Cooper, Thomas Abthorpe

Cooper, Thomas Abthorpe (1776–1849), British-born actor, one of the first to become an American citizen. In 1795 he appeared at Covent Garden as Hamlet and Macbeth, and a year later went with Wignell to the Chestnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia. In 1797 he was seen in New York as Jaffier in Otway's Venice Preserv'd, always one of his best parts. He was also much admired in the title-role of Kotzebue's The Stranger (1798). After a quarrel with Wignell he joined the American Company under Dunlap and in 1806 took a lease of the Park Theatre in New York, but without much success. He then toured the eastern circuit—New York, Philadelphia, and Charleston, South Carolina—in the big tragic roles of Shakespeare. A handsome man, with a fine voice, much eloquence, and a dignified presence, he was a fine tragic actor, though he continued to act for too long and towards the end of his life his popularity declined.