Frederick Fenn (6 November 1868 – 2 January 1924) was an English playwright, journalist and drama critic. He was the librettist for one of the last Savoy Operas, ''

A Welsh Sunset ''A Welsh Sunset'' is a one-act comic opera composed by Philip Michael Faraday, with a libretto by Frederick Fenn. It was produced at the Savoy Theatre from 15 July 1908 and played with revivals of ''H.M.S. Pinafore'' and ''The Pirates of Penzan ...

'' (1908), and had his greatest success with the musical comedy ''

The Girl in the Taxi ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' (1912).

Life and career

Fenn was born in

Bishop's Stortford Bishop's Stortford is a historic market town in Hertfordshire, England, just west of the M11 motorway on the county boundary with Essex, north-east of central London, and by rail from Liverpool Street station. Stortford had an estimated po ...

, Hertfordshire, a son of the novelist

George Manville Fenn George Manville Fenn (3 January 1831 in Pimlico – 26 August 1909 in Isleworth) was a prolific English novelist, journalist, editor and educationalist. Many of his novels were written with young adults in mind. His final book was his biography ...

and his wife Susanna, ''née'' Leake; he was educated privately.Parker, p. 296 His early works included ''Judged by Appearances'', a one-act play, produced at the Comedy Theatre, London in 1902. Another one-act piece, ''The Honourable Ghost,'' was played on tour as a curtain raiser to ''The Bishop's Move,'' 1902. During the next four years Fenn had three more full-length plays staged: '' A Married Woman'' (1902), ''The Age of Innocence'' (1904) and ''The Convict on the Hearth'' (1906). ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'' considered Fenn's 1904 one-act play ''

'Op o' Me Thumb ''Op o' Me Thumb'' is a 1904 one-act play by the English authors Frederick Fenn and Richard Pryce. It was produced at the Court Theatre, London, on 13 March 1904, in a double bill with Robert Browning's ''A Soul's Tragedy''. It transferred to th ...

'' his best."Mr Frederick Fenn", ''The Times'', 4 January 1924, p. 12 In the West End,

Hilda Trevelyan Hilda Trevelyan (4 February 1877 – 10 November 1959) was an English actress. Early in her career she became known for her performance in plays by J. M. Barrie, and is probably best remembered for creating the role of Wendy in ''Pete ...

had a great success in the leading role, and Fenn adapted it for the cinema in 1920 under the title '' Suds'', a film that starred

Mary Pickford Gladys Marie Smith (April 8, 1892 – May 29, 1979), known professionally as Mary Pickford, was a Canadian-American stage and screen actress and producer with a career that spanned five decades. A pioneer in the US film industry, she co-founde ...

. Of Fenn's later plays, the one that made most impression was ''

'' (1912), a collaboration with

Arthur Wimperis Arthur is a common male given name of Brittonic languages, Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. An ...

(libretto) and Jean Gilbert (music), an adaptation of a German piece, ''Die keusche Susanne'' (1910), which was based on

Antony Mars Antony Mars (22 October 1861 – 17 February 1915) was a French playwright Biography After he studied at a high school in Marseille, Antony March became a lawyer's clerk then an employee at the Compagnie des chemins de fer de l'Est. En 1882, ...

and

Maurice Desvallières Ernest George Maurice Lefebvre-Desvallières (3 October 1857 – 23 March 1926) was a 19th–20th-century French playwright. Maurice was the brother of George Desvallières, son of Emile Lefebvre Desvallières and Marie Legouvé (daughter and gr ...

's play, ''Le Fils à papa'' (1906). Starring

Yvonne Arnaud Germaine Yvonne Arnaud (20 December 1890 – 20 September 1958) was a French-born pianist, singer and actress, who was well known for her career in Britain, as well as her native land. After beginning a career as a concert pianist as a child, Ar ...

Arthur Playfair Arthur Wyndham Playfair (20 October 1869 – 28 August 1918) was an English actor and singer. Beginning in Victorian burlesque and comic operas, Playfair became known for his roles in Edwardian musical comedy and, later, in musical revues. ...

and

C. H. Workman Charles Herbert Workman (5 May 1872 – 1 May 1923) was a singer and actor best known as a successor to George Grossmith in the comic baritone roles in Gilbert and Sullivan operas. He was variously credited as Charles H. Workman, C. Herbert Wo ...

, it ran at the Lyric Theatre, London for 385 performances.Findon, B. W., ''The Play Pictorial'', issue, no. 124, vol. XXI, 1912, pp. 2 and 3; an
"Stage Musicals Chronology
, Musicals 101. Retrieved 29 March 2021 In 1906 Fenn collaborated as librettist with the composer

Philip Michael Faraday Philip Michael Faraday (1 January 1875 – 6 February 1944) was an English lawyer, surveyor, composer, organist and theatrical producer. He composed one of the last Savoy operas, staged several long-running shows in the West End theatre, West E ...

on the comic opera ''Amisis'', produced at the New Theatre. The two worked together again on one of the last Savoy Operas, ''

'', which ran at the Savoy Theatre for 85 performances in 1908. Fenn was for many years assistant editor of ''

The Graphic ''The Graphic'' was a British weekly illustrated newspaper, first published on 4 December 1869 by William Luson Thomas's company Illustrated Newspapers Ltd. Thomas's brother Lewis Samuel Thomas was a co-founder. The premature death of the latt ...

'' and dramatic critic of ''

The Daily Graphic ''The Daily Graphic: An Illustrated Evening Newspaper'' was the first American newspaper with daily illustrations. It was founded in New York City in 1873 by Canadian engravers George-Édouard Desbarats and William Leggo, and began publication ...

''. He died in the London suburb

Isleworth Isleworth ( ) is a town located within the London Borough of Hounslow in West London, England. It lies immediately east of the town of Hounslow and west of the River Thames and its tributary the River Crane, London, River Crane. Isleworth's or ...

, on 2 January 1924, aged 57.

References and sources

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fenn, Frederick 1868 births 1924 deaths 20th-century British dramatists and playwrights English opera librettists