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Thomas (Brandon) - Leverson Collection
MS.2014.012
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Table of contents
Contributing Institution:
William Andrews Clark Memorial Library
Title: Brandon Thomas-Leverson Archive
Identifier/Call Number: MS.2014.012
Physical Description:
6.3 Linear Feet
(8 boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1850-1983
Abstract: The Brandon Thomas-Leverson Archive is a collection of scrapbooks, photographs, letters, and journals pertaining to the Brandon-Leverson
household that was largely compiled by Silvia Brandon Thomas, the daughter of actor and playwright Brandon Thomas. The materials
in this collection capture intimate moments within the Brandon-Leverson's family life as well as the family's associations
with other fin de siècle artists and writers such as Henry Irving, Oscar Wilde, and W.S. Penley.
Physical Location: William Andrews Clark Memorial Library
Language of Material:
English
.
This collection is open for research.
Purchased from daiad fine books in 2014.
This collection has been divided into three series:
1. Family Narratives and Recordkeeping
2. Letters and Correspondence
3. Photographs and Other Visual Materials
Brandon Thomas (1848-1914) was a playwright, songwriter, and performer whose farce
Charley's Aunt helped him achieve international renown. Born on December 24, 1848 as the first child of Walter Thomas and Hannah Thomas
(née Morris), Brandon experienced a childhood of inconsistent financial resources and inconsistent schooling. His father,
while a skilled bootmaker, was prone to making rash business endeavors that often left the family financially struggling.
By the age of 12, Brandon was removed from school entirely to work as an apprentice at the Liverpool dockyards to provide
for his family. His mother ran a small lodging business out of the family's home, with one of the tenants being than unknown
stage performer Henry Irving. Irving's relationship with the Thomas family would profoundly inspired Brandon to pursue a similar
path.
While working clerical jobs for the next decade of his life, Thomas continued to develop his skills as a performer and writer.
He caught the attention of William Grimston and Madge Kendal (together known as "the Kendals"), and was recruited into their
company at the Court Theatre in 1879. Thomas went on to tour with Kendal Company in America, receiving popular acclaim for
his performance in and writing of the burlesque play "A Pantomime Rehearsal". His magnum opus Charley's Aunt made its premier
at the Theater Royal at Bury St. Edmunds in February, 1892. The first run of the play featured popular London comedian W.S.
Penley in the role of "Charley's Aunt", becoming an instant hit that met a run of 1,469 performances over the course of 3
years.
Thomas' marriage to Marguerite Leverson was initially met with great disapproval from Marguerite's father James Leverson,
but the two eventually married on December 22, 1888. In time, the couple would have four children: Amy Marguerite (born 1890),
Jimmy (James) Grant (1894), Jevan Roderick (1898), and Silvia Blanche (1905). Tragically, Jimmy died from injuries sustained
as a lieutenant in the early months of WWI. Both Amy and Jevan continued to be actively involved in the family's performing
business, and while Silvia was a dancer, actress, and a theatrical manager for an earlier part of her life, she later went
on to pursue a career as a journalist at the BBC.
[Identification of item], Brandon Thomas-Leverson Archive, MS.2014.012, William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, University
of California, Los Angeles.
Printed copies of Brandon Thomas' farce
Charley's Aunt were removed from the archive and are catalogued separately. Please consult the Clark Library's holdings on the UCLA online
library catalog for more information about how to access these items.
The copies of
Charley's Aunt that were originally part of the archive include editions that had been translated into Czech and Italian. The collection
also came with a 1st edition copy of
Where's Charley?.
This collection was processed and this finding aid written in 2018 by Joyce Wang.
This collection features an assortment of handwritten correspondence, photographs, journals, and scrapbooks detailing the
public and private happenings of the Thomas-Leverson family, dating mostly between the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Much of the written narrative regarding the family's history was produced by the youngest daughter, Silvia Brandon Thomas.
The collection contains numerous autograph letters, a great bulk of which are addressed either to Brandon Thomas or to his
daughter Amy from senders of eminent background within the late 19th century London performing scene such as Cyril Maude,
Seymour Hicks, and Henry Irving.
Photographs comprise the majority of the visual materials within this collection, and as such, the archive offers a view into
the types of photographic production and processing methods employed in the mid-19th to mid-20th centuries.
The Clark Library owns the property rights to its collections but does not hold the copyright to these materials and therefore
cannot grant or deny permission to use them. Researchers are responsible for determining the copyright status of any materials
they may wish to use, investigating the owner of the copyright, and obtaining permission for their intended publication or
other use. In all cases, you must cite the Clark Library as the source with the following credit line: The William Andrews
Clark Memorial Library, University of California, Los Angeles.