The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-02-19
comfort OF
- BEING UNKNOWN.
A Playwright for Once Ablc to En-
JOY the First Performanc; OF
One of His Plays.

Among the very many things that
make a sad hash Of, said playwright
who has succeeded, "the making of a speech
before the curtain, or anywhere else Tor
that matter stands first and foremost.
knowing my limitations, / have always
wriggled frantically to get out of making
speeches ct the first nights OF my plays.
But nearly always I've been dragged.
helpless and struggling, on TO the stage
by gome pinhead Of an actor or manager
or press agent, and thus literally forced to
make n meaningless marmoset of myself IN
the sight and hearing Of hundreds OF IN
offensive people.
"A couple Of years ago had play pro-
duced that was bully success from the
beginning. and, although the theatre re-
sounded with foolish yells for the author, /
didn't make any speech. Instead. | Just
eloated. with all of the nonsensical acclaim
in nv ears. over the fact that there was no
feasibility Of my being forced to make
sneech. On the whole. that was the most
delightful experience Of my life. i shall
never forget the almost aching JOY of 1t.
THE play was produced in Washington
attended to the details OF the production
rnvself-spent several weeks at the job
Tho production wis a sum pllolN Di4fs
The Washington papers had published
many stories, press agent and otherwise,
about the authors superintendence of the
production, and some Of them even went
IN the length OF publishing yarns about my
alleged fnicalneSs and testiness in making
productions Of my own plays.
/ -On the night before the production
I flashed a bogus telegram on my manager.
Pm imperatively called 10 New York,
4 I 80 Flt.N
shall not be able 10 see the play done to-
! morrow night.
sTbe manager said. Of course that he was
sorry for that--that the play was bound to
J make a ten-strike, that they'd be yelling
: thensclves hoarse for the author. as they
always do at productions in Washington,
above all cities, and that he have hard
! time irving 70 convince em that the author
had really been compelled TO leave town.
Sorry, too, said |, but III have TO go,
/ and that's all there was to II.
The last dress rehearsal had been held.
1 and there was no reason for my staying
around the theatre. put in the day Of the
production in my hotel room. My mus
tache had been splitting pretty badly at
the ends and so had il shaved on that day
The men on the door Of the theatre didn't
, know me very well, anyhow-and my face
was assuredly not familiar one in Wash
ington.
And so on the night OF the production
( walked into the theatre with the rest Of the
I huge crowd and took my middle aisle sea t.
about ten rows back.
There l sat and enjoyed the thing as
much as any writer OF plays can enjoy an
+ affair OF his own making that he feels in
/ his heart is being butchered by actors who
/ haven't caught the spirit Of it.
But, man, the comfort Of the anonym-
ty! They began 10 screech 'Authorl
at the wind-up OF the intense second act.
They clapped and they stamped and they
howled. They stood up and demanded the
author at the top OF their lungs.
They all but threatened the manager.
who. appeared and tried 70 tell them that
fthe author had gone away. The author