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Author Topic: Charles Dillon (actor)  (Read 7057 times)

Offline humanracer

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Re: Charles Dillon (actor)
« Reply #9 on: Monday 27 March 17 01:07 BST (UK) »
Perhaps Charles never married Clara and he later left her for Bella? In effect both could claim to be his widow?

Offline scotmum

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Re: Charles Dillon (actor)
« Reply #10 on: Monday 27 March 17 07:41 BST (UK) »
It is an odd one. Certainly, he, Clara snr and Clara jnr are in the 1851 census for Manchester, as head, wife, daughter.
"As we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns—the ones we don’t know we don’t know."  - Donald Rumsfeld

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Offline scotmum

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Re: Charles Dillon (actor)
« Reply #11 on: Monday 27 March 17 09:23 BST (UK) »
The first obvious crossing of paths by Bella Mortimer and Charles Dillon in the theatre, seems to be early 1873. Thereafter, she seemed to frequently play opposite or alongside him in numerous productions, often as his 'wife'.

Now, in earlier years, when Charles and Clara sometimes appeared on stage together, newspaper reports often alluded to her as being his wife, but still referred to her by her stage name of Clara Conquest. Interestingly, at no point, in all the numerous newspaper reports of Charles and Bella working together, can I see any that alluded to her being his 'real life' wife, that is, until May 1881, just after he died and then again in July 1881, when a Trust Fund was being set up to assist her. It was only after his death, too, when she appeared in various other productions, that she was often noted as Mrs Charles Dillon (Bella Mortimer) and/or Bella Mortimer (Mrs Charles Dillon).
"As we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns—the ones we don’t know we don’t know."  - Donald Rumsfeld

"Trees without roots fall over!"
 
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Offline scotmum

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Re: Charles Dillon (actor)
« Reply #12 on: Monday 27 March 17 09:25 BST (UK) »
Interestingly, according to a letter in The Era in Dec 1863 from a Clara Dillon, a person named Miss Eliza Webb was passing herself off in Australia as Mrs Charles Dillon.
"As we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns—the ones we don’t know we don’t know."  - Donald Rumsfeld

"Trees without roots fall over!"
 
""People who never look backward to their ancestors will never look forward to posterity." - Edmund Burke

Don't just wait for the storm to pass, learn to dance in the rain.

Offline ShaunJ

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Re: Charles Dillon (actor)
« Reply #13 on: Monday 27 March 17 09:40 BST (UK) »
Just throwing in daughter Clara's RC baptism in  1855: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NJX7-8L8

UK Census info. Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk

Offline scotmum

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Re: Charles Dillon (actor)
« Reply #14 on: Monday 27 March 17 09:42 BST (UK) »
Charles Dillon and Bella Dillon, Actor and Actress, appear in the 1881 census as visitors, both noted as married, in the Balmoral Hotel, Bolton.

Oddly, his birth year is given as 1840, a birth year which would possibly fit better with this Charles being Charles Silver, alleged son of Charles Dillon, who apparently used the surname Dillon, but wouldn't explain Bella being referred to as wife of Charles snr, following the latter's death.

The actor-manager Charles Dillon commissioned the building of the Theatre Royal, Stratford in 1884 (ie after the death of the Charles Dillon who was reputedly his father).

"As we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns—the ones we don’t know we don’t know."  - Donald Rumsfeld

"Trees without roots fall over!"
 
""People who never look backward to their ancestors will never look forward to posterity." - Edmund Burke

Don't just wait for the storm to pass, learn to dance in the rain.

Offline ShaunJ

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Re: Charles Dillon (actor)
« Reply #15 on: Monday 27 March 17 10:22 BST (UK) »
Quote
In 1860–61, he left England with his wife, Clara, for a tour around the world.

Curiously Clara appears in the 1861 census in London with her father Benjamin Oliver Conquest at the Eagle Tavern in Shoreditch:

Clarissa A Conquest, daur, married, 35, actress - born Whitechapel
UK Census info. Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk

Offline scotmum

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Re: Charles Dillon (actor)
« Reply #16 on: Monday 27 March 17 10:24 BST (UK) »
humanracer, the wiki page you linked to starts Charles J Dillon, yet the death in Hawick is listed as:

Quote
Surname:      DILLON   Forename: CHARLES CHURCH
Age at death: 61
Year:            1881
Ref:              789/ 146
RD Name:     Hawick

on scotlandsprople.

Have you purchased the death record at all? Scottish death records usually give more info than English ones of the timescale.
"As we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns—the ones we don’t know we don’t know."  - Donald Rumsfeld

"Trees without roots fall over!"
 
""People who never look backward to their ancestors will never look forward to posterity." - Edmund Burke

Don't just wait for the storm to pass, learn to dance in the rain.

Offline ShaunJ

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Re: Charles Dillon (actor)
« Reply #17 on: Monday 27 March 17 11:23 BST (UK) »
There's a marriage in Cardiff in Q2 1874: Charles Church Dillon and either Janet Evans or Bella Mentrup.
UK Census info. Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
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