Thomas, Augustus (1857-1934), was a dramatist whose plays have a strong American flavor. Thomas used elaborately detailed American scenes for such plays as Alabama (1891), In Mizzoura (1893), and Arizona (1899). The Copperhead (1918) is a realistic story of an Illinois farmer who, at the request of President Abraham Lincoln, acts like a Confederate sympathizer so he can spy for the North. This play brought actor Lionel Barrymore to stardom.
Many of Thomas’s plays deal with social issues of his day. New Blood (1894) is concerned with the conflict between capital and labor. The Capitol (1895) is about politics and The Witching Hour (1907) about hypnotism. Thomas also wrote the farces The Earl of Pawtucket (1903) and Mrs. Leffingwell’s Boots (1905). Thomas was born on Jan. 8, 1857, in St. Louis, Missouri. He died on Aug. 12, 1934.
