Title

William W. Appleton collection of theatrical correspondence and ephemera, 1697-1930.

Author

Appleton, William W., 1915-2014.

Supplementary Content

Finding Aid

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Additional Authors

• Aldridge, Ira Frederick, 1807-1867.
• Barry, Elizabeth, approximately 1658-1713.
• Boucicault, Dion 1820-1890.
• Craig, Edward Gordon, 1872-1966.
• Garrick, David, 1717-1779.
• Irving, Henry, Sir, 1838-1905.
• Kean, Edmund, 1787-1833.
• Macready, William Charles, 1793-1873.
• Shaw, Bernard, 1856-1950.
• Siddons, Sarah, 1755-1831.
• Terry, Ellen, Dame, 1847-1928.

Description

2.25 lf. (8 boxes)

Subjects

• Correspondence
• Theater > England > History > 18th century
• Theater > England > History > 19th century
• Portraits

Genre/Form

• Correspondence.
• Portraits.

Access (note)

• Collection is open to the public. Library policy on photography and photocopying will apply. Original materials in Boxes 1A-5A are restricted; copies of these materials are available in Boxes 1-5.

Source (note)

• Appleton, William Worthen

Biography (note)

• William Worthen Appleton, theater scholar, author, and collector, was born in New York on December 31, 1915.

Processing Action (note)

• Processed

Call Number

*T-Mss 2001-065

OCLC

NYPW02-A38

Author

Appleton, William W., 1915-2014.

Title

William W. Appleton collection of theatrical correspondence and ephemera, 1697-1930.

Restricted Access

Collection is open to the public. Library policy on photography and photocopying will apply. Original materials in Boxes 1A-5A are restricted; copies of these materials are available in Boxes 1-5.

Summary

The William Appleton collection consists of letters, handwritten manuscripts, "penny plains" and "two-pence coloured" materials, which were small portraits of actors created for the toy theater trade, a once-popular form of home entertainment. The collection encompasses the late 17th century up through the mid-20th century, although the bulk of the material falls between the mid-18th century and the mid-19th century. The oldest item is a letter from actress Elizabeth Barry to a Lady Lisbourn, dated October 25, 1697. The latest item is a letter from playwright George Bernard Shaw to a J. T. Grien, dated November 28, 1930. The collection contains many letters from prominent theatrical figures, primarily of the English stage, including Ira Aldridge, Dion Boucicault, Edward Gordon Craig, David Garrick, Sir Henry Irving, Edmund Kean, William Charles Macready, Bernard Shaw, Sarah Siddons, Dame Ellen Terry, and others. Also included are black and white portraits known as "penny plains," and color portraits known as "two-pence coloured," depicting actors and actresses of the day in their best known roles. These images were intended for home use in puppet theater-type settings, and most date from the early to mid-1800s, though some date as far back as 1799.

Biography

William Worthen Appleton, theater scholar, author, and collector, was born in New York on December 31, 1915. He graduated from Harvard in 1938, earned a Masters Degree from Columbia University in 1939 and a P.H.D. in 1949. He taught at Columbia from the 1940s until the late 1970s, and was appointed Professor Emeritus in 1976. Appleton has written and edited works on theater, primarily the English theater of the 18th and 19th centuries. His works as author include A CYCLE OF CATHAY (1951), BEAUMONT AND FLETCHER: A CRITICAL STUDY (1956), CHARLES MACKLIN: AN ACTOR'S LIFE (1960), and MADAME VESTRIS AND THE LONDON STAGE (1974). Works edited include THE CARELESS HUSBAND (1966), THE PROMPTER: A THEATRICAL PAPER (1734-1736) (1966), and LETTERS TO DOROTHY (1988).

Connect to:

NYPL Digital Collections

Finding Aid

Added Author

Aldridge, Ira Frederick, 1807-1867.

Barry, Elizabeth, approximately 1658-1713.

Boucicault, Dion 1820-1890.

Craig, Edward Gordon, 1872-1966.

Garrick, David, 1717-1779.

Irving, Henry, Sir, 1838-1905.

Kean, Edmund, 1787-1833.

Macready, William Charles, 1793-1873.

Shaw, Bernard, 1856-1950.

Siddons, Sarah, 1755-1831.

Terry, Ellen, Dame, 1847-1928.

Research Call Number

*T-Mss 2001-065