George C. Gunther

George C. Gunther was an active traveling actor with many stock and traveling troupes from 1902-1916. He also found work as an extra in the still new and growing motion picture industry.

He began his career with the Dick Ferris Stock Company in his hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota, performing at the original Lyceum Theatre there. He then worked with the Bush Temple Stock Company in Chicago, Rolland and Cliffords Company, and Joseph DeGrasse in "The Merchant of Venice" and "Hamlet." In 1906 he played with the Ralph Stuart Stock Company in Minneapolis. In 1907 and 1908 Gunther played many Shakespearian roles with Charles B. Hanford. He also worked with John Griffith. Much of this career was traveling theatre; train travel, cheap hotel rooms, and living out of a suitcase.

"An Aztec Romance"

It was after performing in a traveling production of "The White Sister" in September 1912 that George Gunther returned to New York, where he ran into his associate Charles Hanford, who told him he was engaged to play a part in a show called "An Aztec Romance," and he encouraged George to try out for it, too, and so he did, getting the role of Nephiah.

In George's words (from his memoir): "Well, we rehearsed for three weeks on that dreadful play without ever getting wise to what a turkey it was 'til the night of the first performance, and we then did not tumble, as we took the shouts and jeers and laughter for applause! We were all congratulating each other on our luck and the possibilities of a nice long run on Broadway, but we were disillusioned when we read the critics' reviews in the cold gray dawn of the morning after. We only put on three performances and then Mr. Bean snook back to Salt Lake City without disgorging a thin dime for salaries or production."