Joseph Jefferson

Joseph Jefferson 1829-1905, American actor. He was the foremost of an old and distinguished family of English and American actors. Jefferson spent the first 20 years of his life as a strolling player. His fame came with his creation of the role of Rip Van Winkle in a dramatization of Washington Irving's story, first in 1859 and later in 1865 as revised by Dion Boucicault. He performed the second version almost exclusively until 1880. He infused the character with human tenderness and dignity and heightened the "fairy-tale" elements of the play. Almost as famous was his interpretation of Bob Acres in The Rivals, a part he played hundreds of times. He was one of the first star actors in America to establish his own road company, the earlier practice being to depend for support on local stock companies. Jefferson was a painter of merit and was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. In 1893 he succeeded Edwin Booth as president of the Players' Club, thus becoming the recognized dean of his profession. He retired in 1904.

Bibliography: See his autobiography, ed. by A. S. Downer (1964); biography by G. Malvern (1945); W. Winter, The Jeffersons (1881, repr. 1969).

Jefferson, Joseph (1829–1905), Philadelphia‐born actor, was prominent on the American stage for 71 years. Noted for his comic roles, he is primarily identified with the play Rip Van Winkle, adapted with Boucicault in 1865, in which he continued to act for the remainder of his career. He wrote an Autobiography (1890).