In a sense, this book is an attempt to express my love for the London theatre, its actors and actresses and its inimitable atmosphere. Attending a performance in the West End, it is not difficult for one to imagine the scene at Drury Lane or Covent Garden 250 years ago.
More specifically, I wish to express my gratitude for the help and encouragement I received from numerous people in the research and writing of the book.
I thank the librarians at the following institutions, who always met my requests with enthusiasm and expertise: British Library, Brooklyn Law School, Folger Shakespeare Library, Garrick Club, Morgan Library & Museum, New York Historical Society, New York Public Library, New York Society Library, and Victoria and Albert Museum.
My deep appreciation goes to the members of two informal writing groups, many of whom are my friends, who read drafts of a large portion of the manuscript and gave me incisive criticisms and helpful suggestions. The first group, at New York’s Lotos Club, was chaired by Renée Summers and included Diana Benet, Louis Cutrona, Peter Friedman, Steve Greenwald, Rick Petersen, Paula Powell, Robert Ravitz, Carol Robinson, Gloria Shafer, Ed Schiff, and Nancy Wergeles. The second group, led by Peter Friedman, comprised Michael Blechman, Elizabeth Heilman Brooke, Andrea Marcusa, and Winnie Phillips.
I thank Mary Prager for the excellent research she did during the several months while she waited to enter law school. I wish her the best of luck in her legal career.
Ben Piggott at Routledge Press made several suggestions that greatly improved and expanded the book. I am grateful for his support and encouragement.
Finally, I want to express my gratitude and love to the two important women in my life, my wife Judy Cohn and my daughter Susan Poser. Both read the entire manuscript in draft, much of it more than once, and both gave me creative thoughts and candid criticism, positive and negative, that I needed and found most valuable.