C. M. S. McLellan

Charles Morton Stewart McLellan (1865–1916) was a London-based American playwright and composer who often wrote under the pseudonym Hugh Morton. McLellan is probably best remembered for the musical The Belle of New York and drama Leah Kleschna.

Early life McLellan was born on September 4, 1865, in Bath, Maine to William H. and Florida (née McLanathan) McLellan. His father was a successful wholesaler who later formed the shipbuilding firm, E and S. Company. Florida McLellan, the daughter of a ship's captain, was described in her 1898 obituary as having "unusual business talent and tact." At an early age, McLellan's family moved to Boston, where he attended Hopkinson School (founded by the father of artist Charles Hopkinson) and Chauncy Hall Preparatory School.

Career McLellan began as a journalist, eventually rising to become editor of the publication Town Topics. After finding success in the late 1890s, he left journalism to write full-time for the stage. Over the remainder of his life, McLellan produced a steady stream of mostly light and often popular musical comedies, frequently in collaboration with the composer Gustave Kerker and later Ivan Caryll.

McLellan's first major success, The Belle of New York, opened at the Casino Theatre on September 28, 1897, to mixed reviews and closed after a two-month run. The following year the show was brought to London, where it opened at the Shaftesbury Theatre on April 12, 1898, and went on to have an extremely successful run of 697 consecutive performances, closing on December 30, 1899. The Belle of New York later proved successful on tours of Australia, New Zealand and the British provinces and returned to Broadway for revival engagements in 1900 and 1921. The musical was made into two Hollywood films, the first in 1919 with Marion Davies, Etienne Girardot and L. Rogers Lytton, and the second in 1952 with Fred Astaire, Vera-Ellen, Marjorie Main and Keenan Wynn.

Leah Kleschna, a melodrama about the daughter of a Paris jewel thief, was first produced at the Manhattan Theatre in December 1904, and the following year at London's New Theatre. Minnie Maddern Fiske played the title role in New York, and Lena Ashwell played it in London. Leah Kleschna was portrayed by Carlotta Nillson in the 1913 silent film version of the play produced by the Famous Players Film Company.

Death McLellan died on September 21, 1916, at his long-time residence in Esher, a small town on the outskirts of Greater London. He was survived by his wife, Marie Adelaide McLellan, a native of Brooklyn, New York. The couple had three children, Gabrielle, Hugh and Elizabeth. A few years after his death his son married the French actress Yvonne Arnaud and in 1927 Marie McLellan published a revised version of The Belle of New York. His younger brother, George Brinton McLellan (1867–1932), was a successful London-based theatrical manager and producer probably best known for the popular play Is Zat So? and for his marriages to musical comedy actresses Pauline Hall and Madge Lessing.

Works Source: Who's Who in the Theatre: 1897- An American Beauty 1898- Whirl of the Town 1898- The Belle of New York 1898- The Telephone Girl 1898- In Gay New York 1899- Yankee Doodle Dandy 1901- The Girl Up There 1903- Glittering Gloria 1903- The Wire Walker 1905- Leah Kleschna 1905- On the Love Path 1906- The Jury of Fate 1907- Nelly Nell 1907- The Shirkers 1908- The Pickpockets 1910- The Strong People (lyrics) 1911- Marriage a la Carte 1911- The Pink Lady 1911- The Affair in the Barracks 1912- Oh! Oh! Delphine 1913- The Little Café 1914- The Fountain 1915- Around the Map 1921 - The Whirl of New York