Scott, John R.

Scott, John R. (1808–56), actor. Born in Philadelphia, where he was active in amateur theatricals, he made his professional debut at New York's Park Theatre in 1829, playing Malcolm to Junius Booth's Macbeth. He rose quickly to become a favorite both at the Arch Street Theatre in Philadelphia and at the Bowery in New York. Although he played such classic tragic parts as Othello, Hamlet, and Sir Giles Overreach, Scott was most ad‐mired for his romantic leads in the new melodramas of the day, but he never won favor at the most prestigious houses. Ireland wrote of him, “Possessing a fine personal appearance and great natural abilities, he might, with proper caution in personal habits and a closer application to study, have ranked among the very highest of our actors.” In the latter part of his career he was apt to disappoint his audiences by his sudden disappearances.