William ('Gentleman') Smith
Actor. William Smith, known as 'Gentleman Smith', was educated at Eton; he took a wide range of leading roles at Covent Garden and Drury Lane from 1753 to 1788, appearing as Richard III under Garrick and creating the part of Charles Surface in Sheridan's comedy, A School For Scandal, 1777. A version of the lost portrait commissioned by Sir George Beaumont, perhaps from the sitter's own collection and certainly in the possession of the Smith family from an early date.
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