The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1916-01-02

stephen fnllilpS IN thlS country
John d. Williams, who is soon TO
nut into boob form his "reminiscences
Of the late manager. celebrating those
which appeared in the Century. has
these words TO say about Mr.. Friedman
and his experience with Phillips and
other playwrignts:
Two or three close men friends .hou.
sands OF and mary thousand
manuscripts were the boundaries Of
Frohman's life. He was like n mar
who went through the world always
looking or life through the proscen.
iun arch OF a theatre. invariably no
thought spoke Of people. happen
ings and every aspect Of life in terms
OF the theatre. Once the droning din
Of many Ncices In n theatre between
the ac.s. the sound never rightly re-
produced on the stage. the murmuriny
Of a mob, gripped Frohman's attention
Listen TO that sound" he said
wouldn't 1t he fine IL YOU could get
that on the stage? If a p~honorraphic
record could he made Of that. WHY
have stage mobs?"
Likely enough there was a bag Of
peanuts In his lap or. what he crayeN
even oftener, u bag Of chestnuts.
These he would methodicaily munc~
during the play until the incessant
cracking Of the shells got so thor
ouGhly on the nerves Of the peop,o
seated in the box behind hin that
there would be protests. He would
not notice the protests. and would
never take his eyes from the stage or
IL -..-.- 49, ~
but now he would wait until there
was an outburst Of laughter or APP
plause sufficiently loud 10 drown out
the sound OF more chestnuts quietly
cracked and stealthily eaten.
g Like DR.. Johnson. he loved a good
Talk. and like Johnson. too, wherever
Frohman sat n whatever the
group there was the head NJ the Ia Ole
Tut his talk was always az plays or Of
men and deeds Of a dramatic quality:
always of the concrete. never of the
abstract. He weighed n play by the
idea in il. and he never produced a
play. however arbitrary in story or
characteristics. for example. peter
Pan-without being able TO name spe-
clHcallv the elements of success he
thought Il possessed.
But once his sentiment. usually a
blend " facts and superstitition, or his
fascination. oftenest attracted by
youth in a person or novelty in a nan
uscript. was completely won no influ-
ence. no tricks of persuasion en-
pioyed by others. and no threatened
financial loss could dissuadc him from
cNpending ceaseiess industry and for
tune after fortune inducing the public
20 like what he liked. stephen Phil
l.pss' poetic drama Ulysses" cap
tlred Frohman's fancy from the mo-
rnent he first saw II. II alone q: Eng
ilsh or American managers believed
the piece capip'e "t r"pu.ar success
IN America nut me more MS iriends
argued against rs chance Tor success
the more resolved was ne 10 s'Hd TINS
enormous production ana company on
n our from Ne" YORK 10 san iran
CISCO ana :" ne ga NJ u loss OF oNe'
s7o'pp"'
Two things there were that Froh-
man would .ever tolerate in any play
!rdecency or blasphemy n theoretit
discussion. IL note what you say
about 'rygmalion,'" he once wrote M
from London when ! was urging him
70 secure the latest Shaw play. "Tht
frs, TWO acts OF Shaw's play are moi
- had. but after that the other act'
arc n bit too chatty." Another time
trSt as | entered his rooms. he Wa.
tossing a bulky manuscript wear!l,
20 one side-a play by a prominent
American author which afterward he,
came an enormous success. II hav,