The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-12-03
WILTON LACKAYE
 IS A KEEN WIT Makes Enemies and Admirers
 by His Sarcasm ACTOR READS DILIGENTLY MT. Lackaye Is a Careful Dresser, a Good Father and Man Whose
 Companionship Is Much
 Sought After.
ACTOR READS DILIGENTLY

Wilton Lackaye is not so young a man as he was when he left Washington, where he and has brothers were school boys in the national capital. He is a wiser man too and like all who become wiser he is a more popular man. Lackaye is the European combination, despite his American birth, of the clubman, profes- sional and well-dressed man. He is one of the five actors in North America, who will voluntarily select some topic of con versation other than that of the stage. Three of the others have lost fortunes or done something else of spectacular na- ture to make themselves important, even when the talk slips away from the foot lights.
 But Lackaye will voluntarily and intelli- gently converse upon national politics. sociology or painting. Sociology, however, will invariably lead him to the English ac- tor, of whom he speaks with amusing bit terness
 As a matter of fact Wilton Lackaye does not dislike the English actor at all. He forgathers with him at his club (of course, the Lambs,) draws him out to speak of
 
 patriotism, and then extracts from the Briton the confession that the ex-patriot does not like our institutions and steam heat a little bit. The Englshman goes home thinking of himself what devil ish pleasant and companionable fellow this chap, Lackaye is, although he's an American, don't cher know"
 Next day Lackaye arrives at his chosen coterie to which the Englishman also be- longs, and mercilessly mimics and guys his comrade of yesterday. And yet Lackaye is a man of heart. He does this solely to maintain reputation for satir- cal humor, which is already well estab- lished and well deserved. He generally makes three enemies a week, but the things he says against this debit he puts a credit of thirty or forty admirers.
 Rival of Barrymore.
 He was the only man whom Maurice Barrymore ever regarded as a rival. The term rival is not too harsh. A wit strives for pre-eminence as earnestly as a politi- elan or milliner. Lackaye is unquestion- ably wit. He polishes his jests until they sparkle. This takes time, and If the eXigencies of the conversation require that he should be clever in impromptu way, Lackaye becomes annoyed. He knows he is not doing himself justice and he will say frankly: "I just thought of some thing l should have said to you the other nght-as matter of fact etc. Lackaye buys expensive books, which he | places in his home, near Central park | and reads diligently and understandingly | He is a devoted husband and father, and | one of the pleasantest companions in New | York, unless he should regard you as be- | ing intelligently unimportant, in whici case Wilton Lackaye will break a few jests upon you and forget your existence
 Dresses Expensively.
 He dresses expensively and with dis erection. He avoids the extreme of fash l ion, and despises a man who thrusts his | handkerchief in his left sleeve or runs tC useless fopperies He knows that a gen | tlemanly attire is an asset in his busi- ness, and Lackaye negects no assets. He | has constituted himself a spokesman fol many of his colleagues of the stage II the dssensions which arise between man | agers and actors. Nor has he made an. enemies among the managers by his quixot ism. The managers have proven by thei | own worldly success that they are intel | lectually worty of Lackaye's steel. ant | the encounter usually leaves each sid respectful of the other
 | He Is a lamb and joins in the choru | when DeWolf Hopper sings:
 ''rhere is only one club in the world fo me,
 | Only one club of a high degree.
 But as a matter of tact Lackaye is no an anglomaniac. The exigencies of his pro fession take him away from New York fo a long period. He does not suffer for tn companionship of his brother lambs, bu forms new circles, which greets him pleas antly the succeeding year.
 In introducing MT. Lackaye as an after dinner speaker, Sydney Rosenfeld ono said: "You will listen to MT. Lackay with a great deal of interest. l know, be cause, whatever you think, his views ar sure to be diametrically opposite" Nobod laughed more heartily or sincerely thal | Lackaye.
 It is said that General Butler once de clined to defend an innocent man, sayini l'that his talents were not to be waste, | upon such a task. This man will hav a consciousness of innocence," he said The does not need General Butler; l pre- fer to defend the guilty" Had he chosei the bar, Wilton Lackaye would have beer that kind of a lawyer
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