Edwin Booth as Hamlet, in the position on the throne where Booth is said to have begun the monologue: "To be or not to be, that is the question. " (Hamlet, Act III, Scene 1, line 64). ^[1]

Edwin Thomas Booth (November 13, 1833 – June 7, 1893), was a famous 19th century American actor. Events 1002 - English king Ethelred orders the killing of all Danes in England, known today as the St Year 1833 ( MDCCCXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common Events 1099 - The First Crusade: The Siege of Jerusalem begins Year 1893 ( MDCCCXCIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The 19th century of the Common Era began on January 1, 1801 and ended on December 31, 1900, according to the Gregorian calendar The United States of America —commonly referred to as the An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works He was born near Bel Air, Maryland into the English American theatrical Booth family. Bel Air is the county seat of Harford County, Maryland, United States. English Americans (occasionally known as Anglo -Americans although this may have a wider cultural meaning are Citizens of the United States whose ancestry The Booth family were an English - American theatrical family of the 19th century Booth toured throughout America and to the major capitals of Europe, performing Shakespeare; in 1869 he founded Booth's Theatre in New York, a spectacular theatre that was quite modern for its time. Booth's Theatre was a theatre in Manhattan built by actor Edwin Booth. ^[2] Some theatre historians consider him the greatest American actor and Hamlet of the 19th century. Hamlet is a Tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601 ^[3] He was also the brother of John Wilkes Booth, the assassin of President Abraham Lincoln. Abraham Lincoln assassination John Wilkes Booth (May 10 1838 – April 26 1865 was an American stage actor who assassinated Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the Abraham Lincoln (February 12 1809 &ndash April 15 1865 the sixteenth President of the United States, successfully led his country through its greatest internal

Early life

Booth was the son of another famous actor, Junius Brutus Booth, an Englishman, who named Edwin after Edwin Forrest and Thomas Flynn, two of Junius's colleagues. Junius Brutus Booth (May 1 1796&ndashNovember 30 1852 was an English Actor. Edwin Forrest ( March 9, 1806 - December 12, 1872) was an American Actor. Thomas Flynn (born 8 July, 1931 is a retired Roman Catholic Bishop of the Diocese of Achonry. John Wilkes Booth, the assassin, was Edwin's younger brother and was also an actor. In an interesting coincidence, Edwin Booth saved Abraham Lincoln's son,^[4] Robert, from serious injury or even death by pulling him up onto a train platform in Jersey City after Robert had fallen. Robert Todd Lincoln ( August 1, 1843 &ndash July 26, 1926) was an American lawyer and politician and the first son of President Jersey City is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States.

Career

In his early appearances he usually performed alongside his father, making his stage debut as Tressel in Richard III in Boston, Massachusetts in 1849. Richard III is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in approximately 1591 Two years later, Edwin had his first starring role, standing in for his supposedly ailing father as Richard.

After his father's death in 1852, Booth went on a worldwide tour, visiting Australia and Hawaii, and finally gaining acclaim of his own during an engagement in Sacramento, California in 1856. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. The State of Hawaii ( or həˈwaɪʔiː Hawaiian: Mokuāina o Hawaii) is a state in the United States located on an Archipelago in the

Before his brother assassinated the president, Edwin had appeared with his two brothers John Wilkes and Junius Brutus Booth Jr. in Julius Caesar in 1864. Julius Caesar is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1599 John Wilkes played Marc Antony, Edwin played Brutus, and Junius played Cassius. It was a benefit show and the first and last time that the brothers would appear together on the same stage. The funds were used to erect a statue of William Shakespeare that still stands in Central Park just south of the Prominade. William Shakespeare ( baptised Central Park is a large public Urban park in New York City, with about twenty-five million visitors annually Immediately following the brothers Booth played Julius Caesar, Edwin Booth commenced a production of Hamlet on the same stage that came to be known as the "hundred nights Hamlet", setting a record that lasted until John Barrymore infamously broke the record in 1920, playing the Dane for 101 performances. Hamlet is a Tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601 John Sidney Blyth Barrymore ( February 15 1882 – May 29 1942) was an American Actor, frequently called the greatest

From 1863 to 1867, Booth managed the Winter Garden Theater in New York City, mostly staging Shakespearean tragedies. A showcase for the finest in American theater The first theater in New York to bear the name The Winter Garden Theatre had a brief but important seventeen year history as one The City of New York William Shakespeare ( baptised In 1865, Booth purchased the Walnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia. The Walnut Street Theatre (or simply The Walnut) located in Philadelphia Pennsylvania at 825 Walnut Street, is the oldest continuously operating Philadelphia (ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə

After Lincoln's assassination in April 1865, the infamy associated with the Booth name forced Booth to abandon the stage for many months, a period dramatized in the 1955 Richard Burton movie Prince of Players, which was adapted from the biography of the same name by Eleanor Ruggles (ISBN 0-8371-6529-6). The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, one of the last major events in the American Civil War, took place on Good Friday, April 14, 1865, when Richard Burton, CBE (10 November 1925 &ndash 5 August 1984 was a Welsh multiple award-winning Actor. Prince of Players is a 1955 20th Century Fox Biographical film about the great 19th century American actor Edwin Booth. He made his return to the stage at the The Winter Garden Theatre in January 1866, playing the title role in Hamlet. A showcase for the finest in American theater The first theater in New York to bear the name The Winter Garden Theatre had a brief but important seventeen year history as one Hamlet is a Tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601 Hamlet would eventually become Booth's signature role.

In 1867, a fire damaged The Winter Garden Theatre, resulting in the building's subsequent demolition. A showcase for the finest in American theater The first theater in New York to bear the name The Winter Garden Theatre had a brief but important seventeen year history as one

Booth's Theatre

After the fire at The Winter Garden Theatre, Booth built his own theatre, an elaborate structure called Booth's Theatre in Manhattan, which opened on February 3, 1869 with a sumptuous production of Romeo and Juliet starring Booth as Romeo, and Mary McVicker as Juliet. A showcase for the finest in American theater The first theater in New York to bear the name The Winter Garden Theatre had a brief but important seventeen year history as one Booth's Theatre was a theatre in Manhattan built by actor Edwin Booth. Elaborate productions in Booth's Theatre followed, but the theatre never became a profitable or even stable financial venture. Booth's Theatre was a theatre in Manhattan built by actor Edwin Booth. The panic of 1873 caused the final bankruptcy of Booth's Theatre in 1874. The Panic of 1873 was the start of the Long Depression, a severe nationwide economic depression in the United States that lasted until 1879 Bankruptcy is a legally declared inability or impairment of ability of an individual or organization to pay their Creditors Creditors may file a bankruptcy petition against Booth's Theatre was a theatre in Manhattan built by actor Edwin Booth. After the bankruptcy, Booth went on another worldwide tour, eventually regaining his fortune.

Booth was married to Mary Devlin from 1860 to 1863, the year of her death. He & Mary Devlin had one daughter, Edwina, born in 1862. He later remarried, wedding his acting partner, Mary McVicker in 1869, and becoming a widower again in 1881.

In 1869, Edwin acquired his brother John's body after repeatedly writing to the president begging for it. The president finally released the remains, and Edwin had them buried, unmarked, in the family plot at Green Mount Cemetery near Baltimore. Green Mount Cemetery is a historic Cemetery located in Baltimore Maryland, United States.

In 1888 Booth founded the Players in New York City, a club for actors and others associated with the arts, and dedicated his home to it. The City of New York His final performance was, fittingly, in his signature role of Hamlet, in 1891 at the Brooklyn Academy. Brooklyn Academy of Music ( BAM) is a major performing arts venue in Brooklyn, a borough of New York City, known as a center for progressive and avant garde He died in 1893 at the Players, and was buried at Mount Auburn Cemetery next to his first wife, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1831 as "America's first garden cemetery" or the first " Rural cemetery " Mount Auburn Cemetery is an Elysium where traditionally Cambridge Massachusetts is a City in the Greater Boston area of Massachusetts, United States.

Legacy

The Players' Club still exists at his home, at 16 Gramercy Park South.

There is a chamber in Mammoth Cave in Kentucky called "Booth's Amphitheatre" - so called because Booth actually entertained visitors there. Mammoth Cave National Park is a US National Park in central Kentucky, encompassing portions of Mammoth Cave the longest Cave system known in the The Commonwealth of Kentucky ( is a state located in the East Central United States of America.

Memories of Booth can still be found around Bel Air, Maryland. Bel Air is the county seat of Harford County, Maryland, United States. In front of the court house is a fountain dedicated to his memory. Inside the post office there is a portrait of him. Also, his childhood home, Tudor Hall, still stands and was bought in 2006 by Harford County, Maryland, to become a museum. A statue of him stands in Gramercy Park in New York City near his mansion. Gramercy Park (sometimes misspelled as Grammercy) is a small fenced-in private park in the Gramercy neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City The City of New York

Influence on acting

Edwin's acting style was a reaction against that of his father's. While the senior Booth was, like his contemporaries Edmund Kean and William Charles Macready, strong and bombastic, favoring characters such as Richard III, Edwin played more naturalistically, with a quiet, more thoughtful delivery, tailored to roles like Hamlet. Edmund Kean (March 17 1789 &ndash May 15 1833 was an English Actor, regarded in his time as the greatest ever William Charles Macready ( March 3, 1793 - April 27, 1873) English Actor, was born in London, and educated at Naturalism in art refers to the depiction of realistic objects in a natural setting Hamlet is a Tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601

Modern dramatizations of Booth's life

There have been several modern dramatizations of the life of Edwin Booth, on both stage and screen. One of the most famous was the film The Prince of Players of 1955, with a sceenplay by Moss Hart based loosely on the popular book of that name by Eleanor Ruggles, directed by Philip Dunn, starring Richard Burton and Raymond Massey as Edwin and Junius Brutus Booth, Senior, and also featuring Charles Bickford and Eva Le Gallienne (in a cameo playing Gertrude to Burton's Hamlet); the script depicted events in Booth's life surrounding the assassination of Lincoln by Booth's younger brother. Moss Hart ( October 24 1904 &ndash December 20 1961) was an American Playwright and director of plays and Musical Richard Burton, CBE (10 November 1925 &ndash 5 August 1984 was a Welsh multiple award-winning Actor. Raymond Hart Massey ( August 30 1896 &ndash July 29 1983) was a Canadian -born American actor Charles Bickford ( January 1, 1891 &ndash November 9, 1967) was an American actor best known for his supporting roles Eva Le Gallienne ( January 11, 1899 – June 3, 1991) was a well-known Actress, producer, and director, ^[5] Austin Pendleton's play, Booth - which depicted the early years of the brothers Edwin, Junius, and John Wilkes Booth and their father - was produced Off Broadway at the York Theatre, starring Frank Langella as Junius Brutus Booth, Senior, called "a psychodrama about the legendary theatrical family of the 19th century" by the New York Times^[6]; Pendleton had adapted this version from his earlier work, Booth Is Back, produced at Long Wharf Theatre, New Haven, CT, 1991-1992. Austin Pendleton (born March 27, 1940) is an American Film, Television, and stage Actor, a Playwright Off-Broadway plays or musicals are performed in New York City. Frank A Langella Jr (born January 1, 1938, according to the Internet Movie Database) is an American stage and film Actor Junius Brutus Booth (May 1 1796&ndashNovember 30 1852 was an English Actor. Long Wharf Theatre started life in a warehouse alongside the harbor of New Haven, Connecticut, in 1965, the brainchild of 2 alumni of Yale University

The Brothers BOOTH!, by W. Stuart McDowell, which focused on the relation of the three Booth brothers leading up to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, was workshopped with David Strathairn, David Dukes, Angela Goethals, Maryann Plunkett, and Stephan Lang, and presented in New York at Booth's former home on Grammercy Park, The Players; at the Second Stage Theatre in New York; and at The Guthrie Theatre Lab in Minneapolis; and was premiered at the Bristol Riverside Theatre outside Philadelphia in 1992. Abraham Lincoln (February 12 1809 &ndash April 15 1865 the sixteenth President of the United States, successfully led his country through its greatest internal David Russell Strathairn (born January 26 1949) is an Academy Award -nominated American Film, Television, and stage David Coleman Dukes ( June 6, 1945 – October 9, 2000) was an American Character actor. Angela Bethany Goethals (born May 20, 1977) is an American actress. Maryann Plunkett (born ca 1953 is an American Actress who in 1987 won the Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical for her performance as "Sally Gramercy Park (sometimes misspelled as Grammercy) is a small fenced-in private park in the Gramercy neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City Second Stage Theatre is a contemporary American Off-Broadway theater company The Guthrie Theater is a center for theater performance production education and professional training in Minneapolis, Minnesota. ^[7] A second play by the same name, The brothers Booth, which focuses on "the world of the 1860s theatre and its leading family"^[8] was written by Marshell Bradley and staged in New York at the Perry Street Theatre in 2004.

The Tragedian, by playwright and actor Rodney Lee Rogers, is a one-man show about Booth that was produced by PURE Theater of Charleston, SC, in 2007. Charleston is a city in Charleston county in the US state of South Carolina. It was revived for inclusion in the Piccolo Spoleto Arts Festival in May and June of 2008.

See also

• List of show business families

John Wilkes Booth

Asia Booth

References

External links

• Prince of Players at the Internet Movie Database
• Letters and observations to his daughter and friends