William Hunter Kendal
William Hunter Kendal (16 December 1843 – 7 November 1917) was an English actor and
Biography
Kendal was born William Hunter Grimston in London, the middle son of portrait artist Edward Hunter Grimston, and his wife, Louisa née Rider.
Career
Kendal continued at the Soho for two years and then played provincial theatres, including in
His roles included Colonel Blake in
Kendal and his wife starred at and managed the
Later years
From that time, the Kendals chiefly toured. They made their American debut in A Scrap of Paper in 1889, and the success of their first tour in North America was repeated in several successive American seasons, where they spent most of the next five years. They continued to appear in popular plays without interruption until 1908, when they both retired. They had five children, but they became estranged from them.[2]
Kendal was a skilful businessman, manager and art collector, investing his share of the theatre's profits, after making sure to purchase some jewellery for his wife and a painting for himself. He assembled a fine collection of contemporary paintings, which the couple displayed in their homes. He was a long-time member of the Garrick Club, and his wife donated a portrait of him by Hugh Walpole to the club. He joined the Junior Carlton, Beefsteak, Arts, Cosmopolitan, and AA clubs.[2] He enjoyed fishing, shooting, cycling and riding.[3]
Kendal died in 1917, aged 74, in London.
Notes
- ^ 1851 Census, England and Wales
- ^ a b c d e f g Foulkes, Richard. "Kendal, Dame Madge (1848–1935)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, September 2004, accessed 27 December 2009
- ^ a b Addison, Henry Robert et al., eds. Kendal, William Hunter Who's Who, (1907) vol. 59, p. 971 A. & C. Black, accessed 26 September 2014
- ^ Stedman, passim
References
- Archer, William. "Mr. and Mrs. Kendal", in Matthews and Hutton, Actors and Actresses of Great Britain and the United States (New York, 1886)
- Kendal, Madge. Dame Madge Kendal, by herself, ed. R. de Cordova (1933)
- Kendal, Madge. Dramatic opinions (1890)
- Parker, J. ed., Who's who in the theatre, 5th ed. (1925)
- Pemberton, T. E. The Kendals: A Biography (New York, 1900)
- Scott, Clement. The Drama of Yesterday and To-Day (London, 1899)
- Stedman, Jane W. (1996). W. S. Gilbert, A Classic Victorian & His Theatre. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-816174-3.