John Drew is an excellent example of a man finding his vocation and
filling it. While it is true that he inherited his histrionic talent,
his father, John Drew, Sr., having been a noted Irish comedian and
his mother, Louise Lane Drew, also having been a great favorite on
the stage—yet he has achieved success because of his personal efforts
looking to its development. The prime requisite for advancement in
any field is, first, find your talent, then bend every energy toward
its development. The subject of this sketch was born in Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, November 13, 1853, and early showed a preference for
the boards. He was educated at the Episcopal academy and by private
tutors, making his first appearance behind the footlights at the Arch
street theater, Philadelphia, as Plumper, in As Cool as a Cucumber.
Although only nineteen, his efforts met with almost immediate success,
and at twenty-one he joined Mr. Daly’s famous company soon quickly
becoming the most popular member of the organization. Since 1892 he
has been starring in his own company. Although Mr. Drew excels in
society plays, he has also made a brilliant record in classical drama,
and especially in Shakespearian rôles. Petruchio, in Taming of the
Shrew, is his favorite character, and it is the most difficult and
exacting of any he assumes. He has brought out in yearly succession The
Butterflies, The Bauble Shop, Christopher, Jr., Rosemary, A Marriage
of Convenience, One Summer Day, and The Liars. Commenting upon Mr.
Drew, William Winter, the well-known critic, wrote “that he possesses
drollery, the talent of apparent spontaneity, and the faculty of crisp
emotion. He has surpassed all young actors of his day as a gay cavalier
and the bantering farceur of the drawing-room drama of modern social
life. He is thoroughly in earnest, and his attitude toward his art is
that of intellectual purpose and authority.”