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A Message from Mars (play)

A Message from Mars is a play by Richard Ganthony, first performed at London's Avenue Theatre in November 1899.

Scene from a 1906 production

Summary

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The play presents an unusual evening in the life of Horace Parker, a selfish man. Horace refuses to escort Minnie, his ward and fiancee, to a ball because he would prefer to spend his evening at home reading about new discoveries about the planet Mars. Minnie goes to the ball with another escort, leaving Horace home alone. Horace falls asleep and dreams that he is visited by a man, a messenger from Mars. The Messenger sets out to cure Horace of his selfishness. After a series of visions, the Messenger reduces Horace to a beggar in rags. Having realized the error of his ways, Horace awakens a changed man.

Authorship and controversy

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Ganthony said that the emphasis on playbuilding came from his acting experiences (in plays like The Cat and the Cherub)[1] and helped shape the elements that were used in A Message from Mars.[2] Ganthony used A Message from Mars to convey the negative consequences of selfishness via exploiting an extremely selfish man while also using astronomy as a tool in conveying these consequences.[3]

Gathony may have drafted the initial script for A Message from Mars as early as 1890 or 1891. After being assisted by Henry Miller, Ganthony was unable to get the play produced on the American stage.[4] To combat this, Ganthony sold his manuscript outright, for £400 (equivalent to £54,255 in 2023),[5] to British comedic actor Charles Hawtrey. Working with his brother George, Hawtrey rewrote the script.[6]

In 1903, Gathony publicly challenged allegations published in The Daily Express that the play's success was entirely due to the revisions Charles and George Hawtrey had made to Ganthony's original script. In court, Ganthony testified that he saw no substantial difference between the play he wrote and the version he saw on stage. Hawtrey, however, claimed that nine-tenths of the dialogue was his own, as were the characters of the policeman and the boy. Ultimately, the court found in favour of Ganthony, awarding him £200 in damages (equivalent to £27,127 in 2023).[5][6][7]

Performance history

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(L to R) Charles Hawtrey, Hetta Bartlett, Mona Harrison and Wallace Widdecombe in A Message from Mars (1905)

A Message from Mars premiered at London's Avenue Theatre in November 1899. Two years later, following a very successful run of more than 500 performances in London, the play and its star performer, Charles Hawtrey, transferred to New York's Garrick Theatre.[8] Between 1903 and 1905, Hawtrey's theater company took the play on tour throughout the United States.[9]

Adaptations

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A Message from Mars was filmed in 1903, 1913, and 1921. Charles Hawtrey, who starred in the original stage production, played the role of the Messenger in the 1913 film.

A novelization of the play was written by "Lester Lurgan" (Mabel Winifred Knowles) in 1912.[10] The following year, a second edition was published, illustrated with stills from the 1913 film.

Legacy

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Ganthony said that A Message from Mars was the best of the comedic plays that he wrote.[11]

References

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  1. ^ Briscoe, Johnson (1907). "September 11: Richard Ganthony". The Actors' Birthday Book. New York: Moffat, Yard, and Co. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
  2. ^ Munsey's Magazine, Volume 26. Palala Press. February 20, 2018. p. 936. ISBN 978-1378303481.
  3. ^ "Message from Mars". Newspaper Archives. Atlanta Georgian and News. 9 February 1907. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
  4. ^ "Theater Managers as Prophets". Google Books. Theater Magazine (volume 5 page 116). 1905. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
  5. ^ a b UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved May 7, 2024.
  6. ^ a b "The Message from Mars". Wanganui Chronicle. XXXXVII (11951): 4. 21 May 1903. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
  7. ^ New York Dramatic Mirror: 17. 2 May 1903. {{cite journal}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  8. ^ Crossley, Robert (2011). Imagining Mars. Wesleyan University Press. p. 100. ISBN 978-0819569271.
  9. ^ Hawtrey, Charles (1924). The Truth at Last. Little, Brown. pp. 279–294.
  10. ^ Lurgan, Lester (1912). A Message from Mars: A Story. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780194217286.
  11. ^ "A Message from Mars". Chronicling America. The evening times (Grand Forks, N.D). 3 July 1906. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
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