Charles Klein (January 7, 1867 – May 7, 1915) was an English-born playwright and actor who emigrated to America in 1883. Among his works was the libretto of

John Philip Sousa John Philip Sousa ( ; November 6, 1854 – March 6, 1932) was an American composer and conductor of the late Romantic era known primarily for American military marches. He is known as "The March King" or the "American March King", to dist ...

's operetta, ''

El Capitan El Capitan ( es, El Capitán; "the Captain" or "the Chief") is a vertical Rock formations in the United States, rock formation in Yosemite National Park, on the north side of Yosemite Valley, near its western end. The El Capitan Granite, granit ...

''. Klein's talented siblings included the composer Manuel and the critic

Herman Klein Herman Klein (born Hermann Klein; 23 July 1856 – 10 March 1934) was an English music critic, author and teacher of singing. Klein's famous brothers included Charles and Manuel Klein. His second wife was the writer Kathleen Clarice Louise Co ...

. He drowned during the sinking of the

RMS Lusitania RMS ''Lusitania'' (named after the Roman province in Western Europe corresponding to modern Portugal) was a British ocean liner that was launched by the Cunard Line in 1906 and that held the Blue Riband appellation for the fastest Atlanti ...

Biography

Klein was born in London, England to Hermann Klein and his wife Adelaide (née Soman). Apparently, the elder Klein emigrated from

Riga, Latvia Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Bal ...

.Stone, Christopher. "Herman Klein, July 23, 1856 – March 10, 1934", reprinted in Moran, p. 603 Once in Norwich, Hermann became a professor of foreign languages at the King Edward VI Grammar School, and Adelaide taught dance. The younger Klein's five brothers included Max, a violinist; Manuel, a composer;

Herman Herman may refer to: People * Herman (name), list of people with this name * Saint Herman (disambiguation) * Peter Noone (born 1947), known by the mononym Herman Places in the United States * Herman, Arkansas * Herman, Michigan * Herman, Min ...

, a music critic and music teacher;

Alfred Alfred may refer to: Arts and entertainment *''Alfred J. Kwak'', Dutch-German-Japanese anime television series * ''Alfred'' (Arne opera), a 1740 masque by Thomas Arne * ''Alfred'' (Dvořák), an 1870 opera by Antonín Dvořák *"Alfred (Interlu ...

, an actor; and Philip. They had a sister, Adelaide. He was educated at North London College. Klein moved to New York City in 1883 and began his theatrical career by appearing in ''Little Lord Fauntleroy'' and other juvenile roles such as ''The Messenger from Jarvis Section'' and ''The Romany Rye''.American National Biography Online "Charles Klein"
''American National Biography'', accessed 5 January 2009. He married Lillian Gottlieb in Manhattan on July 10, 1888. They had two sons, Philip Klein, a screenwriter and producer (April 24, 1888 - June 8, 1935), and John V. Klein (born July 2, 1908). Klein first wrote for the theater in 1890, when he was commissioned to revise ''The Schatchen'', in which he was then appearing. This was followed by a collaboration with Charles Coote on ''A Mile a Minute'' (1890). He came into prominence as a dramatist in 1897 with the

Charles Frohman Charles Frohman (July 15, 1856 – May 7, 1915) was an American theater manager and producer, who discovered and promoted many stars of the American stage. Notably, he produced ''Peter Pan'', both in London and the US, the latter production ...

production of ''Heartsease'' on which he was co-author with Joseph I. C. Clark, and which featured

Henry Miller Henry Valentine Miller (December 26, 1891 – June 7, 1980) was an American novelist. He broke with existing literary forms and developed a new type of semi-autobiographical novel that blended character study, social criticism, philosophical ref ...

. For a time he was play censor for producer

. Like many dramatists from the late 19th century and early 20th Century, Klein's plays are dated and few are still revived today. He wrote the libretto of

's best remembered operetta, ''

'', which continues to be revived occasionally. Klein's

melodrama A modern melodrama is a dramatic work in which the plot, typically sensationalized and for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodramas typically concentrate on dialogue that is often bombastic or exces ...

s were among the most successful of the first decade of the twentieth century, primarily because of their focus on themes of contemporary life in the United States. In ''The Auctioneer'' (1901) and ''The Music Master'' (1904), actor

David Warfield David Warfield (November 28, 1866 – June 27, 1951) was an American stage actor. Life and career Warfield was born David Wohlfeld in San Francisco, California, to German-Jewish parents, Louise and Sigmund Wohlfeld. His first connection wit ...

had great successes. Klein's best-regarded drama, ''The Lion and the Mouse'' (1905), was prompted by a visit to the U.S. Senate. The story concerns a young woman taking on a powerful business tycoon. One of the corporate figures in the play was made to look like one of

John D. Rockefeller John Davison Rockefeller Sr. (July 8, 1839 – May 23, 1937) was an American business magnate and philanthropist. He has been widely considered the wealthiest American of all time and the richest person in modern history. Rockefeller was ...

's partner H. H. Rogers. His 1909 play, ''The Third Degree'' was adapted for film more than once. Klein died during the sinking of the ''

Lusitania Lusitania (; ) was an ancient Iberian Roman province located where modern Portugal (south of the Douro river) and a portion of western Spain (the present Extremadura and the province of Salamanca) lie. It was named after the Lusitani or Lusita ...

'' in 1915, at the age of 48.

Selected plays

*''A Mile a Minute'' (1890) *''By Proxy'' (1892) *''The District Attorney'' (1895) *''

'' (1896) *''Two Little Vagrants'' (1896) *''Heartsease'' (1897) *'' The Charlatan'' (1898) *''A Royal Rogue'' (1900) *''The Auctioneer'' (1901) *''The Hon. John Grigsby'' (1902) *''Mrs. Pickwick'' (1903) *'' The Music Master'' (1904) *''The Lion and the Mouse'' (1905) *''The Daughters of Men'' (1906) *''The Step-Sister'' (1907) *''The Third Degree'' (1908) (In London this was titled "Find the Woman") *''The Next of Kin'' (1909) *''The Gamblers'' (1910) *''

Maggie Pepper ''Maggie Pepper'' is a lost 1919 American silent comedy-drama film directed by Chester Withey and starring Ethel Clayton. This film is based on a hit 1911 play by Charles Klein which was a winning success for stage actress Rose Stahl at the Harri ...

'' (1911) *''The Outsiders'' (1911) *''The Ne'er Do Well'' (1912)Not to be confused with

W. S. Gilbert Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (18 November 1836 – 29 May 1911) was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his collaboration with composer Arthur Sullivan, which produced fourteen comic operas. The most f ...

's play of the same name *''

Potash and Perlmutter ''Potash and Perlmutter'' is a 1923 American silent comedy film directed by Clarence G. Badger. The film is based on an ethnic Jewish comedy with characters created by Montague Glass and Charles Klein for a 1913 Broadway play of the same name ...

'' (1913) *''The Money Makers'' (1914)

Notes

References

External links

Charles Klein Papers
at the

Harry Ransom Center The Harry Ransom Center (until 1983 the Humanities Research Center) is an archive, library and museum at the University of Texas at Austin, specializing in the collection of literary and cultural artifacts from the Americas and Europe for the pur ...

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Klein, Charles 1867 births 1915 deaths American dramatists and playwrights American people of Latvian-Jewish descent Deaths on the RMS Lusitania British people of Latvian-Jewish descent English emigrants to the United States Jewish American dramatists and playwrights Writers from New York City Writers from London