The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1907-03-11
WASN'T NANCE
D NELL At FIRST
"reminiscences of the DAYS
When Her Name Wa
patrice.

Kansas City Journal: The last time
but one that Nance O'Neill played in
Kansas City was the first, and it's
flavor wasn't pleasant. That was in
the spring of 1884. Miss O'NeiII was a
thin, "gangling" length Of girl then,
just out of school in San Francisco.
and at that time was calling herself
Patrice' O'Neill, though she admits
now she can't for the life of her under
stand how she got the habit It was
her first year out Or "on,'' or what
ever they call it in stage parlance
Mckee Rankin, then a fine actor, now
fine stage manager, had been at
tracted a year before in San Francis
co by her wonderful gray eyes and
value of voice, and had listened to her
entreaties for chance on the stage.
He was playing his own two plays,
"The Danites" and 1.-THE Canuck" He
gave her part in each and watched
her progress.
He was playing in the old Ninth
street theater here in the spring of
1894, when misfortune overlook the
company and it went to pieces. 1t was
a trying time. Mr.. Rankin and Miss
ONeill were staying at the Centropo-
lis that week, and the business had
been so bad that the manager was not
only unable to pay salaries; he was
unable to pay even the hotel bills.
The proprietor of the hotel let Mr..
Rankin and Miss ONeill out of the
hotel, but through some oversight fail
q n OF ha OF he
time. There was a good deal of mo-
mentary agitation about it, too; so
much. in fact, that Mr.. Rankin began
a damage suit against the hotel, which
was afterwards settled.
At this same time, up at Topeka, a
young man named Slater was work.
ing in an undertaking establishment
and doing the emba1ming at a salary
of $12 a week. He had saved a few
hundred dollars and kept fair track
of events theatrical, and when he read
of the Rankin trouble in Kansas City,
he drew his few hundred dollars from
the bank, resigned his job as official
embalmer to the official county I'M
dertaker, and came to Kansas City
with a proposition in his inside pocket.
He figured that Rankin was a name
to conjure by in the theatrical BUSH
ness-the term applying to the box
office-and he had a scheme.
Mr.. Rankin was in some straits, and
as Mr.. Stater's proposition looked like
at least three meals a day and place
to sleep, he accepted it.
It was this: Mr.. Rankin was to Or
ganize a company to be under the
business management of Mr.. Slater.
They were to go out for season of
ten weeks in Kansas, Missouri and
Colorado at an admission price of 10
cents, 20 cents and 80 cents Mckee
Rankin, who was the one time matt
nee idol of the East, had never played
for less than a dollar before.
The plan included a week Of prep
aration in Topeka. Mr.. Rankin had
nothing handler for production than
his own two plays. He had no one
handler for leading woman than MISS
O'NeiIl-a year out Of school. With
the few of his own company that had
to 90 with him or starve to death and
a few actors he picked up in Kansas
CITY at about the same time lit was
a wear of rocks and shoals for actors
in the West) he got to Topeka and be-
gan rehearsals.
It was hard work for the tall young
girl She was not used to getting
up in six or eight parts week ana
she spent many hours of hard work
and many sleepless nights and many
tears over 1t all.
The first night they put on Ihe
Danites.' Miss O'Neill was the boy
and anpeared in trousers. She was no
more than was to be expected. Tues-