ohn Wilkes Booth
Student Name Institution
Synopsis
John Wilkes Booth was an American actor who was one of the most auspicious of his time. He was part of the Booth theatrical family and by 1860s he had already earned himself a good reputation in the acting career.He joined the No-Nothing Party in the 1850s and during the period of the civil war he became a secret Confederate agent. He vehemently denounced Abraham Lincoln and strongly opposed the eradication of slavery in the United States. His associates together with him originally planned to kidnap President Lincoln in March of 1865and use the kidnapping to bargain for the release of fellow Confederates that had been captured during the civil war. However, when this plan failed they resorted on a plan to kill him. He achieved this while Lincoln was at Ford Theatre on the14th of April 1865 when he crept in the back and shot him on the head. Therefore, despite his prowess in his acting career, he in infamously known as the assassin who killed President Abraham Lincoln. Nevertheless, in Port Royal, Virginia on April 26 1865 he was also killed by his pursuers(Biography.com). Early Life In June, 1821 a popular Shakespearian British actor by the name Junius Brutus Booth together with Mary Ann Holmes who happened to be his mistress relocated from England to the United States. …show more content…
With the savings they had made back in England they purchased a 61 ha farm in Bel air, Harford County, Maryland. They lived in a log house and were blessed to have ten children. John Wilkes Booth was therefore born on the 10th of May, 1838 as the second youngest of the ten children. His parents named him after a radical England politician John Wilkes, who happened to be a distant relative. His siblings together with him were raised on the farm that was worked by the farm’s slaves. As a young boy, John Wilkes had become very popular as he was athletic and handsome. During this time, between 1850 and 1851, he sporadically attended school at Milton Boys Boarding School and later when he was thirteen he attended St. Timothy’s Hall. It was while at Milton Boarding School that he met a gypsy fortune teller who foretold doom into his life, saying that Booth would have a sweet but short life and he was doomed to die very young. In terms of religion John Wilkes Booth while at the age of fourteen he was baptized in St. Anthony’s Protestant Episcopal Church.Traditionally the Booth family had becomeEpiscopalian however, Wilkes at a later time converted to be a Roman Catholic. Those who knew him as a young boy predicted that he was bound to follow his father’s footsteps by venturing into the acting career and with a charismatic presence gracing the stage.Consequently at the age of 16, John Wilkes developed a keen interest in both theatre and in politics. He even became a Bel Air delegate for the Know Nothing Party and in 1854 elections, he became a Congressional anti-immigrant party candidate(Biography.com). Acting Career On 14th August, 1855 when he turned 17, John Wilkes Booth made his acting debut in Baltimore. …show more content…
He had a role in a production of Shakespeare's Richard III.The audience was unimpressed when the amateur, inexperienced John Wilkes forgot some of his lines. At Baltimore's Holliday Street Theater that was owned by John T. Ford, Booth performed frequently. He later in 1857 joined Pennsylvania’sArch Street Theatre in Philadelphia, where for a full season performed an active role. He used a pseudonym J.B Wilkes in order to eliminate comparisons between other members of his thespian family and him.He was soon invited for a tour all over the country with a Shakespearean acting company based in Richmond, Virginia because of his wonderful early performances.He participated a whole season in Virginia’s Richmond between 1859 and 1860(Notable Biographies). Wilkes commenced his first national tour after the season was over as a leading actor. Matthew Canning, a Philadelphia attorney served as his agent. His New York debut was in 1862, where he performed as the lead in Richard III. Because of his growing prowess the New York Herald used the term "veritable sensation" to describe his charismatic style of acting. Wilkes tellingly expressed his credo with the statement, "I am
Student Name Institution
Synopsis
John Wilkes Booth was an American actor who was one of the most auspicious of his time. He was part of the Booth theatrical family and by 1860s he had already earned himself a good reputation in the acting career.He joined the No-Nothing Party in the 1850s and during the period of the civil war he became a secret Confederate agent. He vehemently denounced Abraham Lincoln and strongly opposed the eradication of slavery in the United States. His associates together with him originally planned to kidnap President Lincoln in March of 1865and use the kidnapping to bargain for the release of fellow Confederates that had been captured during the civil war. However, when this plan failed they resorted on a plan to kill him. He achieved this while Lincoln was at Ford Theatre on the14th of April 1865 when he crept in the back and shot him on the head. Therefore, despite his prowess in his acting career, he in infamously known as the assassin who killed President Abraham Lincoln. Nevertheless, in Port Royal, Virginia on April 26 1865 he was also killed by his pursuers(Biography.com). Early Life In June, 1821 a popular Shakespearian British actor by the name Junius Brutus Booth together with Mary Ann Holmes who happened to be his mistress relocated from England to the United States. …show more content…
With the savings they had made back in England they purchased a 61 ha farm in Bel air, Harford County, Maryland. They lived in a log house and were blessed to have ten children. John Wilkes Booth was therefore born on the 10th of May, 1838 as the second youngest of the ten children. His parents named him after a radical England politician John Wilkes, who happened to be a distant relative. His siblings together with him were raised on the farm that was worked by the farm’s slaves. As a young boy, John Wilkes had become very popular as he was athletic and handsome. During this time, between 1850 and 1851, he sporadically attended school at Milton Boys Boarding School and later when he was thirteen he attended St. Timothy’s Hall. It was while at Milton Boarding School that he met a gypsy fortune teller who foretold doom into his life, saying that Booth would have a sweet but short life and he was doomed to die very young. In terms of religion John Wilkes Booth while at the age of fourteen he was baptized in St. Anthony’s Protestant Episcopal Church.Traditionally the Booth family had becomeEpiscopalian however, Wilkes at a later time converted to be a Roman Catholic. Those who knew him as a young boy predicted that he was bound to follow his father’s footsteps by venturing into the acting career and with a charismatic presence gracing the stage.Consequently at the age of 16, John Wilkes developed a keen interest in both theatre and in politics. He even became a Bel Air delegate for the Know Nothing Party and in 1854 elections, he became a Congressional anti-immigrant party candidate(Biography.com). Acting Career On 14th August, 1855 when he turned 17, John Wilkes Booth made his acting debut in Baltimore. …show more content…
He had a role in a production of Shakespeare's Richard III.The audience was unimpressed when the amateur, inexperienced John Wilkes forgot some of his lines. At Baltimore's Holliday Street Theater that was owned by John T. Ford, Booth performed frequently. He later in 1857 joined Pennsylvania’sArch Street Theatre in Philadelphia, where for a full season performed an active role. He used a pseudonym J.B Wilkes in order to eliminate comparisons between other members of his thespian family and him.He was soon invited for a tour all over the country with a Shakespearean acting company based in Richmond, Virginia because of his wonderful early performances.He participated a whole season in Virginia’s Richmond between 1859 and 1860(Notable Biographies). Wilkes commenced his first national tour after the season was over as a leading actor. Matthew Canning, a Philadelphia attorney served as his agent. His New York debut was in 1862, where he performed as the lead in Richard III. Because of his growing prowess the New York Herald used the term "veritable sensation" to describe his charismatic style of acting. Wilkes tellingly expressed his credo with the statement, "I am