James A. Herne (born James Ahearn, February 1, 1839 â€" June 2, 1901)
was an American playwright and actor. He is considered by some critics
to be the "American Ibsen", and his controversial play Margaret
Fleming is often credited with having begun modern drama in America.
Herne was a Georgist and wrote Shore Acres to promote the political
economy of Henry George.James A. Herne was born February 1, 1839, in
Cohoes, New York. His parents were poor Irish immigrants who removed
him from school at age thirteen to work in a brush factory. Herne
decided to become an actor the next year but was twenty before he
could join a traveling troupe. He made his debut in 1859 as George in
a production of Uncle Tom's Cabin in Troy, New York. He enjoyed modest
success as a young actor, appearing in Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
with the John Thompson Ford company in the early 1860s. He was the
leading man for the Lucille Western Touring Company from 1865 to 1867.
He was briefly married, in the early 1860s, to Lucille's sister Helen
Western, an actress who later became romantically involved with John
Wilkes Booth. Herne managed the Grand Opera House at 23rd and 8th
Avenue in New York City for a season.He then moved to San Francisco in
1870 to manage several other theaters. In San Francisco, he met David
Belasco, with whom he collaborated on at least three of his plays. He
also met and married his second wife, actress Katherine Corcoran. The
couple had five children, one son, John, and four daughters, Alma,
Dorothy, Julie and Katherine Chrystal who usually went by the name
Chrystal Herne. Dorothy and Julie were also actresses.Herne was the
first American playwright to incorporate dramatic realism. He ventured
away from nineteenth century dramatic romance and melodrama. Much of
Herne's work faded into obscurity in the twentieth century. However,
he exerted a profound influence, directing American dramatic
literature toward the depiction of complex socially realities. This
was illustrated in his controversial play Margaret Fleming (1890). The
work singled him out as an influential figure in 19th-century drama.
was an American playwright and actor. He is considered by some critics
to be the "American Ibsen", and his controversial play Margaret
Fleming is often credited with having begun modern drama in America.
Herne was a Georgist and wrote Shore Acres to promote the political
economy of Henry George.James A. Herne was born February 1, 1839, in
Cohoes, New York. His parents were poor Irish immigrants who removed
him from school at age thirteen to work in a brush factory. Herne
decided to become an actor the next year but was twenty before he
could join a traveling troupe. He made his debut in 1859 as George in
a production of Uncle Tom's Cabin in Troy, New York. He enjoyed modest
success as a young actor, appearing in Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
with the John Thompson Ford company in the early 1860s. He was the
leading man for the Lucille Western Touring Company from 1865 to 1867.
He was briefly married, in the early 1860s, to Lucille's sister Helen
Western, an actress who later became romantically involved with John
Wilkes Booth. Herne managed the Grand Opera House at 23rd and 8th
Avenue in New York City for a season.He then moved to San Francisco in
1870 to manage several other theaters. In San Francisco, he met David
Belasco, with whom he collaborated on at least three of his plays. He
also met and married his second wife, actress Katherine Corcoran. The
couple had five children, one son, John, and four daughters, Alma,
Dorothy, Julie and Katherine Chrystal who usually went by the name
Chrystal Herne. Dorothy and Julie were also actresses.Herne was the
first American playwright to incorporate dramatic realism. He ventured
away from nineteenth century dramatic romance and melodrama. Much of
Herne's work faded into obscurity in the twentieth century. However,
he exerted a profound influence, directing American dramatic
literature toward the depiction of complex socially realities. This
was illustrated in his controversial play Margaret Fleming (1890). The
work singled him out as an influential figure in 19th-century drama.
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