Volume 1 — SIDE-LIGHT AND COMMENTARY ON “SWEET KITTY.”

“Sweet Kitty Bellairs” was acted at the Belasco Theatre until June 4, 1904, when the season ended and that house was closed. It was revived there in the fall, September 3, and, with Miss Crosman in its chief part, was subsequently acted in many other cities. In the season of 1905-’06, Miss Crosman having retired from Belasco’s management, it was again revived, with Miss Bertha Galland as Kitty, and on October 5, 1907, with Miss Eva Moore in that part, it was played at the Haymarket Theatre, London. On February 3, 1904, while this comedy was in the full tide of its first success, one of the many groundless suits against Belasco, accusing him of plagiarism, was brought by Grace B. Hughes, otherwise known as Mary Montagu, who asserted that Belasco’s play was an infringement of one by her, entitled “Sweet Jasmine,” and applied for an injunction to stop him from further presentment of it. Her application was argued before Justice E. Henry Lacombe, March 18, and on March 26 was denied. One of the most vicious propensities of newspaper journalism was sharply illustrated in connection with Miss Montagu’s wanton aspersion on Belasco’s honesty: when it was made, her charge of plagiarism was generally and conspicuously published by the press; when it was disproved, it ceased to be “live news” and merely curt and, in general, obscure record was made of the issue. Minor “resemblances” between the two plays, adduced by the complainant in this action by way of substantiating her charge of literary theft, were such as the facts that in both a military band played music; in both “green” is mentioned as the color of grass, and in both a lover states the nature of his feeling toward the woman he loves. Yet, without any possibility of redress, Belasco was compelled to expend energy, time, and money on making a serious defence against the preposterous accusations of irresponsible frivolity! To oppose and defeat the suit of Miss Montagu cost him a large sum. There is no reasonable doubt that, in the majority of cases, such accusations of plagiarism as those which have been brought against Belasco are made in hope that the person accused will buy off the accuser as the quickest and cheapest way of ending annoyance. Belasco, however, has never gratified such hope; and he assured me: “I never will—for I prefer to lose a thousand dollars in money and ten thousand in time and trouble rather than to submit to blackmail.” In denying the writ applied for by this impudent defamer the court declared that “No direct evidence of copying, either of language or dramatic situation, is shown. A comparison of the two plays shows that they are wholly dissimilar in plot, in characters, in text, and in dramatic situations. The climax of one act in each piece was principally relied upon in argument—where the unexpected discovery of the leading character in a place where she should not be makes a dramatic situation.... This is an old device; it was common property to all playwrights since Sheridan used it in ‘The School for Scandal’ [And since long before that time!—W. W.]. Analyzing the details of the situations as presented in these two plays, the points of essential difference so far outnumber the points of similarity that it is difficult to understand how anyone could persuade himself that one was taken from the other.”—The following letters provide an interesting side-light and commentary on the history of “Bellairs”:

(David Belasco to Egerton Castle, in London.)

“Cartwright Cottage, “Manhanset Manor, New York, “August 29, 1904.

“My dear Mr. Castle:—

“You must pardon me for not replying to your letter. I am much run down by overwork, and as I had to finish Mrs. Carter’s new play for the coming season besides much other work my doctor ordered me to the Adirondack Mountains, and before going I gave orders to my secretary to keep all mail for me until my return. Thank you for the story you sent. It is charming, but as it so closely follows the line of ‘Sweet Kitty Bellairs,’ and as that play has made such a success, I am afraid that another on the same subject and in the same period would fall flat in this country. So if anyone applies to you for the rights you will understand that I relinquish them.

“Next week ‘Sweet Kitty’ opens at my theatre for a few weeks, then it will be started off on tour. I need not tell you the condition of things theatrical in America. The Syndicate has brought nothing but disgrace and humiliation to the profession. Things artistic are at their lowest ebb. Last season was the worst financially the theatres ever experienced. Many fortunes were lost. Outside of ‘Sweet Kitty Bellairs’ I don’t think any manager produced a success. Of course I lost money on the production. A play of that period is expensive, and as I make my productions perfect it invariably takes me a year to get back the original cost. This coming season is the year of the Presidential Election, which always hurts the theatres, but I think we shall do well on tour because of our New York success. I think it inadvisable to attempt ‘Sweet Kitty’ in England until after its first tour in this country. If by chance it should slip up over in London it would hurt our prospects for the play here. While the papers attach very little importance to a play successfully produced in England, they cable over a failure with sensational particulars, and it hurts all throughout the country. I think it would be wise to arrange for the production of ‘Sweet Kitty’ in London later, making the arrangements during the coming season, but, as I stated, I don’t think it would be well to produce it yet.

“Hope that you are meeting with every success. With best wishes to Mrs. Castle and yourself,

“Faithfully, “David Belasco.”

(David Belasco to Egerton Castle, in London.)

“The Belasco Theatre, “New York, March 3, 1905.

“My dear Mr. Castle:—

“Your letter of February 5 received. I regret very much that ‘Sweet Kitty Bellairs’ has not done better than it has. But I am constrained to attribute this to the fact that, in order to please you, I put it on during an unpropitious season, when there was little or no interest in plays of the Georgian period, because the country was surfeited with them—with comic operas of the Eighteenth Century, and revivals of Sheridan. Again, I myself had just finished the production of ‘Du Barry,’ which, while it is of a more regal nature than ‘Bellairs,’ is still of the Eighteenth Century, a costume play of manners and customs. All this tended to take from ‘Kitty’ the charm of novelty, a detraction which could not be overcome by the fact that I spent more than $65,000 on the production and gave it a cast comprising some of the highest salaried artists in America.

“It was my intention to hold the play in reserve for Miss Bates, and produce it this year, with her in the title rôle. She is one of my own stars, and very popular. Had I done so, waiting for the flood of plays of that period to cease, I am convinced the result would have been far different.

“Miss Crosman closes in April, and I shall then recall the company, store the production and send it out when the road conditions in this country are more favorable. I believe it to be a valuable piece of property over here, and that it may yet make enough money to enable me to get back at least my original outlay. My loss up to date on the play is $50,000.

“In regard to the English production, I deem it inadvisable to commit myself at present, because I yet hope to have a theatre of my own in London, and, in consequence, am saving all my material for that time. Moreover, in ‘Kitty Bellairs’ I know so well the things that made it a great artistic success in this country, and there are so many details about the production to need my personal supervision, that I should really be afraid to let it be put on without me. To make the play ‘go’ at all, it must have a special cast, without which its fate would be foredoomed, and I do not care to trust the selection of this cast to another. In short, the English production is a risk I do not wish to take, until I can give it my own personal attention.

“With kindest regards, I am

“Faithfully, “David Belasco.”