Hattie Williams (March 17, 1870 - August 17, 1942) was an American stage actress, comedian and vocalist from Boston. She was a popular player in vaudeville and with

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 ...

's theatrical company at the turn of the twentieth century and appeared often at his famous Empire Theatre, New York.

Career

Williams first gained fame in several

farcical Farce is a comedy that seeks to entertain an audience through situations that are highly exaggerated, extravagant, ridiculous, absurd, and improbable. Farce is also characterized by heavy use of physical humor; the use of deliberate absurdity or ...

plays by Charles Hoyt. In 1886, she performed with

John A. Arneaux John A. Arneaux (born 1855) was an American Shakespearean actor and journalist in New York City and in Paris, France. From 1884 to 1886 he was editor and owner of the ''New York Enterprise'' which had the largest circulation of any African America ...

's Shakespearean acting troupe as Lady Anne in

Richard III Richard III (2 October 145222 August 1485) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat and death at the Battl ...

.Hill, Errol G., and James V. Hatch. A history of African American theatre. Vol. 18. Cambridge University Press, 2003. p79-82 Williams retired from the theatre in 1914 at the height of her career. She appeared in only one motion picture ''Glorianna's Getaway'' (1915), a short film. Under the Frohman banner she and

Ethel Barrymore Ethel Barrymore (born Ethel Mae Blythe; August 15, 1879 – June 18, 1959) was an American actress and a member of the Barrymore family of actors. Barrymore was a stage, screen and radio actress whose career spanned six decades, and was regarde ...

were occasionally rivals.

Personal life

Williams was good friends with the actor

Richard Carle Richard Carle (born Charles Nicholas Carleton, July 7, 1871 – June 28, 1941) was an American stage and film actor as well as a playwright and stage director. He appeared in more than 130 films between 1915 and 1941. Carle was born in Som ...

and they sometimes summered together on Long Island in the off season. She died August 17, 1942, in the Bronx New York.

Popular plays

Harvard Theatre Collection - Sam Bernard and Hattie Williams TCS 1

*''Vivian's Papas'' (1903) *''The Girl from Kays'' (1904) *''

The Rollicking Girl Sydney Rosenfeld (1855–1931) was an American playwright who wrote numerous plays, and adapted many foreign plays. Close to fifty of his creations played on Broadway. Some of his better known plays (though none achieved long-lasting popularit ...

'' (1905) *''The Little Cherub'' (1906) *''Fluffy Ruffles'' (1908) *''A Slice of Life'' (1912) (*with Ethel and John Barrymore) *''The Doll Girl'' (1913)

References

External links

* *
Hattie Williams portrait gallery
NY Public Library) {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Hattie 1870 births 1942 deaths Actresses from Boston American stage actresses 20th-century American actresses