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Show THE .BEST IN COMIC OPERA Coming Next Monday Mon-day Night the J 6th A- good Story About Hopper's Career. i De Wolf Hopper, who, with his jf company of sccnty, will be seen here next Monday evening In the musical pioductlon of Dickens' masterwork, "The Posthumpus Papers or the Piek-wlckClub" Piek-wlckClub" entitled "Pickwick," the noted comedian appearing in the title role, Is fond of lelatlng his experience in the threatilcal world. One of his best stories Is that which dcscilbes his eaily trials as a manager. Hy the death of his fathei, Hopper came Into the possession of some piop-crty, piop-crty, about $10,000, and, with the confidence In his own ability born of Ignoiance and lneperlence, he pio-ceeded pio-ceeded to Invest this money In a theatrical venture. An organization, which named the Criterion Comedy Company, was gotten together, w ith Jacob Goshe as in.inagei and F. K. Mackay as the stage manager, and Hopper made his professional debut : v S Jr&Cft, : DKVVOLF HOl'I'KIt. as Talbot clumncys In "Out llojs" The Crltei Ion Comedy Comp'an.v also included "Caste" in Its tepeitoiy, but neither play seemed to find leniaik-able leniaik-able public favor as acted by the allegation, and consequently the Crlteilon Comedy Company concluded to smash. Thin ended the lii,t stage in the piocess orsepeiatlng l)e Wolf LIIopppi fiom his money, 'i'lie gentle opeiation wasiontlnued In a pioductlon pioduc-tlon known as "One Hundred Wives," which exploited Adi (ilin.in as a star. Hopper i elates Ihestoiy of ihlscntei-pilse ihlscntei-pilse In the following chaiacteiistic stj le: IE raHHHHsni VHVHDpHfittArJtf JhVhVhVhvB && 2hBVhVhVhvP ' ONKOrTIIUaillLs" 'Willi a hem t Hied with ambition , and flic dazzling piospirls of i lull lcwauls. both pcciinl.ii.v and piofcs- sloual, I left New Yoik as manager of "The Hiindird Wives" company. The gaudy v Islons of wealth and lame, which lined mo f.n fiom the metio- polls, failed to mati'iiallze. but It was a season llch In expcilences and one that 1 shall nevei foiget. After many vicissitudes we at length reach- ciVu it'it.ilu one nlglit stand one Sat- temwUit) about 11 a. m. It was I lie day 1 1"rfe?bio Chlstmas We wimp deter- I mined not I o be bailed out of giving ( tin extni Chi Minus matinee, rven If 1 we hud to give It the da kiwi'. So 1 we sua a man Unoukli the iovmi with il M a big bell, and a sandwich poster hung either sldoof him, announcing that the colossal aggregation of talent from New York would give a matinee promptly at twclvo o'clock. Twelve o'clock came and not a nlckle In the house. I had often heard this expression ex-pression used figuratively, but Its cold literal slgnlllcanco never dawned on me till then. The advertising man was called in after consultation, consulta-tion, and supplied with a new announcement, which Informed the public that the matlncc would positively be given at one o'clock. Put when the hands pointed to one, to use the language of the adv ance agent, 'we couldn't get them in.' This is to be taken in a literal sense. After further confcicnces, our advertising adver-tising agent was again withdrawn from the public gaze, and we printed a new poster, which set forth that the curtain would positively bo run up at two o'clock, and wo also kindly advised tho public to come cailyand avoid the rush. Two o'clock came, and we abandoned all Idea of giving a matlncc. When the audience assembled as-sembled that night 1 sized it up tluough a peep-hole In the curtain. Thcio was not a woman In the house, nothing but men, and I discovered, befoie thc,pciformancc was half over, that they were in various stages'of intoxication. Thcic was not a sober peison in tho audience. Fifty-four dollais worth of masculinity steeped In alcohol witnessed the pciformance. This town was tho last straw, so to speak, and then and thcic 1 determined deter-mined to bring my managerial career to an end." What a contrast! Hopper's dtamat-1c dtamat-1c attempt and his picsent cnteiprise. Ills "Mr. Pickwick" aggiegation engages en-gages over seventy artists, and comes tous with a recoid of tlnec jovous months on Pioadway at tho Herald Square Theatre. Wc arc promised the original company including, be sides Mr. Hopper and his happy Idea of "that tiuly great man". Digby Hell as Sam Wellei, Sr., Louis Payne as Alfred Jingle, Fiank Belcher as Well-er, Well-er, .1. K.Adams as Mr. "Waulld, Geoige Chapman as Mi. Winkle, Augustus Collet! as Mi. Snodgrass, I'. II. Willing Will-ing as Mi. Tupman, Guy Haitlett as the Fat Uov, Geoige Holland as Col. Ilulder, G. H. Williams as Di. Slammer, Slam-mer, Marlon Field as Aiabella, Mai-gueiite Mai-gueiite Cl.uk as Polly, Laura Joyce Hell as Mrs. U.udell and all the his-toiieal his-toiieal costumes, sceneiyand general piopeitles that made the pioductlon famous. |