Charles Frohman

Charles Frohman (July 15, 1856 – May 7, 1915) was a Jewish American theatrical producer, responsible for the first stagings of Peter Pan, or the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up, both in London and New York.

One of three brothers, he was born in Sandusky, Ohio. He was the youngest, his older brothers being: Daniel (1851–1940) and Gustave (1854–1930). His birth year is generally erroneously reported as 1860, and his birthday is shown as July 16 on his tombstone, but his birth certificate and the 1860 federal census records for Sandusky (which list: "Charley", age 4) confirm that the correct date is July 15, 1856.

Life and career
In 1864, Frohman's family moved to New York City, where he eventually worked for a newspaper. In New York, he developed a love of the theatre that led to him becoming a booking agent and then working his way up to producer and theatre owner/operator. He began to produce plays by 1886.

Frohman's first success as a producer was with Bronson Howard's Shenandoah (1889). Frohman founded the Empire Theatre Stock Company to acquire the Empire Theatre in 1892, and the following year produced his first Broadway play, Clyde Fitch's Masked Ball, which marked the first time that actress Maude Adams played opposite John Drew, which led to many future successes. Soon he acquired five other New York City theaters. In 1895, he produced the New York premiere of The Importance of Being Earnest, by Oscar Wilde. The same year, he produced The Shop Girl.

Frohman was known for his ability to develop talent. In 1896, he and several partners formed the Theatrical Syndicate, which established systemized booking networks throughout the United States and created a monopoly that controlled every aspect of contracts and bookings until the late 1910s when the Shubert brothers broke their stranglehold on the industry.

In 1897, Frohman leased the Duke of York's Theatre in London, introducing plays there as well as in the United States. Clyde Fitch, J. M. Barrie, and Edmond Rostand were among the playwrights he promoted. As a producer, among Frohman's most famous successes was Barrie's Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up which he premiered at the Duke of York's in December 1904, and produced the next year in the United States starring Maude Adams. In the early years of the 20th century, Frohman also established a successful partnership with Seymour Hicks to produce musicals and other comedies in London, including Quality Street in 1902, The Admirable Crichton in 1903, The Catch of the Season in 1904, The Beauty of Bath in 1906, The Gay Gordons in 1907, and A Waltz Dream in 1908, among others. He also partnered with other London theatre managers. The system of exchange of successful plays between London and New York was largely a result of his efforts. In 1910, Frohman attempted a repertory scheme of producing plays at the Duke of York's. He advertised a bill of plays by J. M. Barrie, John Galsworthy, Harley Granville Barker, and others. The venture began tentatively, and while it may have proved successful, Frohman canceled the scheme when London theatres closed at the death of King Edward VII in February 1910.

By 1915 Frohman had produced more than 700 shows, employed an average of 700 actors per season, and paid salaries totaling $25,000 a week. He controlled five theaters in London, six in New York City, and over two hundred throughout the rest of the United States. His longtime live-in companion, theatre critic Charles Dillingham (1868-1934), also became a well-known producer.

Frohman died in the 1915 sinking of the RMS Lusitania by German submarine U-20. Frohman seems to have asked several people to accompany him on the voyage to Liverpool. Actress Ethel Barrymore could not leave her young children. Songwriter Jerome Kern was meant to accompany him on the voyage, but overslept after being kept up late playing requests at a party. Actor/playwright William Gillette also would have accompanied him, but was forced to fulfill a contract obligation in Philadelphia. Likewise playwright Edward Sheldon, whom Frohman had invited, had to renege on the voyage as he was obligated to attend the wedding of a Harvard classmate. Frohman was reported by survivor, actress Rita Jolivet (the only survivor of his party), to have declined a seat on a lifeboat, saying "Why fear death? It is the greatest adventure in life," echoing the famous line from Peter Pan, "To die would be an awfully big adventure". Frohman's body was recovered and brought back to the United States for burial in the Union Field Cemetery in Ridgewood, Queens, New York.

Portrayals in films and television
Frohman was portrayed by Harry Hayden in the film Till the Clouds Roll By in 1946. He was played by William Hootkins in the BBC mini-series The Lost Boys in 1978. In 2004, Dustin Hoffman portrayed him in the film Finding Neverland.