Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-12-01
HOME LIFE OF AN ACTOR

81 am only gradually recovering from q
state of surprise into which was plunged
by a discovery I made in New York about
a fortnight ago." said an actor who was In
Washington last week. ''The central figure
in the story Is a well-known debonair COM
edian, whose name Is we'll known through
out the country. He works chiefly with ex-
travaganza outfits, and Of late years he has
rarely gone on the road, preferring to shift
engagements pretty frequently for the sake
of remaining in New York. He Is man Of
forty. more than ordinarily good-looking.
as comedian go, bachelor who wouldn't
have to remain one for twenty-four hours
If he even intimated that he was on the
lookout for the right sort of a wife, and. in
general, an all-around good fellow. He Is
exceedingly popular with men, just as pop
ular with women, though he has never cot
toned to the sex to any great extent, popu-
lar with his audiences, popular with every
body, good talker, and all that sort Of
thing.
"One characteristic of this comedian that
has cost him lot Of chatting for a good
many years has been his habit of keeping
early hours. He has never been known to
sit around the cheerful table after the
show, listening to and passing qups and
absorbing harmful things from tall glasses.
He is man who takes drink once in
while. when he feels just that way, but
the singular abstemiousness Of his habits,
and particularly his practice of disappearing
from the midst of the theatrical crowd i'm
mediately after performances, have been
the occasion of his getting the humorous
CAD good deal at the hands of his friends.
He never paid any attention to the chatting,
but always passed 1t off in a smiling, good
natured way.
II have known him for a good many
years but l happened to run into him in
New York for the first time in several
months couple of weeks ago. 1t was
md hn lob too
constitutional on Broadway, looking as
rosy and fresh usual. We dropped into
a cafe for bite and sip, and in some
way or other the talk veered around to the
SUBJECT OF the seventeenth and eighteenth
century English dramatists. 1 discovered
that he was as much of an enthusiast in
the collection Of those works as have been
myself for good many years, and he in
Vited me to run up to his fiat on the follow
ing Sunday afternoon to look over his
Wycherleys and Congreves and Faruuhars
and Van Brughs. He gave me an address
far up in Harlem, but knowing his habits
| was not surprised to find that he lived so
far away from the swim.
reached the flat along toward 3 o'clock
on Sunday afternoon, touched the vestibule
button, pushed the door when the answer
ing click came and then went I'D and touch
ed the private hall button. A very hand
some old lady with a great mass of white
hair admitted me, smiling affably and say
ing. My boy has been expecting you'll am
afraid you'll find him in a sorry state
THE comedians mother led me into the
sitting ROOM and there was my friend sit
ting in the middle of the floor in his shirt
sleeves, romping with six children, as
pretty and well-mannered and neatly dress
ed as l have ever seen. Three Of them
were boys and three girls, the eldest lad
of thirteen, and the youngest little tot
of girl about five years old. They all
bore some sort of a resemblance to my
friend the comedian. He greeted me, sit
ting there in that playful circle, but the
laughing children went right on pulling his
hair and climbing over him, and he looked
as If he was having all kinds of fun
supposed my face betrayed the surprise 1
most assuredly felt. He jumped up and re-
leased himself from the children presently
and presented me in form to his handsome
old white-haired mother. Then 1 followed
him into his little study.
Tut, tut said l to him when we were
alone, giving him poke with my thumb
and likewise tush! And every one of them
the image of you!
Do you think SOP he asked. a sort Of
sober smile Pickering over his face. Well
my twin sister-she died two years ago-of
course was almost exactly like me in feat
ure. Those are her little ones. Their
father is also dead
THAT was the surprise I alluded to in
starting to tell this story. The tots Of his
dead sister and his old mother were at the
bottom of his regular way of living. his alb
senCe from the all-night restaurants and
all that sort of thing. 1t took the bulk of
his salary to take care of his mother and
his little nieces and nephews. / don't think
q man like that is liable to get the worst
Of it, here or hereafter do you?"