Barrymore, Maurice

(1847-1905)

   Born in Fort Agra, India, Herbert Blyth, who changed his name to Maurice Barrymore when he left Oxford University to go on the stage, became the amateur middleweight boxing champion of England before his 1872 stage debut at the Theatre Royal, Windsor. After serving an apprenticeship for three years on provincial English stages, Barrymore emigrated to the United States, appearing for several managements, including those of Augustin Daly, Lester Wallack, and A. M. Palmer, where his good looks and witty charm made him an audience favorite. His American debut in Boston in Under the Gaslight* established him, after which he replaced John Drew in The Big Bonanza and appeared with his future wife, Georgiana Drew, in Pique (1875).

   Barrymore's most noted stage successes were in Shakespeare opposite Helena Modjeska, beginning in 1882, and in Alabama and Captain Swift, both in 1888. The latter was a significant popular success that Barrymore failed to fully exploit, as was the case with the eight plays that he wrote, including Nadjezda (1884), The Robber of the Rhine (1892), and Roaring Dick & Co. (1896). He unsuccessfully sued Victorien Sardou, claiming that the French playwright plagiarized the plot of Nadjezda for Tosca. Barrymore appeared with Mrs. Leslie Carter in David Belasco's The Heart of Maryland (1895), and was widely praised as Rawdon Crawley opposite Minnie Mad-dern Fiske in Becky Sharp (1899). He fathered Lionel, Ethel, and John Barrymore, among the most celebrated stage and motion picture actors of the first half of the 20th century. After his wife died in 1893, however, Barrymore's profligate ways spun out of control, and his career was cut short when he died of paresis.