Walter Hampden

Walter Hampden , 1879-1955, American actor, b. Brooklyn, N.Y., whose original name was Walter Hampden Dougherty. He made his first appearance in London in 1901. Returning to the United States in 1907, he supported Nazimova in an Ibsen series and later appeared in Kennedy's Servant in the House and in Shakespearean drama. In 1923 he was first seen as Cyrano de Bergerac, a role that he often repeated. After assuming management of the Colonial Theatre, he renamed it Hampden's and appeared there (1925-30) with his own company. A revered figure of the American theater, Hampden was president of the Players' Club for 27 years.

Hampden, Walter [ Walter Hampden Dougherty] (1879–1955), American actor, born in New York, who first appeared on the stage in England, where he was a member of Frank Benson's company and later played leading parts in London. In 1907 he returned to the United States, appearing with Nazimova in a series of plays by Ibsen and other modern dramatists. Among his most successful parts was the title-role in Rostand's Cyrano de Bergerac, in which he first appeared in 1923, reviving it several times. He was also seen in a wide range of Shakespearian parts, which included Caliban, Hamlet, Macbeth, Oberon, Othello, Romeo, and Shylock. In 1925 he took over the Colonial Theatre at 1887 Broadway, which he renamed Hampden's, and appeared there in an interesting repertory which included Henry V, Benavente's The Bonds of Interest, and Bulwer-Lytton's Richelieu. He remained in his own theatre until 1930, and then toured, mainly in revivals of his previous successes. In 1939 he played the Stage Manager in Thornton Wilder's Our Town, and in 1947 was seen in Henry VIII, the first production of the American Repertory Theatre, playing Cardinal Wolsey to the Queen Katharine of Eva Le Gallienne. His last Broadway appearance was in Arthur Miller's The Crucible in 1953.

Hampden [Dougherty], Walter (1879–1955), actor. Although born in Brooklyn and educated at the Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute and at Harvard, he served his theatrical apprenticeship with F. R. Benson's company in England, learning a wide range of Shakespearean parts. His American debut came in 1907 when he played opposite Alla Nazimova as Comte Silvio in The Comtesse Coquette, Halvard Solness in The Master Builder, and Dr. Rank in A Doll's House. Success then followed in more commercial ventures, notably as Manson, the reincarnation of Jesus, in The Servant in the House (1908); as gubernatorial hopeful George Rand Jr. in The City (1909); and as miner John Rawson in Good Gracious Annabelle (1916). In the 1920s Hampden starred in a number of Shakespearean revivals, offering his Marc Antony, Hamlet, Romeo, Macbeth, Shylock, and Othello, but had even greater success with two 19th‐century classics, Cyrano de Bergerac and Richelieu, two roles he continued to revive for many years. He was an important member of the American Repertory Theatre in the mid‐1940s, playing Cardinal Wolsey in Henry VIII and Charles Venable in What Every Woman Knows. His last Broadway appearance was as the bigoted Deputy‐Governor Danforth in The Crucible (1953). A tall, slim, handsome man, he was an advocate of the older, romantic school of acting and fortunate that in his prime years an audience still existed for his style of play and performance.