Players' Club

Players' Club, New York, founded in 1888 on the lines of the Garrick Club in London. Its first president was Edwin Booth, who bought, donated, and endowed a house for it in Gramercy Park. He kept a suite of rooms there for the rest of his life, and like his successors, Joseph Jefferson and John Drew, died in office. The club has a large collection of theatrical relics, including jewellery and weapons owned by famous actors, paintings of American and foreign players, death-masks, and the fine Hampden—Booth Theatre Library, opened to theatre research workers in 1957 as a memorial to Walter Hampden, the club's fourth president, who served 27 years before his retirement in 1955. He was succeeded by Howard Lindsay, who retired in 1965, being followed by Dennis King and others. Women were formerly admitted to the premises only for an afternoon reception on Shakespeare's birthday, but from 1946 were invited to four annual Open House nights, and from 1989 were admitted to the club, Helen Hayes becoming the first woman member.