Cultural depictions of Alexander Hamilton
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Alexander Hamilton has appeared as a significant figure in popular works of historical fiction, including many that focused on other American political figures of his time. In comparison to other Founding Fathers, Hamilton attracted relatively little attention in American popular culture in the 20th century.[1]
- A stage play called Hamilton, which ran on Broadway in 1917, was co-written by George Arliss, who played the title role. Arliss reprised the role of Hamilton in a 1931 film based on the stage play.[2]
- In 2015, Hamilton gained significant attention after the debut of the Broadway musical that bears his name. Lin-Manuel Miranda played the title role and wrote the musical based on a biography by Ron Chernow. The musical was described by The New Yorker as "an achievement of historical and cultural reimagining. In Miranda's telling, the headlong rise of one self-made immigrant becomes the story of America."[3] The Off-Broadway production of Hamilton won the 2015 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical as well as seven other Drama Desk Awards. In 2016, Hamilton received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and set a record with 16 Tony Award nominations,[4] of which the show won 11, including Best Musical.[5] During the presidency of Barack Obama, a plan to replace Hamilton on the ten-dollar bill was shelved due in part to the popularity of the musical.[6] In 2016 the Broadway production was filmed. It was released on streaming service Disney+ in 2020.[7]
Literature
- Novelist Gertrude Atherton wrote a fictionalized biography, The Conqueror, Being the True and Romantic Story of Alexander Hamilton, published in 1902.[8]
- Gore Vidal's 1973 historical novel Burr included Hamilton as a major character.[9][10]
- L. Neil Smith cast Hamilton as a principal villain in the historical background of his 1980 libertarian alternative history novel The Probability Broach and its sequels in the North American Confederacy series.[11]
- Davida Siwisa James explores four centuries of colonization, land divisions, and urban development around Hamilton Heights and Sugar Hill, the historic landmark neighborhood in West Harlem in her book Hamilton Heights and Sugar Hill: Alexander Hamilton’s Old Harlem Neighborhood Through the Centuries [12]
