James Rice Cassidy was born in Selkirk on the 27th May 1863. He was the
eldest son of my great grandparent's James and Ellen Cassidy (nee
Rice). In his early 20s he made the decision that working, as a
plasterer alongside his dad was not for him. He left Scotland in the
late 1880's and headed for England to pursue a career in the
entertainment business. It was clear from the start that he was born to
perform. His debut as a professional actor took place in the land of
his forefathers when he appeared in the play "The Eviction" at
Belfast's Theatre Royal in 1888 when he was 24 years old. In the 1891
census he was living in Rochdale and still working as an actor.
In December of 1895 he married a twenty one year old Yorkshire lass
Lillian Clare Cheetham in St Anne's Church Leeds. On their marriage
certificate he gave his occupation as "Comedian". Lillian was also an
actor and together they formed their own theatre company. They were a
double act and she was most definitely an equal partner in the
business.
James and Lillian toured all over Britain and Ireland performing in
their own productions. Their careers seemed to be going from strength
to strength. Rice Cassidy was the son of a poor Irish plasterer making
a name for himself in show business the classic rags to riches tale!
One of their biggest successes was "The God of War" by Charles Whitlock
it was performed in theatres throughout Britain and Ireland from 1899
till 1909. The play was a satirical piece about the Cuban insurrection
and Spanish American war of 1895. His character was Dandy Donovan an
Irish American servant to Dolly Daly an American heiress, played of
course by Lillian. In the play he sings his own composition called "The
British Hero".
The Glasgow Evening Times 7th of April 1901 referred to it as a
"Sensational Cuban American Drama".
In 1909 The God of War played to a packed house at the Metropole
Theatre in Stockwell Street. The Glasgow Evening Times on this occasion
refers to him as the "Famous Rollicking Racy Irish Comedian".
Rice Cassidy excelled in comic roles often-Irish characters but he had
a talent for accents and was equally at home playing English, Welsh and
Americans alternating between comedy and high drama when required.
Cassidy's wife Lillian was a prolific playwright with a long list of
original and successful dramas often with a comedy element. Her plays
included, "The Beggar Princess", "The Last of the Rubinoffs" and "In
Holy Russia". One of her plays called His Mother's Cross was not only
performed in Britain but also in the Hudson Theatre on Broadway New
York. In this piece Rice Cassidy plays a Parish Priest Father Meary and
Lillian is the daughter of Dermot Sullivan played by Mr J. K Walton and
described as an "agitator"
James and Lillian arrived in New York on the 17th August 1913. They
gave their destination on the S.S St Paul's passenger manifest as The
Players Club, 16 Gramercy Park, New York. Founded by the famous
American Shakespearian actor Edwin Booth the Player's was an exclusive
club where actors could relax and mingle with the great and the good!
In London Rice Cassidy had made a success of playing the part of
Timothy Boyle from the George A Birmingham play General John Regan.
Initially it was only intended that he replace the actor Mr Leonard
Boyne who had been taken ill but this became a full time role for
James. He went on to play the character at the Hudson and Liberty
Theatres, Broadway, New York. This was a comedy play written by George
A Birmingham. Dr. O'Grady, general practitioner of a small Irish
village had convinced a visiting American newspaper publisher that a
resident of the village was General John Regan, liberator of Bolivia.
This harmless prank mushrooms into a major headache when the American
spreads this so called fact to the rest of the world.
Whilst playing Timothy Doyle in New York he played the character of old
Hardcastle in the play She Stoops to Conquer for none other than Mr
Charles Frohman of Peter Pan fame. In New York he also made his film
debut appearing for the Thomas Edison Company in five films the
greatest of which was "The First Christmas"
On his return from the USA he played Conn in the Shaughraun. The play
is about a Fenian fugitive, Robert Ffolliott, fiancee of Arte O'Neil. A
country squire, Kinchela, his rival for Arte's hand, tries to hunt
Robert down and arrest him, with the help of a police informer, Harvey
Duff. Robert escapes various melodramatic cliff-hanger situations with
the help of Conn the Shaughran, an Irish word which in English means
wanderer or errant person. The character of Conn a roguish but comedic
poacher with a great was tailor made for Rice Cassidy.
From 1921 till 1925 Rice Cassidy toured all round Britain and Ireland
with Peter Pan playing Smee in his own indomitable style. However just
after midnight on the 25th of March 1925 while travelling on the train
from Leeds to Dublin with the Peter Pan Company he fell from the train.
The emergency chain was pulled and the train ground to a halt. James
was found unconscious on the track. He was rushed to Chester Royal
Infirmary suffering from fractured ribs. When he regained consciousness
he could not remember anything at all about the accident.
Towards the end of his life he suffered from a chronic kidney
condition. This took its toll and he had to give up his beloved
theatrical career. Eventually he suffered cardiac failure and passed
away on the 11th May 1927 in St Pancreas hospital. His long and
distinguished career merited his obituaries in both the "Stage" and
"Variety" newspapers as well as a mention in both the "Who's who" of
both the British and American theatres.
After thirty two years of marriage Lillian found herself very much
alone. They had never been separated in all that time so her
devastation at her husband's passing must have been total. She tried to
carry on with her acting and playwrighting career but eventually
returned to her native Huddersfield where she lived with her brother
James for a while.
In April of 1930 she was admitted to Deanhouse institution, which was
basically a workhouse with an infirmary attached. She was suffering
from confusional insanity and obviously her brother could no longer
cope with her condition. The illness was chronic and it appears she was
suffering from manic depression as she would have periods of elation
and then suddenly become very morose and depressed. She also suffered
from hallucinations in which a lover would appear to her disguised as a
bird. She was transferred to Storthes Hall Psychiatric Hospital in June
the same year and was to spend the last fourteen years of her life
there.
Lillian's brother James committed suicide in August 1931. He had been
found dead in the street having consumed a toxic substance, which
corroded his throat and intestines. Just six weeks before his death he
had written to the hospital requesting that his sister be allowed her
own clothes and her trinkets. They agreed to her having some of her
clothing but refused to let her have her trinkets. He had also
requested more regular visits with his sister. The Medical
Superintendent wrote back to James agreeing to more visits but added
that "frequent visiting does not assist the patient but under the
circumstances you can come once a fortnight, but not oftener, on any of
the visiting days" She was visited from time to time by her
sister-in-law Martha Cheetham (James's widow) and her niece Florence
Sheard. She was also supported financially by James Calvert Wilson her
step brother.
Lillian never regained her sanity. However she was often described by
medical and nursing staff as having delusions of grandeur believing
herself to be a famous actress and playwright. Although her imagined
status became more and more fanciful as her illness progressed,
nevertheless she was, in her time, a very successful, well respected
writer and entertainer loved by her peers and the public alike.
As well as her mental illness she was also plagued with physical ill
health. After a serious of accidents resulting in various fractures she
was diagnosed with osteoporosis, which is often referred to as a
softening of the bones.
This dreadful illness left her with little or no mobility and she was
confined to bed. Towards the end of her life she must have suffered
great torment both physical and mental.
Lillian died on the 2nd of December 1944 in Storthes Hall, Psychiatric
Hospital, Huddersfield. All that was left in possession that gave some
clue to her previous existence were her fur cape, a gold ring and her
costume coat. She also had some sketches and paintings. Such a sad and
tragic end to the life of a very colourful and gifted lady.
He was often referred to as an Irish comedian despite the fact he was
born in Selkirk and spent a good part of his early life in Glasgow.
