John Heminges

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John Heminges (also Heminge , Heming , Hemminge , Hemynges or Hemmings ; * around 1556 - † October 10, 1630 in London ) was a colleague of William Shakespeare , and together with another actor from his troupe, gave Henry Condell's works in the folio - Edition 1623 out.

Heminges was a member of the acting troupe Lord Chamberlain's Men , which from 1603 called itself the King's Men . You don't know too much about your life. On March 10, 1588, he married the only 17-year-old widow of the actor William Knell , Rebecca (baptized on December 23, 1571). He had 14 children with her in their 31-year marriage before she died in the summer of 1619. The eldest son, William, gained recognition as a playwright and poet.

John Heminges was probably just a mediocre actor, but still appeared in many plays, not only those of his colleague Shakespeare, but also in Ben Jonson's Every Man in His Humor and Volpone and in John Webster's The Duchess of Malfi . He was probably the first Falstaff too . More important for the troop was his role as managing director, which he held for 25 years. After 1611 he hardly appeared as an actor.

In 1613, his name appears as a signatory to a purchase agreement when William Shakespeare bought a house in Blackfriars, London for £ 140 . He was one of the founders and owners (partner of the troupe from 1596) of the Globe Theater and the Blackfriars Theater , where the troupe performed from 1599 (The Globe) and 1609 respectively. He was probably not only connected to Shakespeare in business, but also be friends with him personally. This can be inferred, among other things, from the fact that Shakespeare considered him and his colleague Henry Condell in his will. He bequeathed both of them 26 shillings and 8 pence each to purchase a “funeral ring”.

His name appears again in 1619, when he and Condell had to testify in a court battle between Witter and Heminges and Condell . He is buried with Condell in the cemetery of St. Mary Aldemanbury, where there is now a memorial.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Carole Levin, Anna Riehl Bertolet, Jo Eldridge Carney (eds.): A Biographical Encyclopedia of Early Modern Englishwomen… 1500–1650 . Routledge. London, 2016, ISBN 978-1-315-44070-5 , pp. 630 (English, limited preview in Google Book Search).
  2. Kathman, David: Grocers, Goldsmiths, and Drapers: Freemen and Apprentices in the Elizabethan Theater Shakespeare Quarterly 55. Johns Hopkins University Press 2004. Pages 1-49.