Born in Charlestown, Boston, McNally was a graduate of Harvard Law School.[2][1] He went into journalism; working first for The Boston Times as a reporter and then a drama editor. He then worked as both a writer and editor for The Boston Star before becoming a longtime drama critic for The Boston Herald.[2]
McNally's first play, Revels (1880), was written as a starring vehicle for the Rogers Brothers.[2] He went on to write numerous more plays for them; such as Rogers Brothers in London, Rogers Brothers in Paris, Rogers Brother in Wall Street, and Rogers Brothers in Tammany Hall.[1] His musical play The Widow Jones (1895) was created as a starring vehicle for the actress and singer May Irwin.[3] It premiered at the Boston Museum theatre before moving to Broadway.[4] Irwin next starred in his three act play Courted into Court (1896) at Broadway's Bijou Theatre.[5]
McNally collaborated with the song writing team of Jean Schwartz and William Jerome on several Broadway musicals; notably writing the books for Lifting the Lid,[6] Fritz in Tammany Hall,[7] Lola from Berlin,[8] and In Hayti.[9] He also wrote the book for the 1903 musical Mother Goose which was adapted from the pantomime of the same name by Arthur Collins and J. Hickory Wood.[10]
McNally also adapted several works that were created at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane for the American stage.[2]
McNally died on March 25, 1931, in Brooklyn, New York.[1]