He rarely stops acting under any circumstance. When he does he is delightful. He is a profound student. He has no conceit but rather a feeling of gross inferiority. He thinks that he is an atrocious actor and that his success is mainly due to certain attractive angles of his face. He thinks his brother Lionel is the greatest of all actors, yet he himself imitates the mannerisms of the later Sir Henry Irving.
He has a scintillating and a slightly obscene wit. His manner gives one the impression of a soul that has turned bitter. This is not entirely the case. He is a dreamer whose dreams became too true to be good. To protect himself he has erected a wall of disdain and conceit and a mask of boredom.
He is a curious composite of saint and devil. There are few men about whom there has been more vicious gossip. He is reputed to have witnessed and indulged in every known vice. He is discussed as being happiest when in an unbathed condition. He is said to be the most conceited man ever to appear before the public eye.
Far be it from me to appoint myself a judge of anyone's character, but association has taught me several revealing facts about this man whom so many condemn without righteousness but with some cause. He is a man who, from his youth was surrounded by people older than himself; it is for that reason that he met and recognized at an early age the ironic side of life.
But his mind is thoroughly alert to all things and his heart is gay with the joy of living. He makes himself disliked for the purpose of keeping people away from him but once he knows their worth his friendship knows no bounds. He is grateful to old friends and is interested in many unprinted charities. His reputation for disliking extreme cleanliness is largely a myth. It grew, no doubt, from the fact that he is rather careless at times in his manner of dress and is not particular whose shirt he borrows.
His highly publicized affection for spirits has a certain element of truth in it. Even at that it has been overdone. When he feels the need of stimulants he rarely gives way to it during his work. Sometimes a year or more goes by without so much as the smell of a beverage assailing those famous dilated nostrils. Oftentimes when he is bored he will feign inebriation to rid himself of the offending party.
He is well proportioned physically and is in fit condition externally but he is not really a strong man. He is easily susceptible to colds. His vices are quite ordinary and not half so bad as he would lead one to believe, or as his enemies would have you think. He is somewhat embarrassed by his virtues and gives the impression of being ashamed of them. He is cordial only to intimate friends and to those who work with him; to strangers he is, at times, inexcusably rude. He does not take himself seriously.
He professes a kind of easy contempt for his calling but is appreciative of its financial remuneration. He paints exceedingly well. He has a curious way of accenting words.
He can look half his age one day and twice his age the next. He is slightly gray. His hands are rather in discord with the rest of his person. They are large and rough with sensitive fingers and stubby fingernails that are hardly ever manicured. When meditating he usually toys playfully with his nose.
He has made as much money as anyone in his profession but he lets it slip away through various unknown channels. He is a chap whom most men like and most women hate. When he wants to be, he is as gentle and tender as a woman-that is greatly evident in his attentions to his wife. He can be a grumbling scoundrel or a charming gentleman. He can look like a tramp or like a fashion plate, or like a king. He is a Magnifico of the Middle Ages, transposed by a supreme and happy gesture to the screen today.
