Famous actors and their homes . nd dramatic author must be consideredas highly important. During the youngeryears mind and feehngs are more plastic thanduring later periods of life, and in a crude wayWilliam Gillette was as a kid gaining atechnical facility in expression and writingwhich must not be undervalued. A youngfellow who exercises any talent of this kindat all goes at the thing in a very straight anddirect way, — by the shortest cut, — and thismay be the reason a Gillette play has aboutthe least possible amount of dialogue, theauthor realizing that situation counts formore than the sp
Famous actors and their homes . nd dramatic author must be consideredas highly important. During the youngeryears mind and feehngs are more plastic thanduring later periods of life, and in a crude wayWilliam Gillette was as a kid gaining atechnical facility in expression and writingwhich must not be undervalued. A youngfellow who exercises any talent of this kindat all goes at the thing in a very straight anddirect way, — by the shortest cut, — and thismay be the reason a Gillette play has aboutthe least possible amount of dialogue, theauthor realizing that situation counts formore than the spoken word. Young Gillette did not go directly on thestage after his school years. He first tried theentertainment platform. He gave public read-ings and recitations, including costume imita-tions of various actors, among them Booth, the[50 ] &, THEIR HOMES elder Sothern, John T. Raymond, and Jeffer-son. From his father, who in the Senate hadheard Websters reply to Hayne, and whowas highly adept in reproducing the voice,. Photographed by the, Warner Photo. View of the Aunt Polly gesture, and mannerism of any one by whomhe had been impressed, William had pickedup some capital imitations of some of thegreat statesmen of the day, and these he alsointroduced in his programs.[51 ] FAMOUS ACTORS After several seasons on the platform, Gil-lette finally determined to get away somewhereand go on the stage. He had money enoughto take him to St. Louis, where he tackledBen de Bar, who was the manager of a theatrethere and of another in New Orleans. DeBar would not have anything to do with himat first; but Gillette was desperate, and, whenthe manager turned away, hung on to him andactually turned him around again, expostulat-ing that he simply must be allowed to join thecompany, and that he did not want any salarywhatever. This was a whopper, but it didthe business, for the pecuniary part of it in-terested the manager. As a result, Gillettewas engaged for small parts at the old S
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