SEASON OF '66 AND '67.
The season of '66 and '67 opened on September 8th with Alonzo R.
Phelps as the star attraction. Mr. Phelps opened in the character of
"Damon" and made a fairly good showing, although he appeared to much
greater advantage in some lighter roles, and particularly as "Crepin,"
the Cobbler, in "A Wonderful Woman." His engagement lasted two weeks,
when the Irwins returned after an absence of over two years. They
opened on September 29th, just in time to get well ready with a
repertory of plays for the approaching conference. Their engagement
lasted up to November 15th, when they departed for the East and Salt
Lake was never favored with a visit from them afterwards. "Sel" Irwin
"died young in years, not service," after very intense suffering for
several years from rheumatism, which virtually made a helpless cripple
of him. He died in New York in 1886, being only a little over fifty
years of age. His widow, Maria Irwin, still survives, and up to a
recent date was playing in a road company. Harry Rainforth, her son by
her first marriage, who was a mere boy of sixteen when they played
their first engagement in Salt Lake, has been for many years manager
of the Pike Grand Opera House, Cincinnati, the associate and partner
of "Bob" Miles. It was during this last Irwin engagement that Miss
Nellie Colebrook, who later on became leading lady of the company,
made her debut. Her first appearance was in the comedy of "Dominique,
the Deserter." The first line she had to speak was, "Oh, I'm half dead
with fear," which was literally true of Miss Colebrook on the
occasion. She was shaking like an aspen leaf in a strong wind, but her
nervous condition fitted the character remarkably well and the lady
sailed at once into public favor. Miss Colebrook was tall and stately,
with a very winning face and musical voice; she went rapidly to the
front, being especially well suited to many of the leading roles. Mrs.
Lydia Gibson, the leading actress of the theatre, died on January 8th,
1866, a little less than three years after her first appearance. This
left a vacancy in the company difficult to fill, and afforded Miss
Colebrook many excellent opportunities in leading roles, which she
always filled satisfactorily, so that by the time Pauncefort returned
to play his third engagement--after an absence of more than two years
Miss Colebrook was doing most of the leading female roles.
After the departure of the Irwins, the stock company finished out the
season without the assistance of a star, playing from November 15th
until after April Conference. It was during the conference that our
old friend George Pauncefort, suddenly and unexpectedly to most of us,
returned from San Francisco after an absence in that metropolis of
more than two years. He opened a return engagement on April 16th in
"Don Caesar de Bazan." The season was virtually over after the April
Conference, but notwithstanding he played to splendid business, he
gave repetitions of his previous plays and won out splendidly on a
production of "Arrah Na Pogue," in which he had played "Col. O'Grady"
during a successful run of this play in San Francisco.
"Arrah Na Pogue" drew good houses for three or four nights, and closed
the season of '66 and '67. Robert Heller got in a three nights
engagement, commencing May the 20th, while the company was getting up
in "Arrah Na Pogue." He was the first to introduce the mysterious
second sight illusions and succeeded in bewildering and mystifying the
patrons of the theatre to an unusual degree.
During the last engagement of Pauncefort most of the opposite roles to
his own were assigned to Miss Colebrook, who had in the past year,
since Mrs. Gibson's demise, divided honors with Miss Adams, and owing
to her more stately appearance had been entrusted with many of the
leading lady roles and was an established favorite. Pauncefort, who
had never met her before (her debut having occurred after his
departure for the coast), was much surprised and pleased to find a new
and attractive leading lady in the company. He took an especial
interest in her, and she was cast for all the leading roles during his
engagement, beginning with "Maritana" in "Don Caesar," and including
"Lady Macbeth" and "Ophelia." Pauncefort discovered that she had
exceptional dramatic ability and encouraged her in every possible way;
for "Miss Nellie" was not over-confident of her own abilities, and
suffered keenly from nervousness or stage fright, especially on the
first time in a part; and to receive encouragement and compliments
from a star of Pauncefort's acknowledged luster was doubtless sweet
and flattering to the lady, who as yet was all unconscious of the
impression she had made on the susceptible George. "The fair Elizabeth
has caught my eye, and like a new star, lights onward to my wishes."
Possessed of a sweet and loveable disposition and a musical voice
added to her charms of personal appearance, Miss Colebrook was a
general favorite, not only with the public, but with the company. She
had numerous admirers, and several rival aspirants for her affections,
both in the company and out. With what surprised and ill-concealed
chagrin they viewed the growing attentions of the reigning star can
better be imagined than described. The princely George had enrolled
himself in the list of her devotees and it was very much in evidence
that he was enamored of the lady, for George had a keen eye for the
beautiful, and "a free and open nature, too," most susceptible to
female charms, so he entered the race with the others for the fair
"Nellie's" hand. While he was considerably older than any of his
competitors, being now close onto fifty, he probably had the advantage
over them all in looks, being generally regarded as a handsome man,
and most decidedly he had the advantage of experience, for George had
been a gay Lothario. He seemed in a fair way to carry off the
much-coveted prize. Notwithstanding the disparity of age, the fair
"Nellie" seemed strongly attracted to the princely George. Playing
"Ophelia" to his "Hamlet" and "Lady Macbeth" to his "Macbeth," and a
long series of opposite characters to him, he had not failed to make a
powerful impression on her, and if she had been left to herself
without guidance or counsel, there is little question but what
Pauncefort would have won her; but her mother had more penetration,
and could see the objections which "Nellie" either did not see, or
care to raise, so the chief arbitrator of the Church, President Young,
was appealed to by Miss "Nellie's" mother to decide the case for them.
Brigham decided very quickly and positively against an alliance
between his fair leading lady and the "stock star," with a great big
emphatic _No_. He had formed a strong prejudice against Pauncefort
during his first engagement, owing to his reputed intimacy with Mrs.
Bell, which was rather flaunted in the face of the community on their
arrival in Salt Lake. So this ended the Pauncefort-Colebrook romance.
During this engagement, Pauncefort played in addition to his previous
repertory "The Dead Heart," "Man with the Iron Mask," "Lavater," and
"Arrah Na Pogue." The latter piece closed the season on June the 15th,
being the fourth performance of the piece. Very soon after, Pauncefort
purchased a horse and chaise, fitting himself out with gun and fishing
tackle for a long jaunt. He headed for Portland, giving readings by
the way--hunting and fishing by day--and evenings entertaining the
towns along his route. How far he got with his one horse chaise is not
exactly known, but the probability is he traded it off before he
passed the Utah border line, and took the stage for Virginia City,
Nevada, where he played for a short time and then drifted over to the
coast, and finally got lost to view.
A dozen years later he was discovered by some American actors in
Japan, keeping a roadside tea house for travelers with a set of pretty
Japanese girls for waiters. He married a Japanese girl and latest
reports credited him with a fine young Japanese colony of his own. A
picture of himself and Japanese wife and three children in the
possession of Jack Langrishe's widow at Wardner, Idaho, was shown to
the writer there recently, and was a strong verification of what had
been told by parties who had seen Pauncefort in Japan. George had let
his beard grow and was quite a patriarchal looking man when Joseph
Arthur met him there in 1880. Pauncefort died in Japan in 1893,
leaving a Japanese wife and four semi-Jap children. George Pauncefort
missed the greatest opportunity of his life by not joining the Mormon
Church; he had all the natural endowments to make a great patriarch.