Augustus Thomas

Infobox actor
name = Augustus Thomas
birthdate = 8 January, 1857
birthplace = St. Louis, Missouri, USA
deathdate = 12 August, 1934
deathplace = Nyack, New York USA


othername = Augustus Thomas
August Thomas
occupation = Playwright
yearsactive = 1913 - 1934
imdb_id = 0858501

Augustus Thomas (8 January, 1857 – 12 August, 1934) was an American playwright, born in St. Louis, Missouri. The son of a doctor, he worked a number of jobs including a page in the 41st Congress, studying law and gaining some practical railway work experience before he turned to journalism and became editor of the Kansas City "Mirror" in 1889. Thomas had been writing since his teens when he wrote plays and even organized a small theatrical touring company.

Thomas was hired to work as an assistant at Pope's Theatre in St. Louis. During this time, he wrote a one-act play based on a short story by Frances Hodgson Burnett called "The Burglar". After touring in the play, he expanded the show to four acts and was able to get Maurice Barrymore to play the title role. Subsequently, he was hired to succeed Dion Boucicault adapting foreign plays for the Madison Square Theatre.

His first original play, "Alabama" was produced in 1891 and its success allowed Thomas to write full time. "Alabama" is the story of an un-reconstructed Confederate. Notably, Thomas was one of the first playwrights to make use of American material. Other plays along the same lines include "Arizona" (1899), "In Mizzoura" (1893), "Colorado" (1901) and "Rio Grande" (1916). Perhaps his most successful play was "The Copperhead" (1918) which made Lionel Barrymore a star.

Thomas reached a high artistic level in "Arizona" and "The Witching Hour." A novelization of the latter appeared in 1908. He was elected to membership in the American Academy of Arts and Letters, was awarded the National Institute's gold medal in 1913, and in 1914 received an honorary A. M. degree from Williams College. According to the "Oxford Companion to the Theatre", his plays are "on the whole, not profound, and provided entertainment of a kind acceptable to his audiences."

elected works

* "The Man Upstairs"
* "Oliver Goldsmith" (1899)
* "The Earl of Pawtucket" (1903)
* "The Other Girl"
* "Mrs. Leffingwell's Boots" (1905)
* "The Education of Mr. Pipp"
* "Jim Delancey"
* "The Embassy Ball"
* "The Witching Hour" (1907)
* "The Harvest Moon" (1909)
* "As a Man Thinks" (published 1911)
* "Indian Summer" Thomas reaches a high artistic level in "Arizona" and "The Witching Hour." A novelization of the latter appeared in 1908. He was elected to membership in the American Academy of Arts and Letters, was awarded the National Institute's gold medal in 1913, and in 1914 received an honorary A. M. degree from Williams College. According to the "Oxford Companion to the Theatre", his plays are "on the whole, not profound, and provided entertainment of a kind acceptable to his audiences."

elected filmography

* The Family Secret (1924)
* The Bonnie Brier Bush (1921)

References

*NIE
*Hartnoll, Phyllis, ed. The Oxford Companion to the Theatre. 4th edition. London:Oxford UP, 1983. pps. 827-828.
*Moody, Richard. "Augustus Thomas". in Banham, Martin, ed. "The Cambridge Guide to Theatre", London:Cambridge UP, 1992.
* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=7387185 Find-A-Grave biography]

External links

*imdb|0858501
* [http://www.ibdb.com/person.asp?ID=4371 Internet Broadway Database listing] .
* [http://www.wayneturney.20m.com/thomasaugustus.htm Bio] .
*

Persondata
NAME= Thomas, Augustus
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION= Playwright
DATE OF BIRTH= 8 January, 1857
PLACE OF BIRTH= St. Louis, Missouri, USA
DATE OF DEATH= 12 August, 1934
PLACE OF DEATH= Nyack, New York USA