Richard Daly (1758–1813) was an
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
actor and theatrical manager who, between 1786 and 1797, held the Royal patent for staging dramatic productions in
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
and became such a dominant figure in Irish theatre that he was referred to as "King Daly".
Birth and family background
Richard Daly was born in
County Westmeath in 1758, the third son of Joseph and Frances () Daly of Castle Daly,
Kilcleagh, near
Athlone. His family were descendants of Bryan O’Dailaigh who, at the time of his death in 1619, possessed the castle and demesne of Kilcleagh. Ownership of that property (later called Castle Daly) was confirmed to the family at the
Restoration, and they converted to
Protestantism
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
during the
Williamite
A Williamite was a follower of King William III of England (r. 1689–1702) who deposed King James II and VII in the Glorious Revolution. William, the Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic, replaced James with the support of English Whigs.
O ...
confiscations. By the 19th century their estate exceeded 3,000 acres.
Trinity College and the Middle Temple
Daly entered
Trinity College, Dublin, at the age of fifteen and was a turbulent student. The playwright
John O'Keeffe remembered him as "so given to riot and commotion that he was the terror of all public places". O'Keeffe was present when, at the head of a party of undergraduates, Daly forced his way through the stage-door of the
Smock Alley Theatre
Since the 17th century, there have been numerous theatres in Dublin with the name Smock Alley.
The current Smock Alley Theatre () is a 21st-century theatre in Dublin, converted from a 19th-century church building, incorporating structural mat ...
, assaulted the doorkeepers, and rushed into the
green room
In show business, the green room is the space in a theatre or similar venue that functions as a waiting room and lounge for performers before, during, and after a performance or show when they are not engaged on stage. Green rooms typically have ...
, causing the actress
Jane Pope
Jane Pope (1744 – 30 July 1818) was an English actress.
Life
Pope was the daughter William and Susanna Pope. Her father was a London theatrical wig-maker for the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. (There has been confusion over her date of birth with ...
to be "greatly terrified".
The judge
Sir Jonah Barrington, his contemporary at Trinity College, later recalled Daly's appetite for single combat. Before the pair had even spoken to one another, Daly sent Barrington a written challenge to a duel. Barrington, who had not previously fought, was somewhat intimidated on beholding his opponent's striking figure, turnout and distinctive squint when they met at
Donnybrook – an encounter which ended without Daly discharging his gun, but saw him sustain minor injury when Barrington's shot was deflected. According to Barrington this was one of sixteen duels fought by Daly at Trinity in the space of two years, three with swords and thirteen with pistols.
The circumstances in which Daly quit Trinity in 1776 and lived in London until 1779 are not clear. A claim that he fled Dublin after killing a billiard-table marker was among several allegations that prompted him to bring libel proceedings in 1789. More probable is the explanation that he left to pursue legal studies in London where he was admitted a student of the
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...
in November 1776. Jonah Barrington (who, like Daly, left Trinity without a degree) spoke of him as a fellow Templar, and there is later reference to his commencing practice at the English Bar but finding few clients. Other sources report a London meeting with the celebrated Irish actor
Charles Macklin
Charles Macklin (26 September 1699 – 11 July 1797), (Gaelic: Cathal MacLochlainn, English: Charles McLaughlin), was an Irish actor and dramatist who performed extensively at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. Macklin revolutionised theatre in ...
who encouraged Daly to seek his fortune on the stage, following which he made an anonymous debut in the role of
Othello at
Covent Garden in March 1779. His performance on that occasion is said to have been poorly received, but in the following month his benefit night was successful, and shortly afterwards he returned to Ireland in the company of Thomas and
Ann Crawford who had also been playing at Covent Garden.
Marriage and early career in theatre
He made his Dublin stage debut in May 1779 when, at the
Crow Street Theatre, he appeared in the role of Lord Townly in ''
The Provok'd Husband'', playing opposite Mrs Crawford who had inherited the theatre from her previous husband,
Spranger Barry
Spranger Barry (23 November 1719 – 10 January 1777) was an Irish actor.
Life
He was born in Skinner's Row, Dublin, the son of a silversmith, to whose business he was brought up. He took over the business but was not successful.
His fir ...
.
Soon afterwards Daly married the "beautiful and fashionable" actress Jenny Barsanti, a daughter of the musician
Francesco Barsanti
Francesco Barsanti (1690–1775) was an Italian flautist, oboist and composer. He was born in 1690 in the Tuscan city of Lucca, but spent most of his life in London and Edinburgh.
Biography
Very little is known about Barsanti's background. His f ...
. She was the widow of John Richard Kirwan Lyster, who had died in January that year, and brought Daly both a stepdaughter (Lyster's posthumous child) and an annuity. She had made her stage debut at Covent Garden seven years earlier, had delivered the Epilogue when
George Colman retired as manager there, and had been the original
Lydia Languish in
Sheridan's ''
The Rivals
''The Rivals'' is a comedy of manners by Richard Brinsley Sheridan in five acts which was first performed at Covent Garden Theatre on 17 January 1775. The story has been updated frequently, including a 1935 musical and a 1958 episode of the T ...
''. She possessed talent which her friend
Frances Burney
Frances Burney (13 June 1752 – 6 January 1840), also known as Fanny Burney and later Madame d'Arblay, was an English satirical novelist, diarist and playwright. In 1786–1790 she held the post as "Keeper of the Robes" to Charlotte of Mecklen ...
was "sure will in time raise her to the highest pitch of fame".
Mrs Daly immediately devoted herself to instructing her new husband "in the mechanical and technical points of the dramatic art and succeeded in rendering him a respectable actor". The couple made their first stage appearance together in November 1779 as Beverly and Belinda in the Crow Street production of
Arthur Murphy's ''All in the Wrong'', and in the following February they played in
George Farquhar's ''
The Inconstant
''The Inconstant, or the Way to Win Him'' is a 1702 play by the Irish writer George Farquhar. It was a reworking of the Jacobean comedy ''The Wild Goose Chase'' by John Fletcher. A success, the play was revived a number of times during the eight ...
''. In April 1780 they appeared in
John Burgoyne
General John Burgoyne (24 February 1722 – 4 August 1792) was a British general, dramatist and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1761 to 1792. He first saw action during the Seven Years' War when he participated in several bat ...
's ''
The Maid of the Oaks
''The Maid of the Oaks'' is a comedy play by the British playwright and soldier General John Burgoyne, known as Gentleman Johnny. It was originally written in celebration of the forthcoming marriage of Edward Smith-Stanley, heir to the earldom ...
'' and
Sheridan's ''
The School for Scandal
''The School for Scandal'' is a comedy of manners written by Richard Brinsley Sheridan. It was first performed in London at Drury Lane Theatre on 8 May 1777.
Plot
Act I
Scene I: Lady Sneerwell, a wealthy young widow, and her hireling Sn ...
''.
These productions were staged under the management of
Thomas Ryder who, while leasing Crow Street from Ann Crawford, also occupied the
Smock Alley Theatre
Since the 17th century, there have been numerous theatres in Dublin with the name Smock Alley.
The current Smock Alley Theatre () is a 21st-century theatre in Dublin, converted from a 19th-century church building, incorporating structural mat ...
. Although "esteemed the best hearing house in Europe", Smock Alley stood idle and was rented by Ryder simply to prevent it falling into a competitor's hands. In order to escape this double burden, Ryder elected to give up the Smock Alley tenancy when his landlord offered to release him from liability for rent arrears of £3,615 if he surrendered the premises. Unknown to Ryder, Daly had been in negotiation with the landlord and had agreed to assume responsibility for the arrears on being granted possession of the playhouse. By "stratagem and inducements" he then persuaded the best of Ryder's players to join him in a new company at Smock Alley.
Manager of Smock Alley
Early success
Under Daly's management the redecorated Smock Alley Theatre opened in November 1780 with a prelude bearing the title "Smock Alley Secrets" (written by Rev. Peter Le Fanu, a fashionable Dublin clergyman) followed by
Richard Cumberland's comedy ''
The West Indian'' and
Isaac Bickerstaffe
Isaac Bickerstaffe or Bickerstaff (26 September 1733 – after 1808) was an Irish playwright and Librettist.
Early life
Isaac John Bickerstaff was born in Dublin, on 26 September 1733, where his father John Bickerstaff held a government posi ...
's farce ''The Sultan'', Daly and his wife playing in the first two of these. A week later they appeared in a production of ''
The School for Scandal
''The School for Scandal'' is a comedy of manners written by Richard Brinsley Sheridan. It was first performed in London at Drury Lane Theatre on 8 May 1777.
Plot
Act I
Scene I: Lady Sneerwell, a wealthy young widow, and her hireling Sn ...
'', in which Daly's performance was reckoned by the critic for the ''Hibernian Journal'' to be "all the Author intended or the Audience could wish. He is a most promising young Actor and receives the Applause his Merit justly Claims". In the following month the couple featured in the first Irish production of
Hannah Cowley's ''
The Belle's Stratagem
''The Belle's Stratagem'' is a romantic comedy of manners, the most successful work of its playwright, Hannah Cowley. It received its premiere on 22 February 1780,Winter, William. Preface to "Two Old Comedies: The Belle's Stratagem and The Wond ...
'', which had been the major success of that year's London theatre season and was staged by Daly "with magnificence not at all inferior to Covent Garden''.
Daly's management of Smock Alley was quickly rewarded with commercial success: "he not only had the best company Ireland could then produce but engaged the principal London stars and got up the most celebrated pieces as soon as they were established in London". To increase interest in his productions he sometimes reversed gender in comedies and light opera, having men play female characters and vice versa – though when he cast his wife in male roles she refused to wear men's clothing.
Early members of his company included the actress Sarah Hitchcock and her husband Robert (the later historian of Irish theatre) who became prompter and afterward deputy manager at Smock Alley. Robert Hitchcock recruited others to the troupe and was instrumental in the engagement (at the "star" salary of £5 per week) of
John Philip Kemble
John Philip Kemble (1 February 1757 – 26 February 1823) was a British actor. He was born into a theatrical family as the eldest son of Roger Kemble, actor-manager of a touring troupe. His elder sister Sarah Siddons achieved fame with him o ...
who, in 1781, made his first appearance for Daly in the role of
Hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
. When subsequently miscast as Sir George Touchwood in ''The Belle's Stratagem'', Kemble's "negligent delivery and heaviness of deportment" resulted in Daly urging him to exert himself more; Kemble took offence and refused to continue in the part until Daly apologised. However, Kemble's "wonderful strength" in the title-role of
Robert Jephson
Robert Jephson (1736 – 31 May 1803) was an Irish dramatist and politician.
Life
He was born in Ireland, a younger son of John Jephson, Archdeacon of Cloyne. He entered Trinity College, Dublin in 1751, but left without a degree. He then j ...
's ''
The Count of Narbonne'' won much acclaim; in this he was supported by Daly in the character of Theodore, while "Miss Francis" (who was to become the celebrated
Mrs Jordan
Dorothea Jordan, née Bland (21 November 17615 July 1816), was an Anglo-Irish actress, as well as a courtesan. She was the long-time mistress of Prince William, Duke of Clarence, later William IV, and the mother of ten illegitimate children by ...
) played the part of Adelaide. Jephson himself attended rehearsals; the play ran for thirty very profitable nights, and Daly was praised as a "rising theatrical genius".
Elizabeth Inchbald
Elizabeth Inchbald (née Simpson, 15 October 1753 – 1 August 1821) was an English novelist, actress, dramatist, and translator. Her two novels, '' A Simple Story'' and '' Nature and Art'', have received particular critical attention.
Life
Bo ...
performed for Daly in 1782 and in the following January he brought
Elizabeth Fitzhenry out of retirement to reprise six of her best-known portrayals "prior to taking her final leave of the stage". In February he travelled to London and engaged
Sarah Siddons
Sarah Siddons (''née'' Kemble; 5 July 1755 – 8 June 1831) was a Welsh actress, the best-known tragedienne of the 18th century. Contemporaneous critic William Hazlitt dubbed Siddons as "tragedy personified".
She was the elder sister of Joh ...
for a limited number of performances in the summer, when she duly appeared at Smock Alley alongside her brother John Kemble and sister
Elizabeth Whitlock
Elizabeth Whitlock (née Kemble; 2 April 1761, Warrington, Lancashire27 February 1836, Addlestone) was an English actress, a member of the Kemble (family), Kemble family of actors. She made her first appearance on the stage in 1783. In 1785 she m ...
(whom the Dublin press dismissed as "Mrs Siddons's appendage"). The theatre was "crowded to suffocation" to see Siddons in the title role in ''Isabella'' (an adaptation by
David Garrick of
Thomas Southerne
Thomas Southerne (12 February 166026 May 1746) was an Irish dramatist.
Biography
Thomas Southerne, born on 12 February 1660, in Oxmantown, near Dublin, was an Irish dramatist. He was the son of Francis Southerne (a Dublin brewer) and Margar ...
's ''
The Fatal Marriage'', in which she had been the sensation of
Drury Lane's previous season), and she afterwards appeared as Belvidera in
Thomas Otway
Thomas Otway (3 March 165214 April 1685) was an English dramatist of the Restoration period, best known for '' Venice Preserv'd'', or ''A Plot Discover'd'' (1682).
Life
Otway was born at Trotton near Midhurst, the parish of which his fathe ...
's ''
Venice Preserv'd
''Venice Preserv'd'' is an English Restoration play written by Thomas Otway, and the most significant tragedy of the English stage in the 1680s. It was first staged in 1682, with Thomas Betterton as Jaffeir and Elizabeth Barry as Belvidera. The ...
'', and as
Jane Shore
Elizabeth "Jane" Shore (née Lambert) (c. 1445 – c. 1527) was one of the many mistresses of King Edward IV of England. She became the best-known to history through being later accused of conspiracy by the future King Richard III, and compelle ...
in
Nicholas Rowe's tragedy of that name. Her engagement was sufficiently successful that Daly renewed it for the following season, for a reported fee of one thousand guineas. Also in 1784 he engaged
John Henderson,
Alexander Pope
Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 O.S. – 30 May 1744) was an English poet, translator, and satirist of the Enlightenment era who is considered one of the most prominent English poets of the early 18th century. An exponent of Augustan literature, ...
,
Elizabeth Younge (the future Mrs Pope) and
Joseph George Holman
Joseph George Holman (1764–1817) was an English actor, dramatist and actor-manager.
Early life
Born in August 1764, he was son of John Major Holman of St. Giles's, Middlesex, an ensign and adjutant in the British service, who died when his so ...
, and he had Kemble, Henderson, Pope and Holman play Hamlet on alternate nights in the same week.
First opera productions
In 1783 he began to intersperse the usual dramatic fare at Smock Alley with major operatic productions,
Giusto Fernando Tenducci
Giusto Fernando Tenducci, sometimes called "il Senesino" (c. 1735 – 25 January 1790), was a soprano (castrato) opera singer and composer, who passed his career partly in Italy but chiefly in Britain.
Biography
Born in Siena in about 1735, Ten ...
arranging and performing in
Thomas Arne
Thomas Augustine Arne (; 12 March 17105 March 1778) was an English composer. He is best known for his patriotic song " Rule, Britannia!" and the song "A-Hunting We Will Go", the latter composed for a 1777 production of '' The Beggar's Opera'', wh ...
's ''
Artaxerxes'' and William Bates's ''Pharnaces''. In January 1784, Tenducci and
Elizabeth Billington sang the title-roles in
Christoph Gluck's ''
Orpheus and Eurydice
The ancient legend of Orpheus and Eurydice (, ''Orpheus, Eurydikē'') concerns the fateful love of Orpheus of Thrace for the beautiful Eurydice. Orpheus was the son of Apollo and the muse Calliope. It may be a late addition to the Orpheus myths ...
'' and, during their joint season, they received "uncommon bursts of applause from the most brilliant and crowded audiences that ever honoured a theatre". The musicians included Billington's husband on double-bass and were led by her brother, the violinist Charles Weichsel, and the scenery, "in a new style", was the work of the landscape painter Thomas Walmsley whose employment at the theatre "did infinite credit to Mr Daly's judgment". The scenery and costumes cost Daly £1,200 and the ''Hibernian Journal'' praised "the unsparing Liberality of a Manager whose only Avarice seems to centre in promoting public Gratification".
Development of relationship with Robert Jephson
In February 1783 Daly staged the first performance of
Robert Houlton's comic opera ''The Contract'', and in May that year and in January 1784, respectively, he presented the premieres of Robert Jephson's ''The Hotel, or the Servant with Two Masters'' and ''
The Campaign, or Love in the East Indies''. Jephson, apart from being a playwright, was a Member of the
Irish House of Commons
The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a highly restrictive fran ...
, Comptroller of the
Lord Lieutenant's Household, and
Master of the Horse
Master of the Horse is an official position in several European nations. It was more common when most countries in Europe were monarchies, and is of varying prominence today.
(Ancient Rome)
The original Master of the Horse ( la, Magister Equitu ...
in Ireland, and as such was a useful conduit for Daly to the administration at
Dublin Castle
Dublin Castle ( ga, Caisleán Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a former Motte-and-bailey castle and current Irish government complex and conference centre. It was chosen for its position at the highest point of central Dublin.
Until 1922 it was the s ...
. In addition to practising as a doctor, Robert Houlton was a columnist for Francis Higgins, publisher of ''The Freeman's Journal''. The ''Journal'' was the unofficial organ of the Dublin government, for which Higgins became chief spymaster.
More musical success, and courting Charles Macklin
In 1785 Daly commissioned the composer
Charles Dibdin
Charles Dibdin (before 4 March 1745 – 25 July 1814) was an English composer, musician, dramatist, novelist, singer and actor. With over 600 songs to his name, for many of which he wrote both the lyrics and the music and performed them himself, ...
to provide him with musical scores and lured his old mentor Charles Macklin, then aged about eighty-six (but popularly believed to be much older), to play at Smock Alley by agreeing to pay him £50 per night. Such a rate was considerable by contemporary standards but the revenue a popular performer could generate may be judged from the death-bed confession to Daly by a ticket agent who, during the course of a brief engagement of
Thomas King at Smock Alley, had succeeded with others in misappropriating £600 of Daly's ticket money.
Macklin's residence at Smock Alley did not go entirely to plan. During a rehearsal of his play ''The Man of the World'', he delivered such harsh criticism of Daly's performance as Egerton Macsycophant that Daly resigned the role in favour of
William Macready the Elder, whose triumph in the part brought new momentum to his career. Widespread delight at Macklin's own performance (his first in Dublin for ten years) prompted the ''Dublin Evening Post'' to declare that Daly "is honoured with a much larger share of public favour and patronage than any other manager in this kingdom ever experienced and is justly entitled to that universal encouragement which has so distinguished his management".
Dominance and grant of Royal patent
The appeal and vitality of the offerings at Smock Alley resulted in rapid decline of audience numbers at Crow Street and in 1782, unable to pay his actors, Thomas Ryder withdrew from theatrical management and joined Daly's company of players. Thomas Crawford briefly struggled to keep Crow Street alive, but in 1783 Mrs Crawford sold her interest in the establishment to Daly in exchange for a lifetime annuity of £100 and an indemnity against certain liabilities, and she afterwards also performed at Smock Alley.
In 1781 Daly had bought leases of theatres in
Cork and
Limerick
Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...
and somewhat later he took possession of those in
Newry
Newry (; ) is a City status in Ireland, city in Northern Ireland, divided by the Newry River, Clanrye river in counties County Armagh, Armagh and County Down, Down, from Belfast and from Dublin. It had a population of 26,967 in 2011.
Newry ...
and
Drogheda, all of which he fed with touring parties from his Dublin company. By 1785 he was negotiating a lease of
Waterford
"Waterford remains the untaken city"
, mapsize = 220px
, pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe
, pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe
, pushpin_relief = 1
, coordinates ...
Theatre and had control of the Opera House in Dublin's
Capel Street
Capel Street is a street in Dublin, Ireland. On 20 May 2022, it was made traffic-free, following a campaign by people who wanted to improve the quality of life on the street. It is now the longest traffic-free street in Dublin.
History
Capel ...
which had briefly flourished under the direction of
Tommaso Giordani
Tommaso Giordani (c. 1730 to 1733 – before 24 February 1806) was an Italian composer active in England and particularly in Ireland.
Life
Giordani was born in Naples between 1730 and 1733 and came from a musical family. His father was Giuseppe ...
. From 1785 onward Daly employed Giordani as his musical composer and John Moorehead to work under him.
The sovereign position Daly achieved in Irish theatre inspired references to him as "His Majesty of Smock Alley", "the Monarch" and "King Daly", and in November 1786 he was granted a Royal patent to stage theatrical performances in Dublin during the next fourteen years. The exclusive right to grant such patent had been vested in the Crown by the Dublin Stage Regulation Act of that year, which had been openly promoted in Daly's favour and cancelled the licensing authority previously exercised by Dublin's
Lord Mayor. The patent also brought Daly appointment as Deputy
Master of the Revels
The Master of the Revels was the holder of a position within the English, and later the British, royal household, heading the "Revels Office" or "Office of the Revels". The Master of the Revels was an executive officer under the Lord Chamberlain ...
in Ireland.
Daly's acquisition of the patent has been attributed to his favour with the
Duke of Rutland
Duke of Rutland is a title in the Peerage of England, named after Rutland, a county in the East Midlands of England. Earldoms named after Rutland have been created three times; the ninth earl of the third creation was made duke in 1703, in whos ...
. Appointed
Viceroy
A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning " ...
of Ireland in 1784, the Duke had quickly attracted animosity by remarks he made when receiving a petition addressed to
George III
George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...
. He was hissed from every part of the house on entering Smock Alley Theatre for a command performance and was grateful for Daly's intervention on his behalf. The two are said to have become "intimate friends" but, while Rutland's influence may have been helpful, passage of the Stage Regulation Act required support from a wider constituency. Francis Higgins' network of connections may have been key in this respect, and in 1789 it was alleged that Daly and Higgins secretly shared the benefit of the patent.
Transfer to Crow Street
At the end of 1787 Daly closed Smock Alley Theatre (which he sold in 1789) and relocated his Dublin operations to the Crow Street playhouse, on the refit of which between fifty and sixty men were employed daily and on which he spent upwards of £12,000. A new roof, at greater height, was constructed; this allowed a revised layout inspired by the arrangements at Covent Garden and
Drury Lane and had the effect of giving a light and airy quality to the whole house, throughout which the "utmost luxuriancy of taste" was displayed.
At the opening of the refurbished theatre (now called the Theatre Royal) on 18 January 1788, Daly delivered a Prologue, written for the occasion by the dramatist
Joseph Atkinson, declaiming,
Long have I wish'd this welcome hour to see – What exultation, and what pride to me!
'Midst all my struggles and expensive toil, To boast this station in my native soil….
On this last stake I risk myself – my all: A bold attempt – by which I rise – or fall.
Should I succeed – 'tis due to your applause; And if I fail – 'tis in the public's cause.
Trials and tribulations
Rivalries
Among the seasoned actors who joined Daly when he established his own company at Smock Alley in 1780 was
Robert Owenson
Robert Owenson (''Robert MacOwen'') (1744–1812) was an Irish actor, author and father of Lady Olivia Clark and novelist Sydney, Lady Morgan.
Career
Born in Tirawley, on the Mayo–Sligo county border, Owenson established a National Theatr ...
. According to Owenson's daughter, the novelist
Lady Morgan
Sydney, Lady Morgan (''née'' Owenson; 25 December 1781? – 14 April 1859), was an Irish novelist, best known for '' The Wild Irish Girl'' (1806)'','' a romantic, and some critics suggest, "proto-feminist", novel with political and patriotic o ...
(at whose christening Daly was present), the pair entered into some form of partnership and Owenson acted as Daly's deputy. However, they soon quarrelled and, having terminated the partnership, Owenson took a 99-years lease of the Music Hall in Dublin's
Fishamble Street
Fishamble Street (; ) is a street in Dublin, Ireland within the old city walls.
Location
The street joins Wood Quay at the Fish Slip near Fyan's Castle. It originally ran from Castle Street to Essex Quay until the creation of Lord Edward Stre ...
. He reopened this as The City Theatre and staged his first production there in December 1784.
On Daly obtaining the Royal patent, Owenson sought to recover from him the investment rendered futile by loss of the City Theatre's licence. The claim was referred to arbitration, resulting in an agreement whereby Daly would pay Owenson £300 annually for ten years conditional upon no paid actor or actress performing at the City Theatre. Owenson afterwards engaged in the wine trade but also acted for Daly.
In 1788
Philip Astley
Philip Astley (8 January 1742 – 20 October 1814) was an English equestrian, circus owner, and inventor, regarded as being the " father of the modern circus". Modern circus, as an integrated entertainment experience that includes music, domest ...
was granted a patent under the Dublin Stage Regulation Act to stage performances of horsemanship, musical pieces, dancing, tumbling and pantomime but excluding tragedy, comedy, opera, plays and farce. Daly petitioned the Lord Chancellor to withhold the Great Seal from the grant, claiming that his own patent gave him a monopoly of performance-based entertainment in Dublin. The claim failed and, despite Daly securing rights over most of the vacant plots in the city that were large enough to accommodate a circus, Astley's Amphitheatre opened in Peter Street in January 1789.
Legal wrangles
Daly had himself diversified the fare at Smock Alley and Crow Street with occasional tableau presentations, rope-dancing and other acts in the circus tradition, and in 1784 he introduced dancing dogs (Signor Castelli's "Learned Dogs of Paris") to complete his evening's bill. The latter novelty reportedly "materially injured his popularity" and he was "greatly astonished" by the widespread pleasure and support which greeted the Amphitheatre's presentations. When these strayed beyond the terms of Astley's patent he successfully sued.
In 1788 he initiated proceedings against a Dublin lottery-office keeper who had failed to make payment on his winning tickets. This action seems to have kindled personal hostility towards Daly on the part of John Magee who was the publisher of the ''Dublin Evening Post'' and a lottery broker on a major scale. Magee was already at loggerheads with his rival in newsprint, Francis Higgins, and from June 1789 onwards he published accusations that Daly, Higgins and Robert Houlton had perpetrated a lottery "swindle" devised by an allegedly suicidal Daly to recoup his supposed gambling losses.
Magee's allegations became increasingly extreme. They included claims that Daly had, while a student, murdered a billiard-table marker with the blow of a ball to the temple, and had recently "polluted the virtue" of the actress
Harriet Esten. He also took to insulting members of Daly's company in print, declaring they were drawn from among "the cast-offs of
Sadler's Wells
Sadler's Wells Theatre is a performing arts venue in Clerkenwell, London, England located on Rosebery Avenue next to New River Head. The present-day theatre is the sixth on the site since 1683. It consists of two performance spaces: a 1,500-seat ...
, the refuse of Covent Garden and the outcasts of Drury Lane", and denouncing
Andrew Cherry as "the lowest buffo of the stage". Such remarks were followed by outbreaks of riotous behaviour in the upper gallery of the Theatre Royal; these were suspected to be the work of Magee's hirelings and became an almost nightly occurrence.
Attendance at the theatre was adversely affected, partly due to public disapproval of Daly's alleged conduct and partly due to the risk of violence on the premises. Daly began to have difficulty recruiting and retaining players due to fears that Magee would smear their names and doubts as to Daly's continued solvency. Nevertheless, when he could field a strong cast, hundreds might be turned away from the theatre and ticket money could be eighty per cent of the revenue from an excellent night at Covent Garden.
Daly served a writ for libel on Magee in June 1789, claiming damages for injury to his reputation and business; he quantified his loss at £4,000 and obtained an order from
Lord Clonmell, then Chief Justice of the
King's Bench in Ireland (a close friend of Francis Higgins), requiring Magee to provide bail money in that amount. When Magee was unable to do so he was imprisoned. This triggered debate in the Irish House of Commons concerning the legality of requiring bail in defamation cases, an issue that was referred to a Grand Committee of the Courts of Justice where the Attorney-General frustrated its determination. The
Whig Club, under the chairmanship of the
Duke of Leinster
Duke of Leinster (; ) is a title in the Peerage of Ireland and the premier dukedom in that peerage. The subsidiary titles of the Duke of Leinster are: Marquess of Kildare (1761), Earl of Kildare (1316), Earl of Offaly (1761), Viscount Leinster, ...
, declared that if the order in Daly's case was properly made then "the liberty of the subject is in imminent danger". These events attracted considerable public attention and increased the prevailing unpopularity of the Irish administration.
Daly's claim for libel was tried in July 1790 when eleven barristers appeared to present his case, including
John Philpot Curran
John Philpot Curran (24 July 1750 – 14 October 1817) was an Irish orator, politician, wit, lawyer and judge, who held the office of Master of the Rolls in Ireland. He was renowned for his representation in 1780 of Father Neale, a Catholic pri ...
,
Henry Duquerry,
John Egan and
Jonas Greene. By this time he was seeking damages of £8,000 on account of further allegations made by Magee but, while his case succeeded, the jury awarded him only £200 in damages and sixpence towards his costs. An application, by Magee's brother, to have Magee declared a lunatic had been unsuccessful, but he was later made the subject of a lunacy order.
Imprisonment and scandal
Disturbances at the Theatre Royal did not cease with the outcome of the Magee case and when, in the autumn of 1791, Daly and his brother Cuthbert, a barrister, came to blows with an audience member, they were themselves convicted of aiding riot and assault. Daly was sentenced to six months' imprisonment (Cuthbert to twelve) and the Viceroy,
Lord Westmorland, had to intervene to procure his release from
Newgate.
While Daly was in prison there was published in London a lurid account of Elizabeth Billington's alleged adultery with him during her time at Smock Alley in early 1784, shortly after her marriage and when already pregnant. By 1792 Mrs Billington was the principal
diva
Diva (; ) is the Latin word for a goddess. It has often been used to refer to a celebrated woman of outstanding talent in the world of opera, theatre, cinema, fashion and popular music. If referring to an actress, the meaning of ''diva'' is cl ...
at Covent Garden and rumoured to have slept with a succession of Dukes and the
Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...
, and the publication created a minor sensation, selling out almost immediately. The ''Scots Magazine'' considered "the anecdotes of Messalina and Moll Flanders afford nothing more abominable that what we have here perused". Declaring her "greatest abhorrence and detestation" of what was alleged against her, Billington issued libel proceedings but these bore no fruit and the allegations soon reappeared in a publication that suggested other improprieties by Daly "who dies for every lady he brings forward".
At the time reports of his alleged adultery with Billington first surfaced in print, Daly was suing her for £250 on a wager made during her engagement for ''
The Beggar's Opera
''The Beggar's Opera'' is a ballad opera in three acts written in 1728 by John Gay with music arranged by Johann Christoph Pepusch. It is one of the watershed plays in Augustan drama and is the only example of the once thriving genre of satiri ...
'', which he had staged in the previous summer when her celebrity was already so considerable that "at an early hour the avenues to the theatre were crowded in a manner only equalled on
Mr Garrick quitting the stage". Although Dublin may have derived temporary titillation from the account of Billington's off-stage activities, by 1805 that account was dismissed as the work of "some needy scribbler" and "justly consigned to oblivion".
Later career
Absence from performing
The Magee case caused Daly such "agitation of his mind as prevented him from attending his business", and neither he nor his wife appeared on the stage between June 1789 and January 1793. During the early part of the Dalys' absence from the stage
Margaret Kennedy
Margaret Moore Kennedy (23 April 1896 – 31 July 1967) was an English novelist and playwright. Her most successful work, as a novel and as a play, was '' The Constant Nymph''. She was a productive writer and several of her works were filmed. T ...
,
Frances Abington
Frances "Fanny" Abington (1737 – 4 March 1815) was an English actress who was also known for her sense of fashion. Writer and politician Horace Walpole described her as one of the finest actors of their time, and Richard Brinsley Sheridan was s ...
,
William Thomas Lewis
William Thomas Lewis (1748?–1811), known as "Gentleman" Lewis, due to his refined acting style, was an English actor. He was said to be "the most complete fop on the stage". In later life he went into theatrical management.
Early days in Ir ...
,
Charles Incledon
Charles Benjamin Incledon (pronounced 'Ingledon') (1763–11 February 1826, Worcester) was a Cornish tenor singer, who became one of the foremost English singers of his time, especially in the singing of English theatre music and ballads in which ...
,
Rosemond Mountain,
Frances Hodgkinson,
Georgina George and
Maria Ann Campion
Maria Ann Campion (1777 - 18 June 1803) was a popular Irish actress and the second wife of Alexander Pope the actor. She was born in Waterford, Ireland and died in London on 18 June 1803, and was buried in Westminster Abbey.
Life
When she was ...
were among those whom Daly engaged, followed by
Maria Bland,
Elizabeth Farren,
Charlotte Wattell
Charlotte Wattell (5 October 1770 – December 1812) was an English actress of the late 18th and early 19th-centuries and the first wife of the churchman Thomas Twisleton, Thomas James Twisleton.
Born in London in 1770 as Charlotte Anne Fran ...
,
Charlotte Melmoth,
Michael Kelly,
Anna Maria Crouch
Anna Maria Crouch (20 April 1763 – 2 October 1805), often referred to as Mrs Crouch, was a singer and stage actress in the London theatre. She was (briefly) a mistress of George, Prince of Wales.
Biography
Born Anna Maria Phillips, she firs ...
,
Tryphosa Jane Wallis,
Gertrud Elisabeth Mara
Gertrud Elisabeth Mara (née Schmeling) (23 February 1749 – 20 January 1833) was a German operatic soprano.
Life
She was born in Kassel, the daughter of a poor musician, Johann Schmeling. From him she learnt to play the violin, and while ...
,
John Henry Johnstone,
Mary Ann Davenport,
Laurence Clinch Laurence Clinch (c1740-1812) was an Irish actor, familiarly known as Larry, and accomplished in both tragedy and comedy. The popular farce ''St Patrick's Day'' was written and performed to showcase his particular talent.
Early career in Ireland
A n ...
and
Joseph Munden.
In order to compete with Astley's presentations, Daly increasingly diversified the Theatre Royal's repertoire, introducing elaborate ballets, pure spectacles (such as "Gallic Freedom", depicting the storming of the
Bastille
The Bastille (, ) was a fortress in Paris, known formally as the Bastille Saint-Antoine. It played an important role in the internal conflicts of France and for most of its history was used as a state prison by the kings of France. It was stor ...
) and a variety of novelty items. Particular interest was captured by the
Chevalier d'Eon
Chevalier may refer to:
Honours Belgium
* a rank in the Belgian Order of the Crown
* a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold
* a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold II
* a title in the Belgian nobility
France
* a rank in the French Legion d'h ...
's display of his or her (the audience was uncertain but fascinated on the point) fencing skills.
In some quarters these developments were, like Daly's earlier presentations of "dancing dogs and whistling men", deemed to "trample on the ornaments of drama", and in 1793 a group of wealthy young men leased Robert Owenson's City Theatre and fitted it up to "a degree of elegance hitherto unknown in Ireland". Amateur productions were staged there under the management of the
Earl of Westmeath
Earl of Westmeath is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1621 for Richard Nugent, Baron Delvin. During the Tudor era the loyalty of the Nugent family was often in question, and Richard's father, the sixth Baron, died in prison ...
and
Frederick Edward Jones and were glowingly reported in the pages of the ''Hibernian Journal''. When professional actresses were engaged to play alongside the amateurs, Daly treated his annuity obligation to Owenson as discharged and Owenson lost the ensuing litigation.
Return, and difficulties
In January 1793 ''Saunders's News-Letter'' was at last able to "congratulate the lovers of the drama, on the return of their two greatest favourites, Mr and Mrs Daly, to that station in the theatric world, which they supported with such superior ability". Of the couple's appearance at the Theatre Royal, it claimed, "Never did any dramatic event accord more with the wishes of the public". Less than a fortnight later the same publication was lauding Richard Daly's performance in
Benjamin Hoadly's ''
The Suspicious Husband
''The Suspicious Husband'' is a 1747 comedy play by the British writer Benjamin Hoadly.Nicoll p.207
It premiered at the Covent Garden Theatre in February 1747. The original cast included David Garrick as Ranger, Roger Bridgewater as Strictland, ...
'', and in early February, in reference to the couple's playing Mr and Mrs Oakley in
George Colman the Elder
George Colman (April 1732 – 14 August 1794) was an English dramatist and essayist, usually called "the Elder", and sometimes "George the First", to distinguish him from his son, George Colman the Younger. He also owned a theatre.
Early lif ...
's ''
The Jealous Wife'', it reported that "Mr and Mrs Daly are peculiarly capital".
In 1794 Jones procured a licence authorising dramatic performances on the Fishamble Street premises provided no male actors were paid to perform and admission was limited to membership of the organising group. This element of exclusivity stimulated a demand for membership which left the boxes of the Theatre Royal "quite deserted, it being deemed vulgar to be seen in them". By 1795 the theatre was, according to
George Frederick Cooke
George Frederick Cooke (17 April 1756 in London – 26 September 1812 in New York City) was an English actor. As famous for his erratic habits as for his acting, he was largely responsible for initiating the romantic style in acting that was ...
, "at a low ebb; the performers were ill paid, and the house, scenes and dresses were very mean".
In early 1795 Daly's wife (who had last performed in the previous February) was terminally ill. Daly, who was "extravagantly fond" of her, broke down on stage when performing during her illness. She died in April, "endowed with every virtue that could grace the female breast… her death a brilliant example of Christian fortitude". In the same year Frederick Jones applied to the Lord Lieutenant,
Earl Camden
Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form '' jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particula ...
, for a full patent for staging theatrical entertainment; the application was accompanied by a memorial, signed by many of Dublin's fashionable figures, criticising both Daly's playbills and premises. Ordered to investigate the criticisms, the Irish
Attorney-General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general.
In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...
judged them valid, and Camden intimated to Daly that he proposed to grant Jones a concurrent patent.
Retirement
Daly declared he would prefer to retire on fair remuneration rather than engage in what he believed would be ruinous competition and, with effect from 12 August 1797, he transferred his theatrical undertaking and the Crow Street premises to Jones in exchange for an annuity of £800 for his own life and thereafter of £400 for the joint lives of some of his children. At the same time Jones relieved Daly from responsibility for an annual payment of £232 assumed when acquiring Smock Alley, and agreed to give him an annual profit rent of £300 on the theatres in Cork and Limerick.
The ''Dublin Evening Post'' reported that Daly "has quitted the Dramatic Throne while in the plenitude of power and fullness of public encouragement". The timing of his retirement was well chosen, being promptly followed by the
Irish Rebellion of 1798
The Irish Rebellion of 1798 ( ga, Éirí Amach 1798; Ulster-Scots: ''The Hurries'') was a major uprising against British rule in Ireland. The main organising force was the Society of United Irishmen, a republican revolutionary group influenced ...
. Jones was granted a new theatrical patent for twenty-one years, but no sooner had he refurbished and reopened Crow Street than martial law was proclaimed, prohibiting citizens from appearing on the streets after 8 p.m. Jones's application for compensation failed to find sufficient support in Parliament, and further disturbances resulted in his theatre again being closed in 1803.
For "reasons of economy" Daly removed to the
Isle of Man
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, anthem = "O Land of Our Birth"
, image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg
, image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg
, mapsize =
, map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe
, map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green)
in Europe ...
, where he built "an elegant mansion" and found himself a neighbour of
Thomas "Jerusalem" Whaley, an Irish MP and notorious gambler. Whaley's brother-in-law was
John Fitzgibbon who, as Irish Attorney-General, had validated the complaints concerning Daly's management of the Theatre Royal. In 1799, an altercation took place between Daly and Whaley, arising from which Whaley preferred charges against Daly. On appearing in court Daly used "intemperate expressions" and was sentenced to a month's imprisonment for contempt. The balance of his years seem to have passed quietly.
Reputation
Surviving accounts of Richard Daly's qualities and conduct vary to a remarkable degree.
As actor
Throughout his years in theatre, the range and quality of Daly's skills as a player were enthusiastically applauded in the Dublin press. However, fairly soon after his retirement and in an otherwise sympathetic account of his career, the ''Thespian Dictionary or Dramatic Biography of the Present Age'' declared that his acting in tragedy was "contemptible" and in light comedy only "tolerable". This assessment may have come from the pen of
W. C. Oulton, who would have seen Daly in action on many occasions. It was adopted by later commentators, yet was at odds with the opinion of others such as John O'Keeffe, who was familiar with the work of all the leading players of the period and remembered Daly as "an accomplished actor". Nevertheless, contemporary reservations about his ability in melodrama are evident from
Sir Martin Archer Shee's remark after seeing his performance in
Frederic Reynolds
Frederic Reynolds (1 November 1764 – 16 April 1841) was an English dramatist. During his literary career he composed nearly one hundred tragedies and comedies, many of which were printed, and about twenty of them obtained temporary popularit ...
' dramatisation of ''
The Sorrows of Young Werther
''The Sorrows of Young Werther'' (; german: Die Leiden des jungen Werthers) is a 1774 epistolary novel by Johann Wolfgang Goethe, which appeared as a revised edition in 1787. It was one of the main novels in the '' Sturm und Drang'' period in Ge ...
'': "Daly, though many degrees removed from excellence is, in my opinion, passable and ''much better than you would expect''" (italics added).
His reputation as an actor may have suffered from his judgements as a manager and director. He attracted criticism for casting himself "in the foremost part in every play" and was said to "pique himself on his talent as a prologue speaker both as regards deportment and delivery". Mrs Siddons complained of his inclination to occupy the front of stage rather than a position best suited to the scene, and he was accused of insisting his costume should outshine all others in comedy productions.
As manager
The ''Thespian Dictionary'' acknowledged that, in management, Daly achieved greater success than any of his Dublin predecessors
Thomas Sheridan Thomas Sheridan may refer to:
*Thomas Sheridan (divine) (1687–1738), Anglican divine
*Thomas Sheridan (actor) (1719–1788), Irish actor and teacher of elocution
*Thomas Sheridan (soldier) (1775–1817/18)
*Thomas B. Sheridan (born 1931), America ...
,
Spranger Barry
Spranger Barry (23 November 1719 – 10 January 1777) was an Irish actor.
Life
He was born in Skinner's Row, Dublin, the son of a silversmith, to whose business he was brought up. He took over the business but was not successful.
His fir ...
,
Henry Mossop
Henry Mossop (1729 – 18 November 1773) was an Irish actor.
Life
He was born in Dunmore, County Galway, where his father was a clergyman. He made his first stage appearance as Zanga in Young's tragedy ''The Revenge'' at the Smock Alley Theat ...
,
Henry Woodward and
Thomas Ryder, all of whom had failed financially. Joseph Atkinson declared Daly rescued Dublin theatre from "neglect and degradation" and brought it to "the highest pitch of magnificence and respectability"; the same was said by Robert Hitchcock, but neither was an entirely disinterested party and their opinions predate the overall decline of Daly's offering during the 1790s.
His "spirit" as a manager was widely praised, but his treatment of members of his company was described as "oppressive and tyrannical". The theatre historian
Thomas Gilliland mentioned
Charles Mathews
Charles Mathews (28 June 1776, London – 28 June 1835, Devonport) was an English theatre manager and comic actor, well known during his time for his gift of impersonation and skill at table entertainment. His play ''At Home'', in which he pl ...
as one who "suffered every misery under the management of Mr Daly", although Mathews' own contemporary account was less hostile. On joining the company in June 1794, he reported finding that Daly "is hated by all his performers scarcely any of whom can get any money from him" and "bears the worst of characters", but by July he considered such character was undeserved, and in August he rejoiced in his "very pleasant" situation and confirmed he had "not been fined a farthing".
The latter reference alluded to Daly's practice of fining members of his company for breaches of house discipline. In 1791-94 he employed a comic actor named Moss at a generous weekly rate that he reduced by allegedly arbitrary fines which Moss sued to recover "every week". Daly's pursuit of players to recover penalties due when they failed to honour the duration of their contracts has also been cited as an aspect of his "tyranny". However, his conduct on such occasions was not uniform: in 1794 he declined to pursue George Frederick Cooke for breach of his articles (Charles Mathews observing "he would not distress him for the world") and, when in 1788
Mary Wells
Mary Esther Wells (May 13, 1943 – July 26, 1992) was an American singer, who helped to define the emerging sound of Motown in the early 1960s.
Along with The Supremes, The Miracles, The Temptations, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, and the F ...
appealed for release from her contract on account of domestic difficulties, Daly responded by tearing up the document in her presence.
The quality of his relationship with his leading players varied: while Mrs Siddons complained he "adopted every means of vexation for me that he could possibly devise", Mrs Abington credited him with every endeavour "to make her situation in the theatre as agreeable as could possibly result from the most friendly and polite attention". Several players took space in Dublin newspapers or directly addressed audiences from the stage to vent complaints about their treatment by Daly. Their grievances sometimes grew from not being cast in the parts to which they aspired and, in Daly's defence, the ''Thespian Dictionary'' posited that occasional slander was the penalty every manager paid for "resisting the whims and caprices of his company". Where events led to a breakdown in relationship, there are instances of Daly taking pains to repair it. James Grant Raymond, a man of "excellent private character", was a player in Daly's company and afterwards for Frederick Jones before himself becoming manager at Drury Lane. He spoke of Daly's relationship with him during the 1790s "in the highest terms".
If W. C. Oulton was indeed their author, two of the observations in the ''Thespian Dictionary'' may hold particular relevance when assessing Daly's management record. "If Mr Daly's conduct could not always be defended," wrote his biographer, "it was not always justly represented", adding that "theatrical enmity is well known to proceed from secret jealousy and theatrical friendship from secret interest".
As duellist and dissolute
Daly's reputation for duelling was magnified after his death. Described in 1866 as a "professed duellist" by "a dramatic writer of eminence", in 1908 he became a "professional duellist" under the pen of the historian W. J. Lawrence, the latter translating the suit in which the teenage Daly faced Jonah Barrington into his "regulation attire" for combat. Clare Jerrold (wife of
Walter Jerrold) augmented but contradicted Barrington's recollection when, in her biography of Dorothea Jordan, she declared Daly was "a member of the Fire-eaters' Club", perhaps encouraging subsequent descriptions of Daly as a "frequent and ferocious" duellist. Although duelling was a fashionable resort in contemporary Irish society, evidence of Daly engaging in it in adulthood is sparse.
Daly's affair with Dorothea Jordan in 1782 seems to be the first recorded among the several carnal connections he is reputed to have had with his actresses. It is not apparent when that affair became widely known, but by January 1787 it was, though long spent, regarded as sufficiently substantial a relationship to justify inclusion of coupled portraits of "Mrs Tomboy" (Jordan, as Priscilla Tomboy in Bickerstaffe's ''The Romp'') and "The Irish Manager" (Daly) in a series of engravings of celebrated lovers published in the ''Town and Country Magazine''.
The purported letters of Elizabeth Billington confess she "made a cuckold of her husband by committing adultery with Mr Daly", and soon after their publication ''The Secret History of the Green Room'' alleged that Daly had physically forced himself upon an unwilling Mrs Jordan and had lusted for Miss Romanzini (later the wife of Mrs Jordan's brother George Bland). Allegations also emerged of Daly romancing Mrs Baddeley and Miss Tweedale, and propositioning Mrs Inchbald and Mrs Siddons. Some of the allegations seem based on slight or ambiguous foundation, but their cumulative effect provides support for the application to Daly by ''Oxberry's Dramatic Biography'' of the general assertion that "Managers are, in their theatres, little better than Turks in their seraglios; at least as far as the indigence or immorality of their female performers will allow them to be so".
In tandem with misconduct towards his players, Daly has been said to be "preoccupied with drinking and gambling" but, when alluding to his gambling, Clare Jerrold referred to it taking place during "his constant attendance at a Temperance Club where the only refreshment allowed was biscuits and water". In his suit against Magee, Daly took particular exception to the suggestion that he was a gambler, protesting this to be "false, scandalous and malicious", though there was later attributed to him "an extraordinary propensity for making wagers in reference to incidental matters, however unimportant". He has been credited with invention of the word "quiz" in consequence of one such wager.
Death and family
Daly died in Dublin's
Lower Gardiner Street on 8 September 1813. By his wife he had numerous sons and daughters. One of his sons, a lieutenant in the Royal Navy, died in 1811 commanding a gun-boat which, when bombarding enemy positions near
Cadiz, exploded after a red hot shell penetrated its magazine. Daly's reputed daughter by Dorothea Jordan,
Frances Alsop
Frances Alsop ('' née'' Daly; 1 September 1782 – 2 June 1821) was an English actress. She was the illegitimate child of Richard Daly (1758–1813), manager of the Smock Alley Theatre, Dublin, and the actress Dorothea Jordan ''née'' Bland (1 ...
, took to the stage and died in America in 1821. His stepdaughter, Jane Lyster (the child of Mrs Daly's first marriage), married William Jameson, KC, and was mother of William Jameson of Fort Lyster, President of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland in 1861.
By 1821, following expiry of his patent, Frederick Edward Jones had paid more than £25,500 to Daly and his family pursuant to the arrangements agreed at the time of Daly’s retirement.
[Gilbert, Vol. II, p. 252.]
Notes
External links
''The Trial of John Magee for Printing and Publishing a Slanderous and Defamatory Libel, Against Richard Daly, Esq.''J. T. Gilbert, ''A History of the City of Dublin'', Vol. II (1859)
References
* ''Personal sketches of his own time'',
Sir Jonah Barrington, 1830
* ''Dictionary of Irish Biography'', pp. 31–32, Cambridge, 2010
{{DEFAULTSORT:Daly, Richard
Irish male stage actors
18th-century Irish male actors
18th-century Irish businesspeople
Irish theatre managers and producers
1758 births
1813 deaths
Alumni of Trinity College Dublin