The Washington times., 1915-02-11
Finished Farce In Bed.

sick and discouraged. with part Of the
manuscript and the whole of the idea
for "Mr. Wilkinson's Widows"
Finished Farce In Bed.
Frohman agreed to produce the play
and Gillette left the office SO happy
that he took to his bed and his doctor
ordered him to Florida for rest and
recuperation. Frohman organized a
company with Gcorgina Drew Barry
more at it's head and Joseph Holland
as the leading man and made arrange
ments with the National Theater in this
city for the production of the play:
When the company was about to be
assembled Mr.. Frohman found that lie
had no play and on searching for the
playwright he discovered that gentle
man rolling about in bed In a Florida
man until he wrote the remainder Of
the play. page by page. The play
finished he brought 1t to Washington.
produced the play and made big sue.
cess with 1t. "Mr. Wilkinson's Widows"
was a farce, and 1t played for several
years with success.
That is the true story OF the begin
ming of Charles Frohman as a producing
manager of plays-a beginning OF prob.
ably the most important theatrical
1t has been reported that Mr.. Frohman's 5
first success was shenandoah" which
he saw fail in Boston at the Howard
Antheneum. and induced Al iayman--
his old employer, w. r. Hooley, to
put up the money to have rewritten and
to produce in New York, where 1t scored
a tremendous hit. This. however. came
later.
Since then success has followed sue
cess. II one should follow the line Of
achievement of almost every actor or
actress whose name has crept into ths
n nt,n lot
: last quarter OF century 1t would be
found that no matter how devious its
trailings might be its home anchorage
would be Charles Frohman's office. and
has produced more plays in London
than all the other London producers
combined--and he has produced more
plays in this country than any other
! ono man.
Diffident As a Girl.
| The man. Charles Frohman. is one
OF the most likeable. altogether pleas
ant acquaintance one would maet in
lifetime of association with the great
and near-great. Rather short and
chubby In appearance. with a round.
smiling countenance, the kind that
seems to breath happiness and sym
pathy. he speaks in pleasant though
rather hesitating way of his work and
his successes--morc as though he were
pleading an extenuation for his career
! than justification of its really re-
M r'1a able achievements.
/ Dfndcnt in the extreme. stunning
personal publicity with the timidity OF
young girl. yet he meets a visitor
who succeeds in getting him to talk of
| the theater in most unconventional
and cordial manner and when he be-
| comes lost in his "reminiscences will sit
with one foot drawn up under him and
! talk for an hour at a stretch.
The important thing that l gained
from a long talk with Mr.. Frohman
was his absolute faith in the fact that
his actors and actresses created their
own succcss-that he had nothing more
to do with it than give them the chance.
OF all of them he speaks in the most
admiring and appreciative terms. OF
Gillette, he. perhaps talked more. be-
cause he said Gillette had shown him
that actors should not act-they should
be real. His whole idea In putting on a