Their three children who entered the profession and proved worthy of their generational legacy became known in theatre circles as ‘The Royal Family’.
Prominent Acting Families
Herbert Arthur Chamberlayne Blythe, known professionally as Maurice Barrymore (1849-1905) was born in India, son of British East India Company surveyor William Edward Blythe and Matilda Chamberlayne. Educated in England, the handsome man with a dominating personality, studied law and, against his father’s wishes, became involved in the theatre, sailed to the United States in 1874, and joined an acting troupe. He did not legally change his name.
Georgiana (Georgie) Emma Drew (1856-1893), was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to John Drew and Louisa Lane, actors and managers of the Arch Street Theatre. Each hailed from prominent acting families – John’s in Ireland, Louisa’s in England and the U.S. Following comedian John’s death in 1862, the formidable Louisa took over the theatre’s management and maintained her acting company.
On Broadway Stage in “Pique”
Maurice, in his 1875 Broadway debut role in Pique at Daly’s Fifth Avenue Theatre, met cast member Georgie whom he married in 1876. During their marriage that became marred by Maurice’s infidelity and alcoholism, they had three children born in Philadelphia – Lionel Herbert, Ethel Mae, and John Sidney Blythe.
Witty and high spirited, Georgie first performed in Philadelphia, then joined her brother John Drew Jr., a distinguished actor and matinee idol, in New York where she successfully performed in Broadway productions.
Louisa Lane Drew
During their theatrical tours, the parents left the children with Georgie’s mother Louisa, a forceful woman who considered acting the ‘family trade’ and encouraged her grandchildren’s participation.
The three youngsters treasured their vibrant mother’s time at home and suffered greatly when she died of tuberculosis at age 38 and their father left the family because he needed to mourn alone. Maurice resumed his stage work, remarried exactly one year after his wife’s death, and left the children with their grandmother.
Louisa Drew’s lengthy career that began when she was a child, comprised many tours from her London, England birthplace with her widowed mother to New York, Jamaica, West Indies, back to New York where she performed at Niblo’s, and Philadelphia to perform at the Chestnut Street Theatre and eventually settle with her third husband, John Drew.
Many renowned performers appeared with her stock company at the Arch Street Theatre including Edwin Forest, Edwin Booth, Charlotte Cushman, and John Wilkes Booth. The revered actress-manager who performed in comedies and tragedies for more than seventy years died in Philadelphia in 1897.
The young Barrymores, whose father died in 1905, carried the family legacy that grew over decades and into another century with John Barrymore’s granddaughter Drew.
Sources:
John Drew by Edward Augustus Dithmar, Published by Biblio Bazaar, LLC, 2008
Famous Actor-Families in America by Montrose Jonas Moses, Published by Thomas Y. Crowell and Company, 1906
Kathleen Airdrie - Kathleen has thirty years' freelance writing experience covering history, biographical profiles, environmental and social issues
