AMERICA'S PLAYERS

From the Hallam family (they could shoot their dinner from the dressing room window) to Howard Lindsay, this follows some American and visiting theater-people without drama or cohesion. Puritan anti-theater bias originally thwarted ""exhibitions,"" but by the early nineteenth century theatrical personalities began to emerge and elicit popular support: P.T. Barnum (with Tom Thumb and Jenny Lind), the Booth family, William Mac-ready and Edwin Forrest (they feuded for publicity), actors, promoters, producer-managers. Twentieth century personalities include Thomas Dickinson (the Wisconsin Idea) and Howard Lindsay only. Too restricted for research purposes, and the anecdotes are rarely entertaining.