Monarchs of minstrelsy, from "Daddy" Rice to dateRice, Edw. Le Roy (Edward Le Roy)
History
Monarchs of minstrelsy, from "Daddy" Rice to date
Rice, Edw. Le Roy (Edward Le Roy)
Actors -- United States; Minstrel shows
PETE MACK (McGlone), the well-known and capable comedian, joined J. C.
Harrington about 1873, doing double songs and dances; the partnership
continued about four years, when Mr. Mack, who was working under his
own name, went with the New Orleans Minstrels. October 21, 1878, using
the name of Mack, he joined Haverly’s Original Mastodon Minstrels in
Chicago, and continued with Mr. Haverly off and on for several seasons;
in the Fall of 1881 he was with Emerson’s Minstrels in San Francisco.
Mr. Mack was with Haverly on the latter’s second trip to England, in
1884; while there he received an offer from “Pony” Moore to join Moore
and Burgess’ Minstrels in London; he accepted and remained several
seasons.
Subsequently he was with Dockstader’s Minstrels in New York City, and
with the “City Directory”; his last engagement was with Donnelly and
Girard in “Natural Gas”; always appearing in black-face.
Pete Mack died in Pittsburgh, Pa., March 15, 1892; age 35 years.
WM. R. WESTON, of the firm of Culhane, Chace and Weston’s Minstrels,
previous to the inception of that organization in the middle 90’s, was
with Emerson’s Minstrels and Dockstader’s Minstrels. Was also with
Reilly and Woods Co., and the St. Felix Sisters organizations. He was
an accomplished musician and leader.
At the time of his death he was musical director of the orchestra at
the Music Hall, Yonkers, N. Y.
His wife was Charlotte St. Felix, of the 4 St. Felix Sisters.
William R. Weston was born at Stafford, Conn., April 6, 1857; he died
at Brooklyn, N. Y., September 25, 1906.
DAVID BELASCO.--The author had been told that the subject of this
sketch played black-face parts during his very early career in San
Francisco; and on September 12, 1910, wrote to Mr. Belasco asking him
to verify the report.
Under date of November 7, 1910, Mr. Belasco sent the following:
“Pray pardon me for the delay in replying to your letter, but I have
been much absent from town and my time wholly occupied with rehearsals.
“I am sorry to say that I’m afraid I can’t give you any definite
information, as it is from twenty to twenty-five years ago, and I
really don’t remember. I only recollect that I played many little parts.
Faithfully,
“DAVID BELASCO.”
Wonder if Mr. Belasco has any ideas in that fertile brain of his, as to
how a minstrel show should be run? Bet he has.
SALLIE COHEN played Topsy in “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” when she was a little
girl; she told me so herself.
But that couldn’t have been such a very long time ago; now was it, Mrs.
Rice?
SAM RICKEY (Rich. T. Higgins), one of the greatest stage Irishmen ever
known, and who was an early partner of Edw. Harrigan, played frequently
in black-face during his early career with Add. Weaver. He was also
with Hart, Ryman and Barney’s Minstrels in 1871.
[Illustration:
JOHN A. LANG
BOB. TYRRELL
RAYMOND SHAW
HAYDON TILLA
THOS. B. DIXON
HARRY SHIRLEY
GEO. W. HARLEY
HARRY W. ROE
HORACE RUSHBY
MORE SINGERS.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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