Charles Albert Fechter, a French actor. born in London, Oct. 23, 1824. The son of a German father and a French mother, he was reared principally in England and France, and after a good education he began in Paris the study of sculpture. Manifesting a strong inclination for the stage, he made his first ap- pearance while still very young at the Salle Moliere in Le mari de la veure. After some weeks at the conservatory, he joined a com-pany of French comedians for a year's tour through Italy. Returning to Paris, he again applied himself to sculpture, at the same time playing minor characters in the Theatre Fran-cais. His first great success was in 1846 in the French theatre at Berlin, where he appeared as the original Duval in La dame aux camelias of Dumas the younger. In 1847 he played for a few weeks with a French company in London, and afterward till 1853 at different times he was prominent on the boards of the theatres Ambigu, Varietes. Historique, Porte Saint-Martin, and Vaudeville in Paris. From March, 1857, to the end of 1858, he was joint manager with M. de la Rounat of the Odeon. Two years afterward he.was induced to undertake characters in English on the London stage, and on Oct. 27, 1860, he opened at the Princess's theatre as Ruy Blas in his own version of Victor Hugo's play.

On March 19, 1861, he appeared as Hamlet, playing the part in a flaxen wig and making other marked innovations upon the costume and conventionalities of the character. He played the part 70 successive nights, and excited an animated discussion among the London critics. He followed with Othello, Iago, Macbeth, Coriolanus, the "Corsican Brothers," Claude Melnotte, and other characters, in nearly all of which he achieved a remarkable success, in spite of his disregard of the traditions and conventionalities of the English stage. He leased the Lyceum, Jan. 1, 1863, opening as Legadere in "The Duke's Motto," and continued his management of that theatre for some years. He made his first appearence in America as Ruy Blas, in Niblo's theatre in New York, Jan. 10, 1870. In October following he opened the Globe theatre in Boston as manager, but soon returned to New York, and after a brief engagement at the French theatre, where he played several characters in English, he went back to London. Returning to New York in 1872, he leased the French theatre, and remodelled it; but failing to secure possession of the property, he made his first reappearance in New York, April 28, 1873, at the Grand Opera House, as Edmond Dantes in his own version of Monte Cristo."