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Show TOOK HIS FATHER'S PUCE. The Night Edwin Booth First Appeared Ap-peared as Richard III. Detwoon tho ages of fifteen and eighteen Edwin Booth was almost constantly con-stantly tha lntlmato companion of his father, Junius Brutus Booth tho elder. That father's eccentricities wero such as to tax even the devotion of such a son, but Edwin's affecUonato earn never failed, no used to bcgullo tho tragedian's tlmo following his arduous performances by playing the violin or singing negro ballads, ncrompnnylug himself on tho banjo. Mirny times he attended his fnthcr on long walks between be-tween midnight and morning. In 1851. on a certain night, the fattier wns booked to appear ns Richard III. nt the National theater. New York. Aa hour before tho time for the curtain to rise bo chose to lock himself In a closot at hts hotel and refused every persuasion his son could offer to keep his engagement In despair Edwin rushed to tho theater the-ater to explain bis father's absence. Tho house was already filled. Tho manager wns distracted and tn hts excited questioning of the boy accidentally acci-dentally learned that the tragedian had fllppnntly told Edwin to go nnd act Richard himself. "Wo'Il tako him at his word," said tho manager. And tho frightened boy wns hastened to tho stnge nnd helped Into his father's Glostcr costume, sovcrnl sizes too big for hlra. Members of tho company gnvo helpful t'ticourngemcnt. Tho piny opened without nn explanation explana-tion to the uudlcttce. When Edwin made his entrance for tho opening soliloquy solil-oquy tho substitution wns Immediately Immediate-ly recognized, but so nlso wns the loy, for Edwin hnd several times appeared In lesser parts, notably that of Tressel In tho same piny, In which rob he mndo his very first appcarnnce. Tho audience wns kindly tolornnt for a time, then Interested nnd flnnlly enthu siastic, for Edwin Booth, nlthoughonly eighteen years of nge. played Itlrhnrd worthily, rcvenllnc ninny flushes of that iirllllnnt pentns that afterward mndo lilm n tr of much greater eminence emi-nence thnn his father had ever achieved. achiev-ed. On the strength of this success Edwin BiHitb wns soon engaged by the malinger of n Baltimore stock company com-pany to play any part nsslgned to him at the cntl-lng snlnry of $rt per week. Small ns tint pny wns. Edwin Booth later on In the far west experienced deprivation that would havo been Immeasurably Im-measurably relieved by an even smnll-er smnll-er Income Kansas City Star. |