uliet_, _The
Winter's Tale_, _Julius Caesar_, _Macbeth_, _Much Ado about Nothing_,
_The Merchant of Venice_ and other plays. In all cases Booth used the
true text of Shakespeare, thus antedating by many years a similar reform
in England. Almost invariably his ventures were successful, but he was
of a generous and confiding nature, and his management was not
economical. In 1874 the grand dramatic structure he had raised was taken
from him, and with it went his entire fortune. By arduous toil,
however, he again accumulated wealth, in the use of which his generous
nature was shown. He converted his spacious residence in Gramercy Park,
New York, into a club--The Players'--for the elect of his profession,
and for such members of other professions as they might choose. The
house, with all his books and works of art, and many invaluable mementos
of the stage, became the property of the club. A single apartment he
kept for himself. In this he died on the 7th of June 1893. Among his
parts were Macbeth, Lear, Othello, Iago, Shylock, Wolsey, Richard II.,
Richard III., Benedick, Petruccio, Richelieu, Sir Giles Overreach,
Brutus (Payne's), Bertuccio (in Tom Taylor's _The Fool's Revenge_), Ruy
Blas, Don Cesar de Bazan, and many more. His most famous part was
Hamlet, for which his extraordinary grace and beauty and his eloquent
sensibility peculiarly fitted him. He probably played the part oftener
than any other actor before or since. He visited London in 1851, and
again in 1880 and in 1882, playing at the Haymarket theatre with
brilliant success. In the last year he also visited Germany, where his
acting was received with the highest enthusiasm. His last appearance was
in Brooklyn as Hamlet in 1891. Booth was twice married: in 1860 to Mary
Devlin (d. 1863), and in 1869 to Mary F. McVicker (d. 1881). He left by
his first wife one daughter, Edwina Booth Grossman, who published _Edwin
Booth: Recollections_ (New York, 1894).

Edwin Booth's prompt-books were edited by William Winter (1878). In a
series of volumes, _Actors and Actresses of Great Britain and
America_, edited by Lawrence Hutton and Brander Matthews, Edwin Booth
contributed recollections of his father, which contain much valuable
autobiographic material. For the same series Lawrence Barrett
contributed an article on Edwin Booth. See also William Winter, _Life
and Art of Edwin Booth_ (1893); Lawrence Hutton, _Edwin Booth_ (1893);
Henry A. Clapp, _Reminiscences