Howard Merrill Shelley (1879-1956) was a playwright and theatrical press agent.
Howard Merrill Shelley (1879-1956) was a playwright and theatrical press agent.
Shelley was born in Philadelphia and attended Villanova College, now referred to as Villanova University. Villanova bestowed Shelley with an honorary Master of Arts Degree in 1956. [1]
Shelley's family lineage contained a number of notable figures. Howard's mother, Sophia Rittenhouse Shelley, is directly descended from the scientist and astronomer, David Rittenhouse. Howard's grandmother, Amanda McClellan is related by marriage to Benjamin Franklin and is directly related to the Civil War general, George Brinton McClellan. George Brinton McClellan the son of Dr. George McClellan and the grandson of James McClellan who was the son of General Samuel McClellan of the Revolutionary War. Samuel married Rachel Abbe, a direct descendant of Governor William Bradford of Plymouth, Massachusetts. Howard also had a second cousin named Kate Shelley who as a young girl risked her own life to save hundreds of lives by averting a potential train accident and became a household name in her own time.[ citation needed ] Also related to Shelley on his grandmother's side were John Test, who served as a sheriff under William Penn, [2] and William Roberts, one of the original settlers of Merion, Pennsylvania. [3]
Shelley drew from his family history and wrote a play based on it in 1914 called The Family Tree. Shelley took inspiration from the genealogical craze that was sweeping Philadelphia and other major cities in order to write the satirical work. [4] Prior to The Family Tree Shelley co-wrote a popular musical called The Beauty Doctor in 1904. An article in the Geneva Daily Times described this production as a piece “based on the beauty culture craze, which is handled in a broadly humorous way and is said to afford ample opportunity for hearty fun”. [5]
After writing satires for the stage, Howard went on to become a theatrical press agent. He wrote about society under the name Barclay Beekman for the New York Daily Mirror. Shelley was also employed by stars of the stage, including Lillian Russell, an actress and singer, and Luisa Tetrazzini, an Italian opera soprano, as well as Mary Garden, an opera star, and the Hammerstein family.[ citation needed ]
Howard Shelley died on December 11, 1956, after an illness of two years. He was seventy-seven.[ citation needed ]
Bryn Mawr is a census-designated place (CDP) located in Pennsylvania, United States. It is located just west of Philadelphia along Lancaster Avenue, also known as U.S. Route 30. As of 2020, the CDP is defined to include sections of Lower Merion Township, Montgomery County, as well as portions of Haverford Township and Radnor Township in Delaware County.
George Brinton McClellan was an American military officer and politician who served as the 24th governor of New Jersey and as Commanding General of the United States Army from November 1861 to March 1862. He was also an engineer, and was chief engineer and vice president of the Illinois Central Railroad, and later president of the Ohio and Mississippi Railroad in 1860.
Lower Merion Township is a township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Philadelphia Main Line. The township's name originates with the county of Merioneth in north Wales. Merioneth is an English-language transcription of the Welsh Meirionnydd.
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David Rittenhouse was an American astronomer, inventor, clockmaker, mathematician, surveyor, scientific instrument craftsman, and public official. Rittenhouse was a member of the American Philosophical Society and the first director of the United States Mint.
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George Brinton McClellan Jr., was an American politician and historian. He was elected as the 93rd Mayor of New York City, serving from 1904 to 1909. He was the son of Civil War general George B. McClellan, who was an 1864 Democratic presidential candidate.
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Thomas Wynne was personal physician of William Penn and one of the original settlers of Philadelphia in the Province of Pennsylvania. Born in Ysceifiog, Wales, where his family dated back seventeen generations to Owain Gwynedd, he accompanied Penn on his original journey to America on the ship Welcome.
Percy Marmont was an English film actor.
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George Brooke Roberts was a civil engineer and the fifth president of the Pennsylvania Railroad (1880–96).
George McClellan was a 19th-century American surgeon. He is best known for founding the Jefferson Medical College and the Medical Department of Pennsylvania College, and his pioneering work in surgery, including writing a widely used textbook.
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George Fort Gibbs was an American author, illustrator, artist, and screenwriter. As an author, he wrote more than 50 popular books, primarily adventure stories revolving around espionage in "exotic" locations. Several of his books were made into films. His illustrations appeared prominently in such magazines as The Saturday Evening Post, Ladies' Home Journal, Redbook and The Delineator. He also illustrated some of his own novels, and the novels of others. As a painter he produced many portraits, and painted murals for Pennsylvania Station and Girard College in Philadelphia. His screenwriting credits include a film about the life of Voltaire.
George McClellan, M.D. was an American medical doctor and anatomist known for his anatomical drawings. He is the grandson of George McClellan, also a doctor.
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Anna Shipley Cox Brinton was an American classics scholar, college administrator, writer, and Quaker leader, active with the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC).