William A. Brady

William Aloysius Brady (June 19, 1863 – January 6, 1950) was an American theater actor, producer, and sports promoter.

Biography Brady was born in 1863 to an Irish-born newspaperman, Terence Brady, who kidnapped him from San Francisco and brought him to New York City, where his father worked as a writer while William was forced to sell newspapers on street corners. Upon his father's death when William was 15, he hitchhiked his way back to San Francisco. He made his start onstage in San Francisco with a company headed by Joseph R. Grismer and Phoebe Davies shortly after his return.

After a failed attempt to produce a version of She by H. Rider Haggard, he was able to secure the rights to After Dark, successfully bringing the play to New York. Although sued for his efforts, as Augustin Daly claimed plagiarism, Brady was still able to make enough money to continue with his theater ventures. In a 1930 interview, a grateful Henson credited Brady for "taking care of" objections by Commander Peary; he said that Brady accepted no promoter's fee for the tour beyond "twenty-five dollars for cigar money." Brady's success continued until the Stock Market Crash of 1929, which wiped out his entire savings. He was able to secure the funds to produce Street Scene, which was written by Elmer Rice, won the Pulitzer Prize, and netted Brady roughly a half a million dollars. His total theatrical output included over 260 plays, including a version of Uncle Tom's Cabin that was later used as images for a book in 1904, and a number of movies before his death.

Slaves All by Edward Percy

Personal life His first wife was Rose Marie René (died 1896). Their daughter was actress Mary Rose Brady, who used stage name of Alice Brady, and later became an Academy Award winner for In Old Chicago (1937). She predeceased her father and step-mother. Brady's second wife was Broadway actress Grace George. They were married from 1899 until his death in 1950. They had a son, William A. Brady, Jr. (1900–1935) who married actress Katherine Alexander. William Brady Jr. also predeceased his parents.

Death

William A. Brady died at age 86 of a heart ailment. He was predeceased by his children and grandson, Donald Crane (March 10, 1922–January 17, 1942). He was survived by his second wife, Grace George; his son-in-law (Alice Brady's husband), actor James Crane; his daughter-in-law, actress Katharine Alexander (wife of William A. Brady, Jr.); and his grand-daughter, Barbara Alexander Brady (1931-1978).

William A. Brady is interred at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York.

Legacy Brady was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1998.

Selected filmography The Rack (1915) Alias Jimmy Valentine (1915) What Happened to Jones (1915) The Ballet Girl (1916) Paying the Price (1916) A Woman's Way (1916) Bought and Paid For (1916) The Scarlet Oath (1916) The Men She Married (1916) The Beloved Adventuress (1917) The Crimson Dove (1917) A Woman Alone (1917) The Red Woman (1917) A Square Deal (1917) The Marriage Market (1917) The Social Leper (1917) Souls Adrift (1917) Darkest Russia (1917) The Woman Beneath (1917) Moral Courage (1917) The Tenth Case (1917) The False Friend (1917) The Little Duchess (1917) Maternity (1917) The Burglar (1917) The Divorce Game (1917) The Strong Way (1917) The Family Honor (1917) Easy Money (1917) The Stolen Paradise (1917) The Iron Ring (1917) The Volunteer (1917) Adventures of Carol (1917) The Bondage of Fear (1917) Youth (1917) Man's Woman (1917) The Dancer's Peril (1917) The Good for Nothing (1917) Diamonds and Pearls (1917) The Dormant Power (1917) Yankee Pluck (1917) The Page Mystery (1917) As Man Made Her (1917) The Brand of Satan (1917) The Awakening (1917) A Maid of Belgium (1917) Shall We Forgive Her? (1917) The Heart of a Girl (1918) The Golden Wall (1918)