Benjamin S. Mears
Benjamin S. Mears | |
|---|---|
| Born | Benjamin Stannard Mears August 1871 Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | (aged 80) |
| Nationality | American |
| Other names | Ben Mears Ben S. Mears Stannard Mears |
| Occupations |
|
| Parent(s) | Thomas Yeoman Mears Sarah "Sadie" Isabelle Stannard |
Benjamin Stannard Mears, also known as Ben Mears, Ben S. Mears, and Stannard Mears, (August 1871 – 27 January 1952) was an American stage actor, vaudeville performer, and playwright. He is best known for the 1918 play Seventeen; an adaptation of Booth Tarkington's 1916 novel of the same name which he co-wrote with Hugh Stanislaus Stange.[1]
Life and career[edit]
Born and raised in Cincinnati Ohio, Benjamin Stannard Mears was the son of Thomas Yeoman Mears and Sarah "Sadie" Isabelle Stannard.[2] He began his career as an actor in 1890.[3] He first achieved wide recognition as an actor when he joined the 1902 national tour of William W. Young's Ben-Hur in the role of Sanballat; a work produced by Klaw & Erlanger.[2] He remained with the production when it arrived on Broadway for the work's 1903 revival at the New York Theatre.[2] Years later, Mears returned to the long running production in the role of Simonides.[2]
In 1906 Mears created the leading role of Philadelphia lawyer Tom Wilson in composer Lee Orean Smith's musical Around the Clock.[4] A successful road musical, the cast was headed by the Scottish comedian Billie Ritchie, and toured the United States and Europe for several years.[5] The play began its tour in Syracuse, and Mears was still playing the central character of Tom Wilson when the tour reached Broadway's American Theatre in October 1906.[4]
Mears returned to Broadway in 1913 in Carina Jordan's play Rachel at the Knickerbocker Theatre.[1] With the playwright Hugh Stanislaus Stange he co-authored the 1918 play Seventeen and the book for the 1918 musical You Know Me Al!; both staged on Broadway.[1]
Mears died on January 27, 1952, in Cliffside Park, New Jersey at the age of 80.[3]
Stage works[edit]
- Seventeen, play (1918), based on Booth Tarkington's 1916 novel of the same name; co-written with Hugh Stanislaus Stange; premiered at Broadway's Booth Theatre on January 22, 1918; later adapted into the 1926 musical Hello, Lola[6]
- You Know Me Al!, musical (1918), book by Mears and Hugh Stanislaus Stange, premiere Broadway's Lexington Theatre, April 11, 1918
References[edit]
- ^ a b c "BENJAMIN S. MEARS, ACTOR, PLAYWRIGHT". The New York Times. January 31, 1952. p. 27.
- ^ a b c d Solomon, p. 378
- ^ a b "The Final Curtain; Mears, Benjamin S." Billboard. February 9, 1952. p. 55.
- ^ a b Dietz, p. 386
- ^ Reeder, Chapter 5: 'The L-Ko Komedy Kompany': Lehrman's Baby (ebook, no page numbers)
- ^ Fisher & Londré, p. 428-429
Bibliography[edit]
- Dietz, Dan (2022). "Around the Clock". The Complete Book of 1900s Broadway Musicals. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. ISBN 9781538168943.
- Fisher, James; Hardison Londré, Felicia (2009). The A to Z of American Theater: Modernism. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 9780810870475.
- Reeder, Thomas. "'The L-Ko Komedy Kompany': Lehrman's Baby". Mr. Suicide: Henry Pathé Lehrman and The Birth of Silent. Bear Manor Media. ISBN 978-1629331621.
- Solomon, Jon (2016). Ben-Hur: The Original Blockbuster. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 9781474407960.