Show i 7 s f i NEW NEWS of YESTERDAY 41 by E J EDWARDS 1 i blond hamlet of fechter noted actors unusual makeup make up of the part wax approved by dickens DIc who persuaded him to visit america from 1870 when he first came to this country until he retired from the six yeara later charles AI bert fechter was one of the most famous actors on the american stage indeed in the few short yeara that he was on the boards here be built ap a reputation rivaling in brilliancy that which he bad previously secured both in paris and in london 1 e american public flocked eagerly to see and applaud him in such old time favorites aa the corsican brothers and the count of monte ariato but when all is said and done it was his blond hamlet that attracted the wid eat attention creating something like a furore among theatergoers of all classes if I 1 mistake not Fech tera Is the only blond hamlet worthy of note in the history of the english speaking flage and it Is a curious fact that but tor the encouragement of charles dickens fechter would neither have made his new world reputation nor created his great role of hamlet defying all stage traditions to do my authority for this statement Is william stuart in the sixties and seventies one of the leading theatrical managers of the country and during Fech residence in america one of the lantere lat tere closest personal friends from 1848 until 1880 fechter was a reigning favorite in paris eald mr stuart then he went to london making there his first appearance in english and instantly scoring a great success not long thereafter he met charles dickens and the two speedily became fast friends fechter himself told me this instance to allus irate their intimacy having decided that he would play hamlet fechter carefully studied the play and then bunted out dickens 1 I told dickens said to me that the danes were not a dark complexion that they were aus for their fair hair their blue eyes and their light complexion and that if an actor desired to be true to racial characteristics he ought to play ahe part of a dane like hamlet made up 10 lo accentuate the physical characters charac teris bics tics of the danes dickens instantly told me that I 1 was quite right adding that every hamlet he had seen sug to him in his appearance and makeup make up that he was of the latin rather than of the saxon race it was with dickens warm approval therefore that I 1 decided to play a blond hamlet and I 1 have always believed that bad dickens not given his approval of my idea I 1 should never bad the temerity to portray it it was dickens also who ed feebler to come to thie country continued mr stuart feebler told me that shortly after dickens had returned to england in 1867 from bis speaking tour here be urged upon fechter that by all means he should go to the united states and portray hamlet as he bad portrayed it with such success for six years in london dickens assured fechter that he would surely make a great fortune in america and catching the enthusiasm friend finally sailed for this country in 1870 probably you remember the great excitement occasioned by the appearance of fech ter as the blond hamlet in a new york theater at the same time edwin booth was playing the conventional hamlet in another thea ter all grades of theatergoers theater goers meled about the two conceptions of the part some maintaining that fechter was right and some that booth had made no mistake but all uniting in declaring that each man had justly gained a great triumph barring a brief trip to england feckter continued on the american stage until 1876 when he retired per manent ly to a farm near philadelphia it has generally been stated that bis retirement was due to the fact that be was of such violent temper that no manager could get along with him but I 1 know better A year or two before he retired fechter said to me in confidence that be wae even then preparing to leave the stage forever for two reasons one was that be aoud no longer play any part but falstaff bince he had grown enormously fat and the other a that he had discovered that he was afflicted with an organic and mortal disease of which only himself bis physician and one or two others had any don what fechter told me was cor and be died from the effects of that disease within three years after he had gone into retirement copyright 1911 by E J edwarde Cd warde all luchte reserved |