7-473: Samuel French (1821–1898) was an American entrepreneur who, together with British actor, playwright and theatrical manager Thomas Hailes Lacy , pioneered in the field of theatrical publishing and the licensing of plays. French founded his publishing business in New York City in 1854. In 1859, he visited London, where he met Lacy, who had given up the stage and been active as a theatrical bookseller since
14-752: The Haymarket. The marriage probably took place at St Paul's church in Covent Garden , but maybe in Sheffield. He and his wife toured England together. Lacy's roles included Jacques ( As You Like It ) and Banquo ( Macbeth ). He would appear with his wife when she played Countess Wintersen in The Stranger , Nerissa in The Merchant of Venice , and Virginia in James Sheridan Knowles 's Virginius . In
21-528: The New York business. When Lacy retired in 1873, he sold out to French for £5,000. Lacy died in the same year, and French finally established his name as the most important theatrical publisher in England. At the time of his own death in 1898, almost all renowned English playwrights of the present and recent past had been represented by his company. Thomas Hailes Lacy Thomas Hailes Lacy (1809 – 1 August 1873)
28-562: The acquaintance of American entrepreneur Samuel French , who had started a similar publishing business in New York City five years earlier and was visiting London. Lacy and French became partners, each acting as the other's agent across the Atlantic. In 1872, French decided to take up permanent residence in London, and when Lacy retired without any immediate heirs in 1873, he sold out to French for five thousand pounds . His wife died in 1872. They had
35-548: The mid-1840s, Lacy set up a business as a theatrical bookseller in London, at first in Wellington Street, Covent Garden and, from 1857, at 89 Strand . He also ventured into publishing with an innovative approach to playscripts, producing acting editions of recent plays so that each actor could have a full script to work from. Lacy's Acting Edition of Plays, published between 1848 and 1873, eventually ran to over 100 volumes containing 1,485 individual pieces. In 1859, he made
42-508: The mid-1840s. Lacy, who had removed his shop from Wellington Street, Covent Garden to 89 Strand in 1857, had also started publishing acting editions of dramas. Lacy's Acting Edition of Plays , published between 1848 and 1873, would eventually run to 99 volumes containing 1,485 individual pieces. French and Lacy became partners, each acting as the other's agent across the Atlantic. In 1872, French decided to take up permanent residence in London, leaving his son Thomas Henry French in charge of
49-451: Was a British actor, playwright, theatrical manager, bookseller, and theatrical publisher. Lacy made his West End stage debut in 1828 but soon turned manager, a position he held from 1841 at The Theatre in Sheffield (destroyed by fire in 1935). On 25 January 1842, Lacy married actress Frances Dalton who was an actress known as Fanny Cooper . She was taking leading parts at Covent Garden and
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