Page:Dictionary of National Biography volume 35.djvu/186

Macklin Quixote in England' he made, as Squire Badger, his first appearance at that house. Fleetwood, however, engaged him for the ensuing season, and as Poins he reappeared on 24 Sept. 1734 at Drury Lane, where, with a solitary migration to the Haymarket in 1744, he remained until 1748. But his uncontrollable temper led him to frequent difficulties there. In 1735 he caused the death of Thomas Hallam, a brother-actor, in the green-room of Drury Lane, in a pitiful quarrel concerning a wig which Macklin had worn in a farce called ' Trick for Trick,' and which Hallam had taken. Calling Hallam many opprobrious names, Macklin lunged at him with his stick, which entered the left eye of his adversary and killed him. Macklin stood his trial for murder, was found guilty of manslaughter, and apparently escaped without punishment, since ne shortly afterwards recommenced acting. Three years later he had a serious quarrel with Quin, whom, according to his own account, given late in life, he ' pummelled. . . damnably.' For this he was challenged by Quin, but seems to have shown the white feather, and ultimately apologised. With his manager Fleetwood he frequented White's, where he played heavily. He became security for White to the extent of 3,000/., and managed in a fashion, which speaks more for nis cleverness than his honesty, to transfer the responsibility on to Paul Whitehead the poet, wno consequently was imprisoned for some years. Macklin made the acquaintance of his fellow-actor, Garrick, before 1740, and until 1743 they were the best of friends, being, Macklin said, scarcely two days asunder. In 1742 Macklin, Garrick, and Mrs. Woffington tried the dangerous experiment of keeping house together in Bow treet. In 1743 a strike against the manage- ment of Fleetwood, then become bankrupt, was begun by Garrick, Macklin, Mrs. Pritchard, Mrs. Clive, and other actors [see ]. The actors were practically routed. Garrick was re-engaged on advanced terms, and Macklin, who only joined in the strike at Garrick's request, but who was an object of special animosity on the part of Fleetwood, was made the scapegoat, and was dismissed. Garrick made some half-hearted offers of service, but a lifelong feud followed. Friends of Macklin hooted Garrick for a night or two, and the quarrel then degenerated into a war of pamphlets. Macklin on leaving Drury Lane began giving lessons in acting, an occupation he kept up till almost the close of his life, and with a company he had him- self trained opened the Haymarket in 1744. A feature in the Haymarket management was the first appearance of Samuel Foote [q. v.] as Othello, Macklin playing Iago. This ex- periment, to be succeeded by others of a similar nature, was interrupted within a few months by his re-engagement at Drury Lane.

Despite his recklessness and his quarrels, Macklin speedily became a mainstay of the company at Drury Lane, playing innumerable characters, principally comic. He made his reputation as a natural actor by his performance of Shylock, which remained his favourite character, and had greatly impressed the town, eliciting, it is said, Pope's often quoted but apocryphal distich, This is the Jew That Shakespeare drew.

He substituted Shakespeare's 'Merchant of Venice' for the 'Jew of Venice,' Lord Lansdowne's adaptation. Among the characters played by Macklin while at Drury Lane were Abel in the ' Committee,' Sancho in 'Love makes a Man,' Razor in the ' Provoked Wife,' Jerry Blackacre in the 'Plain Dealer,' Osric, Peachum, Jeremy, and afterwards Ben, in 'Love for Love,' Sir Hugh Evans, Lord Foppington in the 'Relapse,' Tattle, Trappanti, Beau Clinker, Old Mirabel, Sir Fopling Flutter, Sir William Belford in the 'Squire of Alsatia,' Trincalo in Dryden's 'Tempest,' Fondlewife, Sir Novelty Fashion, Malvolio, Shylock, Touchstone, Corvino in the 'Fox,'Sir Paul Plyant, Stephano in Shakespeare's ' Tempest,' Lucio in ' Measure for Measure,' and Muellen. While at the Haymarket he enacted Iajjo, Lovelace in the ' Relapse,' and the Ghost in 'Hamlet.' His original characters included, 26 Sept. 1734, Manly (Petruchio) in 'Cure for a Scold,' a ballad farce, founded by Worsdale on 'Taming the Shrew;' Snip in the ' Merry Cobler ' (sic), a continua- tion of Coffey's 'The Devil to Pay;' Captain Bragg (Thraso) in the ' Eunuch, or the Darby Captain,' a translation by Thomas Cooke [q. v.] from Terence ; the Drunken Man in Garrick's ' Lethe ; ' Zorobabel in ' Miss Lucy in Town,' Fielding's continuation of his 'Old Man taught Wisdom ; ' and Faddle in the ' Foundling' of Edward Moore.

Macklin's first dramatic production, 'King Henry VII, or the Popish Impostor,' 1746, 8vo, was played at DruryLane 18 Jan. 1746, the author appearing- as Huntley. This is a poor play on the subject of Perkin Warbeck, and was produced, according to the manuscript notes of Oldys to Langbaine, on the occasion of the Scottish rebellion. Macklin, after his wont, claimed to have written it in six weeks, in the intervals between acting, and said it was only revised in the course of rehearsals. He lost, deservedly, 20l. by its production.