Kenyon Family

Mr Leslie Kenyon, who is now appearing with such success as Dr. Brooke in “The Physician,” has only recently returned from a tour in South Africa. Though he now appears to-day in a character-part, cleverly played, he is also a very excellent comedian. He has played and succeeded equally in such parts as Felix Roach in “The New Boy,” Wilding in “Captain Swift,” the Laird in “Trilby,” Lord Bletchley in “A Woman's Reason,” and Dick Phenyl in “Sweet Lavender.” Other parts in which he has been almost as successful have been Hummingtop in “The Arabian Nights,” Sir John Harding in “The Idler,” and old Todman in “Liberty Hall.” Mr Kenyon spent six seasons with Mr. Edward Terry in London and the provinces, and would have gone round the world with him had the arrangements been completed, and he has also scored in two productions at the Royalty Theatre. His first engagement was with Miss Louise Moodie.

Apropos of acting in trying circumstances, the most severe experience that I ever went through on the stage took place one night when I was acting the part of Cæsar, with Richard Mansfield.
It was a hot, humid night, and while I was lying there supposedly dead, two flies lit on me. One hovered about my nose, and the other about my ears, and the agony of feeling that they were going to crawl into my head was perfectly harrowing.
I knew that I couldn’t move a muscle without making the audience laugh and spoiling the scene; and the business of lying motionless in those circumstances took more self-control than I was ever forced to use on any other occasion in my life.
Fortunately some one came to my relief, slightly, for when one of the Romans drew near I said: “Flies.”
It wasn’t much, but it was a good deal for a dead man to say, and at that the other actor saw what was the matter and brushed his toga against me in a way that frightened them for the moment.
But flies are the most persistent pests in the world, and they kept coming back and crawling over me, and the only thing that relieved me at last was the drop of the curtain.

Lillian Sinnott, a young actress, who was better known in other cities than she was in New York, killed herself early yesterday morning at the home of her mother, Mrs. Louise Sinnott, at 512 West 123rd Street, a few hours before the time set for the funeral of Leslie Kenyon, an English actor, who was to have married her after obtaining a divorce from his wife. Kenyon, who was stricken with apoplexy at the Lambs Club last Thursday night, died at Miss Alston's Sanitarium on Saturday morning. He was buried from The Little Church Around the Corner yesterday morning.
Miss Sinnott, who was 24 years of age, had been appearing in a company playing “Baby Mine” on the road. When she heard of Mr. Kenyon's illness she hurried to New York, but the actor died without recovering consciousness. Early yesterday morning Mrs. Sinnott, who is a cripple as a result of injuries received in an automobile accident a year ago, foud her daughter sitting in the dining room of their apartment writing letters. The young actress declared that she was not able to sleep, but that she was all right, and was simply attending to some correspondence. At breakfast time, when she looked for her daughter, Mrs. Sinnott found the dead body of the young woman in the bath tub with her throat and wrists cut.
Miss Sinnott left two notes. One simply said that she left all of her effects to her mother. The other read:
Dear Mother: Forgive me for doing this, for you know how I loved Les. A fortnight before his death he was not well, and said he wuld be glad to go if I went with him.
You have now won your case. They are now going to appeal it, but there is not an honest Judge that won't notice that you are a cripple for life and dependent on Florence (a married daughter of Mrs. Sinnott.) But she, I know, will give you the best of care. Good-bye, dear. God bless you. Your daughter,
LILLIAN SINNOTT.
Miss Sinnott's mother is in a serious condition as a result of the shock following her daughter's death.

New York, Jan. 6. Strikingly unusual are the circumstances that appear in the romance and tragedy of Leslie Kenyon, a middle-aged actor of repute, and Miss Lillian Sinnott, more than twenty years his junior, a talented comedienne who succeeded Marguerite Clark in the leading role of "Baby Mine."
Mr. Kenyon was stricken with apoplexy at the Lambs Club a week ago and was taken to Miss Alston's sanatorium in West Sixty-first Street, where he died Saturday. Miss Sinnott was at his bedside nearly every hour of his illness and saw him die. Yesterday morning as Mr Kenyon was being borne by fellow players into "The Little Church Around the Corner", for the funeral services Miss Sinnott lay dead in her home at No. 612 West One Hundred and Twenty-third street. She had loved Kenyon so greatly that the thought of life with out him was intolerable. So, slashing her wrists and throat with a razor that had belonged to him, she had died. When Kenyon was dying his wife came to this city in answer to a telegram, Miss Sinnott refused to leave his bedside and steeled herself to face the wife's reproaches. But no such ordeal presented itself. Instead Mrs. Kenyon was quickly touched by the girl's obvious intensity of grief and acted and spoke in the kindest way to her. She even said that she could understand readily how Kenyon had fallen in love with so charming a young woman. She had realized in their long separation that Kenyon might be lost to her. Dr. Oscar M. Leiser, of 263 West Forty-fifth street, who attended Mr. Kenyon, was present when the women met... "When they left, it was in sorrow, not in anger," he said last night to a reporter. "All the time they were together not one harsh word was spoken." Kenyon had made his home with Mrs. Louise Sinnott, the girl's mother, and it had been announced among their friends that as soon as he could induce his wife to divorce him he would marry the young, slender actress. When, she came from Kenyon's death-bed Saturday to her home she was utterly distraught. Sunday night her mother sat up with her, hoping finally to quiet the girl. But in the end the mother dropped off to sleep in a chair in. the parlor. She last saw her daughter writing letters at a small table. One letter left by the actress ran: "Dear Mother Forgive me for doing this, for you know how I loved Leslie. A fortnight before his death he was not well and said he would be glad to go if I went with him. You have won your case. They are now going to appeal it, but there is not an honest judge who won't relieve you, a cripple for life and dependent on Florence. She, I know, will give you the best of care. Goodby, dear, and God bless you. "LILLIAN." The reference in the letter to "your case" applied to the suit of Mrs. Sinnott against a bakery company. One of its automobiles ran her down and she is permanently crippled. She won a heavy verdict, but the company appealed. Since the accident Mrs. Sinnott has been practically helpless and depended on her daughters Florence and Lillian for support.
WIFE LIVING HERE.
The lover, who died on Saturday, was Leslie Kenyon, whose wife has been living for some time at Mount Penn. Mrs. Margaret Kilroy Kenyon is her name, and her home is London, England. She has been the guest for some months of Mrs. H. M. Dowie and daughter Reta, of Kelmscott Studio, Mount Penn. Mrs. Kenyon was informed on Saturday of her husband's sudden death at the Lambs' Club, New York. She at once left for New York to arrange for the funeral. Mr. Kenyon was a well-known portrayer of Shakesperean roles. For several years he played with Richard Mansfield. He also supported Ethel Barrymore. He was 52 years old. It appears that Miss Sinnott was devoted to him and expected to marry him after he had obtained a divorce from his wife. Mrs. Kenyon, however, seems to have known nothing about this expected divorce, and she regarded her husband with loyal affection.

The Kenyon Family

Eileen Charlotte Le Feuvre Kenyon

Leslie Kenyon