James Henry Hackett (1800, New York City – December 28, 1871, Jamaica, Long Island, New York), was a renowned actor.
Hackett entered Columbia College in 1815 but withdrew. He then studied law privately. In 1818 he became a wholesale clerk in a grocery firm in New York. In 1819 he married Catherine Leebuff, a young actress. After an unsuccessful entry into business, he went on the stage in March 1826 playing the role of Justice Woodcock in Love of...
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James Henry Hackett (1800, New York City – December 28, 1871, Jamaica, Long Island, New York), was a renowned actor.
Hackett entered Columbia College in 1815 but withdrew. He then studied law privately. In 1818 he became a wholesale clerk in a grocery firm in New York. In 1819 he married Catherine Leebuff, a young actress. After an unsuccessful entry into business, he went on the stage in March 1826 playing the role of Justice Woodcock in Love of a Village. He played opposite his wife in the play. He soon established a reputation as a player of eccentric character parts. The next year, he played at the Covent Garden in London with success. He traveled back and forth between the United States and Britain, achieving a reputation in the works of Shakespeare, particularly Falstaff.
As a manager and impresario, he is remembered, among other things, for having engaged the troupe of Italian opera singers who formed the nucleus of the first season (1854-55) of the Academy of Music in New York...
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