Charles Mathews (June 28, 1776 - June 28, 1835) was an English theatre manager and comic actor, well-known during his time for his gift for impersonation. His play, "At Home", in which he played every character, was the first monopolylogue and the defining work in the genre. He was born in London, the son of a bookseller who also served as minister in one of the Countess of Huntingdon's chapels. Mathews was educated at Merchant Taylors' School. Wikipedia
National Portrait Gallery, list of portraits for Charles Mathews including Charles Mathews by George Henry Harlow, Charles Mathews by Samuel Joseph, Charles Mathews by Rembrandt Peale, Charles Mathews by Sir Edwin Henry Landseer, Charles Mathews by Sir Ed www.npg.org.uk/live/search/person.asp?LinkID=mp03014
Mathews had hoped to sell the collection to the Club, which was eventually purchased by the broker Robert Durrant in 1835 and then donated to the Club. www.garrickclub.co.uk/art.asp
There is much correspondence between the family members: Charles Mathews, his second wife, Anne Jackson Mathews, their son, Charles James Mathews, and his wife, Elizabeth (Eliza) Lucy Vestris Mathews. libweb2.princeton.edu/rbsc2/aids/msslist/colls2.htm
The definitive Wikipedia entry for Charles Mathews. Wikipedia is the biggest multilingual free-content encyclopedia on the Internet. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Mathews
