J. Hickory Wood

Jay Hickory Wood (died 26 August 1913, Purley, Kent)[1][2] was an English playwright, novelist, and biographer. Born in Manchester, he was best known as the author of many pantomimes; several of them written in collaboration with Arthur Collins. His first pantomime performed in London's West End was Puss'n Boots at the Garrick Theatre in 1899. He wrote new pantomimes for the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, in 13 consecutive seasons.[3] Several of these were adapted into musicals produced on Broadway by Klaw and Erlanger, including The Sleeping Beauty and the Beast (1901) and Mother Goose (1903).[4]

Wood was a biographer of the actor Dan Leno, and his book Dan Leno was published in 1905 by Methuen Publishing.[3] His books included the novels The Chronicles of Mr. Pottersby (1898)[5] and Coronation Chuckles (1911),[6] and the short story collection Recitations: Comic and Otherwise (1898).[7]

  1. ^ "Death of Mr. Hickory Wood". Evening Post. 29 August 1913. p. 5.
  2. ^ "Mr J. Hickory Wood. Well Known Pantomime Writer's Death". The North Star. 29 August 1913. p. 8.
  3. ^ a b ""Panto" King Dead". The Sunday People. 31 August 1913. p. 17.
  4. ^ Dietz, Dan (2022). "Mother Goose". The Complete Book of 1900s Broadway Musicals. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. ISBN 9781538168943.
  5. ^ "The Chronicles of Mr. Pottersby". The Bookseller: 571. June 9, 1898.
  6. ^ The National Union Catalog, Pre-1956 Imprints, volume 671. Mansell Publishing. 1968. p. 284. ISBN 9780720115277.
  7. ^ "Recitations : Comic and Otherwise". Literary World: 388. November 18, 1898.