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Thomas Abthorpe Cooper : father of the American stage 1775-1849 / F. Arant Maginnes.

Van Pelt Library PN2287.C595 M34 2004
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LIBRA - Furness Storage PN2287.C595 M34 2004
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Format:
Book
Author/Creator:
Maginnes, F. Arant, 1936-
Contributor:
Horace Howard Furness Memorial Fund.
Horace Howard Furness Memorial Library (University of Pennsylvania)
Language:
English
Subjects (All):
Cooper, Thomas Abthorpe, 1776-1849.
Cooper, Thomas Abthorpe.
Actors--United States--Biography.
Actors.
United States.
Genre:
Biographies.
Physical Description:
xiii, 234 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
Place of Publication:
Jefferson, N.C. : McFarland, [2004]
Summary:
Thomas Abthorpe Cooper was the first star of the American stage. The chief transitional figure between the British stage and the American, he contributed greatly to the development of the latter. For three decades after 1797, Cooper performed in major cities and in every state in the Union. This work covers his entire life and career from his birth outside London in 1775, to his famed performance to celebrate the opening of the City of Washington in 1800, to his death in New York in 1849. Much research is drawn from Mr. Cooper's letters to his mentor, English radical philosopher William Godwin. Throughout, there are descriptions of his principal roles at different stages in his career, drawn from contemporary accounts and theatrical reviews. There are also 22 illustrations, from paintings and engravings to playbills and photographs of the sites associated with the actor.
Contents:
Part I The Rise to Fame, 1775-1803
1 "This Wild Immeasurably Spread"
1800 9
2 British-Born
1775-88 21
3 "Aut Caesar aut Nihil"
1788-92 25
4 "The Die Is Cast"
1792-93 34
5 "My Fortune Smiles" 42
An Irish Benefit
1793 42
"A Wretched Set of Mummers"
1794 48
6 "A Young Gentleman" 55
Mr. Holcroft
1795 55
First Appearance
1795-96 59
7 The Wheel of Fortune
1796-98 71
8 The New House 84
The Park Debut
1798 84
Andre
1799 87
New Successes
1799 89
9 "Fame Is My Deity" 92
New York City
1799-1800 92
Philadelphia
1800-01 98
10 Rising Returns
1801-03 102
Part II The American Star, 1803-1849
11 An American Indeed 111
Drury Lane
1803 111
The Provinces
1803-04 116
12 The United States' Star 122
New York and Philadelphia
1804-05 122
Boston
1805-06 125
The South
1806-07 131
13 Yankee Ingenuity 137
Itinerant Star
1807-10 137
"This Glorious Son of York"
1810 145
"A Hearty Welcome"
1811-12 150
14 The American Roscius
1812-19 156
15 A Rival 165
A New Vogue
1819-20 165
"A Triumph to Cooper"
1820-21 171
16 A New Venue
1820-25 175
17 Turning Tide 181
An American Tragedian
1825-28 181
Success and Sorrow
1828-33 189
18 "The Father of the American Stage"
1833-36 196.
Notes:
Includes bibliographical references (pages 207-228) and index.
Local Notes:
Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Horace Howard Furness Memorial Fund.
ISBN:
0786419350
OCLC:
55138662

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