Daly, Augustin

Daly, Augustin, 1838–99, American theatrical manager and dramatist, b. Plymouth, N.C. After 1859 he was drama critic for several New York City newspapers and adapted many plays from French and German. In 1867 he made his debut as manager with his melodrama Under the Gaslight, and in 1869 he opened his first theater. At his famous Daly's Theatre on Broadway he presented noted productions of Shakespearean comedies. He was praised for his meticulous concern with details and hated for what his critics saw as his paternalistic handling of his company.

See biography by J. F. Daly (1917); M. Felheim, The Theatre of Augustin Daly (1956).

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