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Acknowledgments T ime and chance have scattered Booth materials across the United States and western Europe. No one could hope to reassemble it without the assistance ofdozens ofother persons. I have enjoyed the aid and encouragementofgracious and expertfriends and colleagues. Any Booth project begins at the Players, where Louis Rachow and Raymond Wemmlinger freely opened that collection's riches. Materials there established the base for all that followed. I soon discovered the Preservation Association ofTudor Hall and the SurrattSocietyand enjoy membership in both. Manyofthe members shared information and insights in the best traditions ofscholarship . Especially helpful have been John Brennan) James 0. Hall, Mike Kaufmann, James Wollon, Bob Allen, Jearuline Clarke Dodds, Arthur Loux, Richard Sloan, Father Robert L. Keesler, Gayle Harris) Frank Hcbblethwaite, and above all, Howard and Dorothy Fox, who allowed an inquisitive stranger to examine their property and Tudor Hall one Sunday afternoon. I treasure these new friendships. My professional colleagues, many ofthem Booth scholars in their own right, lentinvaluable advice, information, and perspective to this endeavor. Charles Shattuck's encouragement helped sustain the effort , as did the ongoing support ofmy good friend Don Wilmeth. My deepest thanks also to Terry Alford, David Anderson, Kathleen Barker, William Fratcher, John Heidger, Tom Hellie, Don Grose, Mary Lago, J. Stanley Longman, L. Terry Oggel, George Speaight, Laurie Stepanian, Nan Stephenson, and Dan Watermeier. Weldon Durham, Jim Miller, and Carla Waal, friends and colleagues , supported this project, and Jelila Kahlil, Patricia White, and Xl xu Acknowledgments Susan Burns handled a steady flow ofcorrespondence both domestic and foreign. Two professors in the Netherlands, Willem Schriclex and Ben Albach, offered their insights and publications, saving me months of research. Wout Spies ofthe International Theatre Institute in Amsterdam also deserves special mention for his generosityto a stranger in a strange land. Among the many others who have contributed in various ways I should mentionJudithAgrelius, GeoffreyAshton, JaneAverill, Booth Colman, Franklyn Lenthall, Austin Pendleton, Roberta Rankin, David Reuwel; Bernice Richard, Sama Swaminathan, Louise Thper, Pat Wagner, John M. Whittock, Jr., and Jill Wiegman. I have listed the archives and collections I visited in the Works Cited, but I would laud the curators, librarians, and staffs for their professionalism and assistance. Jeaneice Brewer, Martha Shirkey, and Josephine Johnson processed my hundreds of interlibrary loan requests at Ellis Librarywith grace and efficiency. Margaret Howell and her staffsupplied microforms from their admirable collection. In the early stages ofthis study I wrote inquiries to the libraries in each provincial English city in which Booth appeared. Everyone of them replied with relevant material, and several volunteered other sources of information. Their civility and professionalism represent the standard for the world. I most gratefully received financial assistance as a Weldon Spring grant from the University ofMissouri and a summer fellowship from the Folger Shakespeare Library; both facilitated essential archival investigation. A research leave from the University of Missouri enabled me to complete research and a first draft ofthe manuscript. Working with editors Kenney Withers, Susan H. Wilson, Natalia Nadraga, and Kathryn Koldehoff partially revealed why Southern Illinois University Press enjoys such a glistening reputation; their skills eliminated many errors in the manuscript and strengthened many weaknesses; those remaining are mine alone. That my wife, Kelly, would allow an uproarious Shakespearean actor to become so integral a part ofour life together impresses even those who know her. She remains as ever the Mary Ann of our household. ...

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