British-born playwright J. Hartley Manners, of Irish extraction, spentmany years in the United States. In his twenties, in Australia, hebegan a relatively successful acting career and made his debut inLondon's West End in 1898. Joining the company of famed actor-managerSir Johnston Forbes-Robertson, he toured the provinces as an actor. Forfamed actressLily Langtry, with whom hewas acting, he wrote the play "The Crossways" in 1902, which heproduced and co-starred in. At the end of that year Manners, Langtryand the play traveled to America, where it had a brief Broadway run.Manners acted for only another two years, but devoted himself from 1902to playwrighting, managing to write or collaborate on more than 30plays in the next twenty-six years. In 1909 his play "The Great JohnGanton" introduced one of the century's great theatrical stars,Laurette Taylor, to Broadway. Mannersmarried Taylor and wrote and produced ten plays for her over the nextdecade. One of these, "Peg o' My Heart," was a huge success, spawningeight road companies during its Broadway run, playing more than 11,000collective performances in its first nine years. It was filmed severaltimes. An unproduced play was the posthumous source of the musical "TheGay Divorce," a Broadway hit forFred Astaire andCole Porter (later filmed asContinental (1934)).Manners had surgery to treat esophageal cancer in November, 1928, anddied three weeks later.