Hare, John (Sir)

1844

1921

Originally named John Fairs, he was born on 16 May 1844, in London, according to his entry in “Who Was Who”, or in Giggleswick, Yorkshire, according the “Encyclopaedia Britannica”. He was educated at the Giggleswick Grammar School. In September 1864 he made his first appearance on the stage in Liverpool, assuming the name of John Hare, after a family name of his wife Mary Adela Elizabeth, whom he had married that year; she was the daughter of John Hare Holmes. His London debut came on 25 September 1865 in “Naval Engagement” at the Prince of Wales’s Theatre, which was being managed by the Bancrofts. There he appeared for a number of years, featured in plays by Robertson. In 1875 he became actor-manager of the Court Theatre; there on 8 January 1876 he originated the role of Lord Kildare in “A Quiet Rubber” (G0283). From 1879 to 1888 he was a leading actor at the St James’s. Hare managed the new Garrick Theatre from 1889 to 1894, producing plays by Pinero and especially Sydney Grundy’s “A Pair of Spectacles”, in which he acted Benjamin Goldfinch, one of his most popular roles. In 1895 he made his first appearance in New York on 23 December in “The Notorious Mrs Ebbsmith”. Because he was one of the finest character actors of his time, Hare was knighted in 1907. He retired from the stage in 1911 and died in London on 28 December 1921. Hare had become a member of the Garrick Club on 16 May 1868.