The sun., 1908-08-14
HOPE TONY PASTOR WILL LIVE
MULTITUDE or FRIENDS PANIED
by HIS ILLNESS.
veteran Actor and Manager Gains IAttie.
but It Is Feared He Can't Live Long
business Reyerses and the I,oss OF His
Theatre Helped Break ISIS Health.


but Il Is Feared He Can't Live Long
business Reyerses and the Loss Of His
Theatre Helped Break ISIS Health.
News that Tony Pastor was dying-Tony
Pastor who amused New York vaudeville
eoers for nearly fifty years and showed.
especially to members Of his profession
who were troubled. that he had heart
90 big it was hard to believe his little body
could contain it-made lots Of folks sorry
Yesterday. Famous and rich actors whom
Tony brought out years ago. actors who
made good with Fourteenth street audi
ences but never got chance uptown. and
vaudeville specialists on circuits in many
PARTS Of the country, hoped Tony would
pVS Scores w Of them and other friends Of the
veteran actor manager sent kilograms to
i,I hurst L. l., and hope was rokindled by the
answers that were sent. But those at the
bedside did not deny that the patients con-
dition was grave and that they expected
Tony might hold on for three or four days.
Dr. s. H. Folwell, one Of the two attend
ing physicians, found shortly before 0
o'clock last night that the patients pulse
patient was resting easily. Besides the
doctors, Mr.. Pastors wife and the Rev.
Father Kennedy are with him constantly.
Mrs. James Stack and her son Otto. cousins
Of Mr.. Pastor. arrived from Boston last
Mr. Pastors general breakdown is at
triouted to worry over heavy losses he is
said TO have suffered in theatrical enter
failure to- to renew bis lease to his Old theatre
in Tammany Hall. The building is to be
torn down. Mr.. Pastor had not been In
strong health lately, anyway. and this,
together with his adva need age, consider
ah1v a,i onnenfe the illness
Directly he took to his bed on last Mon
day all reserve strength seemed to leave
him. He rapidly became worse and, indeed,
for two days was In semi i-oonscious state.
The rally set in only yesterday forenoon, and
though It continued through yesterday
afternoon and evening, relapse may not
unreasonably be expected, so the doctors
said
Everybody around Fourteenth street
knowsTony Pastor. He and his little theatre
which he started twenty-seven years ago
have been as much part OF the neighbor.
hood as Union Square. The neighhorhood
Pastor didn't. From year to year his regu-
lar patrons paid their money TO see his
shows which changed only for the better
to realize that the roiypoly manager with
The close cropped gray mu stache, who
Until few years ago did his own singing
act week after week, was getting old. Tony
Pastor himself was the most popular per-
stage His audiences were his friends.
They made him feel that.
The happiest moments OF my life" said
ho not long ago hsyo,s been those ndsDoa whsn
and felt that was amusing the people.
II Is a very satisfactory feeling to have
whom You are conscious that You arc making
a%dtors tSsgS fSSsgett trSss sna Sa tss
That's what Tony Pastor did with his
audiences. Those who we're acquainted
with hin personally kneT ht9 too that aSs he de- h.
money III bard work. that he gave thou
sands to charity and never failed to help
member Of the profession who was down
on his luck. That's why they along
Tony Pastor is at deaths door.
Tony PASTORS appearance indicated an
aes Of IS or 60. Ho is p years old 9,
tell when he was born, but was proud of
the fact that the event took place In Green
wich Village. His father was violinist
in an orchestra. and Tony waited until
public, His debut was in the Dey Street
hurch, when he sang at temperance
revival A year later he broke into the
show business as an infant prodigy, singing
Raymond L Warnings Menagerie. ap-
tanbo end of the minstrel band. In 1s47
he went with q circus, doing tumblng and
rlaying juvenile parts go,
) As the shows in those days did not per-
form at night he organized q con cert COM
rany and gave shows in the schoolhousee.
That was his star as manager; bu i his
His brothers. Frank and Billy. were in
ihe same show, one a bareback rider and
the other n tumbler. Tony tried riding
too. but fell of too often to make success
V it. Ultimately; however; ne became "a a
At time, h, took up downing and he
stuc 10 cir uses until in 1881 he turned up
Il the BIO dway Music Hall as a comic
sinr,er. In 1881 he went to the famous
a, Broadway and in the war time he aroused
enthusiasm by appearing on the stage with
, dig a, a and urging every one to Join with
him In singing II Star Spangied Banner.
Here it was that he. saw the future OF
vaudeville. Vari ty shows at that time
were a little too coarse for family CON
sumption. Liquor was sold in the au-
diences and smoking was allowed. Tony
Pastor decided to branch out as a manager
and put out a variety s. ow on Q higher
rlane. His money went into the idea and,
with Sam Sharpley. the minstrel 81 manager.
a,d in March. 1865, he announced vaude-
vile fit for women to attend. He was
vaudeville manager always after that
Success didn't como without q lot OF
ten years he opened his new theatre at
SIS Broadway and began his policy Of bring
ing over European performers and OF en-
touraging local talent.
Thus no introduced Nat Goodwin and
Lillian Russell in 1870 and bestowed upon
the latter her stage name. She was Miss
Leonard and asked Pastors rdyice about
changing her name for profes sonal pur:.
poses He suggested Lillian RUSSELL and
She approved. May Irwin and her sister,
Flo, played under his management early in
their careers, as did many others whose
names are now well known both In vaude.
vile and In the so-called Legitimate,
Some Of them, who might we'll be called
the Pastor alumni and alunns are Florence
pndley, Gus Williams, Richard Carroll,
Francis Wilson, a rong and dance ar t,st
under Pastor; Denman Thompson. later OF
Odd Homestead fame; .Old Hoss' Hoey
and his partner, Charley Evans; Billy Barry.
who did his first negro monologue Tor Iony;
n Jennie Yeamans and Pat Rooney.