ROyle, on the other hand,
believes in ideal realism. He has kissed
the leading lady on her DOmpadour roll
bnt never without protest.
Dixey has always been recognized as
a tickle kisser; one night he will kiss
the leading lady with vigor and finish,
and the next omit it altogether. De
Wolfe HOpper'S kisses are among his
funniest attractions; when Nine.
COtrelly was i'll the company he could
bring down the house by kissing his
hand and pressing it to her lips; Lily
Post frequently submitted her beautiful
arm to be kissed from wrist to shoulder
by the comedian. Digby Bell is too
dyspeptic to give much attenten to the
practice. Henry Hallam, the tenor,
never could kiss the Casino star
without irving her chill. E.J.Henley's
''GlOriana" kisses are anything but icy.
and sparks have also been feature of
Robert billiards kisses. 1t was Harry
billiards explosive kisses in the opera
"Polly." when Miss Russell was airy
fairy Lillian, that made kindling of the
wood mantel over the domestic hearth.
LeSdy Solomon stopped in the middle
OF the dress rehearsal and refused TO
lead the orchestra.
In the Pearl of Pekin" Joseph Aer-
! beEt lavished his kisses on the PEARLS
arm. His makeup was laid on with a
. brush and knife, and contact was any
thing but agreeable. Miss Della ThOrne,
being the recipient, has had positive
aversion to all sorts and conditions of
kisses ever since.
Aunt Louisa Eldridge has observed
#that women kiss one another more rap
#turonsly than men, and that they are
Egenerally less neat about the work. She
EeOnfessed that in the role of an old lady
he would rather be kissed by the pros
pective son-in-law than by her daughter
in the play.
No such ardent and magical kisses as
CLARA Morris received in Camille" "
when Charlie ThOrne played the lover,
have been seen on the stage since his
death. Robert MantelPs work is per
haps the nearest approach to it.
OTIS Skinner is noted as an electrical
kisser, and owes his training to Marga
ret Mather. who advocates a warm de
vOtion to art.
The most extraordinary kissing is ac-
complished by Marie Tempest, of the
Casino company, when occasion re
quires. She has trick of placing hel
| thumbnaiIs to her lips and kissing the
space between them, making a distinctly
audible sound. To all appearances she
has the tenor's face between her hand;
and her lips pressed to his, wherea:
there is the leugth of her hands between
| them TenorS as class do not take