New-York tribune., 1920-02-15

feelings, and gave as an instance tho
phenomenal run of Edwin Booth in
one thousand consecutive performances
of Hamlet
| Il tharked goodness, when found
O'Nelil, that he was not a laboratory.
made playwright-not college man."
But you are a college man your
self?"
Yes, and live at college club. I
think the midnight follies and froli,s
and frivolities get the great bulk Of
their patronage from such clubs. Thew
always say they are going to a
SHOW; never speak Of going to
play. 1t reminds me Of two kinds Of
actors-the one who says he is going
home to study his part. the othcr.
who says he is going there to get un
In his lines.'"
How did you happen to go into tho
theatrical business?"
"Why, l had no intention Of doing
So was just about to take nv degree
and had my law offices and rooms al
ready engaged in Boston. Mr. Froh-
man had brought Ben Greet over and
he was presenting, with Edith Wynne
Matthison, that wonderful play, Every
man. 1t started with special matinees
just like Beyond the Horizon at the
little old Berkeley Theater, and then
moved to the Garden, or somewhere.
"Mr. Frohman decided to send them
20 the colleges Of the country for out
of-door performances of Shakespeare.
AS You Like It, Midsummer, Nights
Dream and the like. was editor Of
The Harvard Crihson,' college daily,
and George Pierce Baker, then assistant
professor Of English, had begun to
talk of courses in the drama, but every
one cried 'Absurd' It seemed so in
congruous. He asked me to take the
curse off Of Shakespeare by boosting
the Greet performances in my paper,
and I did.
II never had heard Of Charles Froh-
man, but Mr.. Greet liked my editorials
In The Crimson and came to the Of
fee to thank me for them. He urged
iiiC ~ ~ dlOlS Will Hlul anu prepare
the news announcements for the papers.
OF course, / couldn't go, as l had to
stay and get my degree, but he kept
after me and finally. the following
fall, he persuaded mo TO como to New
York and then to go to California with
him.
"Still, I hadn't met Mr.. Frohman, and
worked for him five years before
did. My friends said to me: You will
meet him when no wants to sec you,
but don't try to- took their advice.
was taken away from Greet and be-
came advance agent for John Drew and
Mrs. Gilbert, and then was taken away
to look after Peter Pam wrote an
article for 'Harpcr's Weekly on Barrie
and Peter and at last was summoned to
the presende Of Mr. Frohman. shall
never forget It. He was very easy and
acted as though he had known me for
years. He didn't say much. He was
not much Of . talker. But got to
know him we'll and learned my the
ater from him. l stayed in his en-
ploy until he died on the Lusitania
and then there was no further reason
for me to remain, 30 l started In for
myself"
"How did you and Mr.. oNeill?"
George Jean Nathan took mo to tho
Greenwich Village Theater to see one
act play Of O'Neill's, The Moon Of tho
Caribbees' I asked the author to come
to my Office, and inquired If no had
written long play. He spends most
Of his time in Provincetown. and he re-
piled that he had been working on .
play there, which had to do with the
sea, but was not Of 1t. had heard
that he had spent some time on the
ocean, and that was just what wanted.
~ had been trying to get Conrad to
do Q play for me. His stories OF tho
sea are so marvellous, but he simply
cannot write play. I wanted some
thing with . feeling Of the sea, with
out the sea scenes-like tho Herne
plays, with the sea right around the
corner. BY the way, I have induced
Conrad and Granville Barker to col
laborate on a play about the super
natural for mo. They are working on
It now.
"In Beyond the Horizon the farm Is
played against the sea. and Is against
the adventuring spirit Of the latter
It Is the most honest tragedy ever
have seen. The people are all In the
wrong environment and this brings out
all tho meanness in them. The environ