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John Courtney (1804 – 1865) was a Victorian playwright, dramatic actor and comedian. Courtney was the stage name of John Fuller.〔〔''The Letters of Charlotte Brontë: 1848-1851'' (1995) Margaret Smith, Oxford University Press, p95 ISBN 9780198185987〕 He wrote over 60 plays,〔 including the popular dramas ''Time Tries All'' first performed in 1848, which attained great success around the UK and also in the USA from the 1850s to at least the 1880s, and ''Eustice Baudin'' (1854), which attained even greater success in the USA through to at least the 1890s. He wrote the first theatrical adaptation of Charlotte Brontë's novel ''Jane Eyre'' (1848) which was rediscovered in 2009.〔 (''The Oxford Companion to the Brontës'' ) (2011) Christine Alexander and Margaret Smith, Oxford University Press, "Theatre adaptations and biographies". Online edition.〕 One of his early acting performances was in 1829 as Colonel Freelove in ''The Day after the Wedding'' or ''A Wife's First Lesson'' adapted by Maria Theresa Kemble from the original French comedy. == Life and work == John Courtney was born at St James’s, Westminster on 29 August 1804 as John Fuller but when he became an actor he wished to be known as John Courtney and this was the name he used throughout his life. His death certificate records him as “John Fuller otherwise Courtney” and his descendants have all been Courtneys.〔Census Returns, Register of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Family records 〕 He worked as an actor on the London stage between 1829 and 1862. In 1848 Courtney wrote a stage adaptation of ''Jane Eyre'' titled ''Jane Eyre or The Secrets of Thornfield Manor'', which was shown at the Victoria Theatre. In 1850 he was employed as a “stock author” for £2 per week by Mr Shepherd of the Surrey Theatre. In 1852 he received expenses for a visit to Paris for the sole purpose of spotting suitable plays for adaptation, for example ''Old Joe and Young Joe''. According to ''The Era'', the dramatic and music hall newspaper of the time:
He died at Camberwell and is buried at Camberwell Old Cemetery, London.〔Camberwell Old Cemetery, ''London's Forgotten Valhalla'' by Ron Woollacott p 35〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「John Courtney (playwright)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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