Grand Rapids herald. [volume] (Grand Rapids, Mich.) 1892-1959, 1893-04-23
4 osisf Rsvisss u HE Remasls-
abIs casss.
Whas - lAral ~ uDoses Have -
Co., rhsig Passaos--NWes A.
Nsws oG sAs 6ensA

sctos On earth b fast approaching. The
beloved trzgsssisn II In the sha<iows and
- hs nesss the cloud Of inpsnssrsbls
blsckness, the vortex of death. . master
mind will go INTO eternal op-eurity. but
the world ell be Iust b., sWeeter and
brighter for his having lived IA H.
The sDal knging "a IN. melancholy
Dane. whose miiale counterpart Edwin
Both protrayed a. no other actor ever
portrayed IL. sill be- realized
-. that this too. to- sold nesh IN CHA ,hav-
Aixht resolve Itself again mo dew"
IL all that has been written regarding
Edwin Booth we're published il would
make library 81 itseH. and would in.
ciude a mass Il opinlors some erudlte.
some shallos. some su cers and some
eaptious. bat tage;hcr showing a. much
variance q opinion A. probably any col
lection % printed words in the Engilsh
language; for Edwin Booth Is not alone
IN the public mind a great actor; he 10
zl>o a singular on. in many respects.
Performing always and without change
ar novelty the same old parts. he 10 not
an actor o' the OLD stage. Without per-
e~ptible change in his approximations oe
such characters as iago. Hamlet or
Richelieu. during quartz IT a century,
his methods seemed Ia have an unwith-
ering freshness. perennial. AMI pleasant.
which prevented them fIotn ever getting
old. Thus u il. that after an actor
Of strong Individuality like Henry Irving
has been s~en frequ.ntIy in u character
With which the public grows familiar.
his msnnrri-sns and peculiarities become
we'll known, they grow more manifest
each year. his ability To divest himself II
them seems % grow gradually les~. until
finally imitators appear and mimics get
u fair Held But IL Is rot ~ with Edwin
Booth. His Hamlet remains esse Etially
the same performance a. u was in lsoo.
though years f-.ighs.d with events. tri-
umphs and disapposntmentsh have passed
over the head III the actor. AMI changes
which occurred IN that time OF public
taste and stag methods and mounting
were little short VI rev oIutionary and
Kaleidoscope.
Could Not He Initiated.
No mimic. however auaaciouA ever
had the efronsefy tosucc,zsfully initiate
Edwin Booth. II would have been .
proceeding. as all experience shows.
doomed from the beginning To failure.
foe such waa ths artof this distinguished
actor. that. pre- eminent Ia this respect.
the oniy imitation which " would be
possible to give Of him would b. no imi-
tation at all. but the reproduction. in a
more or icss eretiitable way. Of some Of
the features q whatever role might be
chosen for the experiment. Edwin
Both -. therefore. an actor neither to
De- initiated nor exreilesi. and the reason
10 the latter diStif cfion most certainly
Is that during the mellow years Of his
artistic life he made no claim 10 versa
iihty. -ougat to perform no exciting and
dtyertlng round - parts. aud limited
himself scsupuiousiy to those characters
IN which his ability WAS unehallenged
add upon the memory 81 which his repu
ts,iou securely rests
PresSestiue,I CIR the Stage.
lie was al actor ~ nature and by in
heritsnce. lie wEs torn on his fathers
farm. in Maryland. atty nine years ago.
on November IL 1877. and his histrionic
record b~xan In the class room. John
Sleeper Clarke was has schoolmate. and
these tao. instead 90 mounting the plat
fprm ca recitation DAYS and delivering
Mays Little Lamb" would. with won
derful accuracy. give the quarrel scene
from Julius CssSar or other scenes from
Shakespeare. During their school days
Mr. Booth and Clarkc. ~ the story goes.
inaugura;ed an entertainment in which
Both recitsd from Richard III. Mac
beth Hamlet and julius Crsar."
Bstvee, the Rotations both young
men blarked M and sang negro ms.odies.
and from this little incident ARISE that
erroneous story about Mr.. Booth once
singing - an end man m minstrel
show. When not nj school he Travelled
with Z - father. Junius Brusus Booth.
he was re,icent and singular. profound
AMI sensitive. and the eccentric genius
~ the father found in the am an object
81 pee s.iar sympathy.
Hls tirSt appearance on the New York
stage vas on September -. $50. AZ the
National theatsr. Chatham street. az
MILFORD. in sh.. Iron Chest" ~ the
same theat.r m lS,i. his father beirg
~. he suddenly AMI promptly took th.
place II the elder trsxe.iisn and for the
fir~, tine IA has iife enacted the part ~
Richard III. This efcf,. remarkable
successful Tor comparative novice. was
hailed a. the indication - a great TAI
ent and "A the sugury - a brilliant
future. In the summer Z lsi2 he ~
e.,nspanied his father "a san Franciscan.
where his cider brother. Junius Bruius
Both. Jr. hail already Established him
aslf a. an actor and q theatrical mar
aaer. and where the thrre now acted in
company. The visited other cities and
the elder !lnoth REMAINED IN Califhrnia
fos sh-sut three months
me Character 81 Hamlet
On. isht IN Sacramento. seeing FL.
win dr~-Ss.i for Js''i~r IN Venice Pro-
.~rye.i. the elder RDo,h said 70 him
y "a i,S-< ike Hamlet; shy don't you
play Sc
The suggestion vas scted upon. ard
18th wat result the theater gD,rx
World Il three continents vel knows
IN, "a tha name % Iunius Rrutus
gs,.sth - inseparshly ssss~riat-i with
Richard III ~ tire name - kdvin
Roth - i,i~ufife,i Nth the melancholy
prince.
One q his earliest ard he-t showcases
va obtained a. SIR F.~srt Mortimer
IN sThs gr,r Chest For tire he
trsvnIrA In California rfnvevin- hss
vas,lr-,bs t'r thl~ piece POI trunk fash
ioued AMI ptir'~i - ressruhle chest
ssss,le q irsu ilis trip g. sustrsi's r.
t-rsl va -sasis witt 4 s-Rrsft,. rnsn
raev that issclustssi th~ ~ laisr sr'rs-s~,
Me- fsiars Meme. a. lrsHlny ecshss,
Previous ~ tina he hat - hrs hrntaera
fhsatev "a san Frsnclssss sctesi ktchafd
IIT Shvks \. Nss.isesh ART Hamlet hsr
r.a,sr al Extraordinary ieapressscr ssd