The life of the late James Whitmore will be celebrated and commemorated on Sunday, August 23 at 8 p.m. at a memorial service at the Peterborough Players theatre. The general public is invited to come together at the theatre to celebrate Whitmore’s career, the time he spent at the Peterborough Players, and what he meant to the extended community. Family and friends will share recollections and video montages will be shown.

Whitmore, a Tony- and Emmy-award-winning actor, credits his big break onto Broadway to the founder of the Peterborough Players, where he spent many summers on stage at the historic summer stock professional theatre. Theatre-goers were treated in later years to Players performances in which Whitmore starred, including Our Town, Tuesdays with Morrie, The Man Who Came to Dinner, and Inherit the Wind.

Whitmore died in his home in February, 2009, of lung cancer at the age of 87. His long career spanned film, television, and theatre, which was his passion. Some of his best-known roles were Will Rogers in Will Rogers’ U.S.A., Harry Truman in Give ‘em Hell, Harry!, and Theodore Roosevelt in Bully.

Whitmore’s family continues to carry out the love of theatre, and particularly of the Peterborough Players. One of Whitmore’s sons, James Whitmore Jr, is in the Peterborough Players Heartbreak House, opening on August 19. Whitmore’s granddaughter, Aliah Whitmore, is stage manager for the Second Company at the Players for the 2009 season.

Compiled from the press release courtesy of the Peterborough Players (website | profile | tag archive).

ExploreBostonTheatre.com. Your source for news and information about Boston Theatre. Join our email list, follow us on Twitter @exploretheatre and become a fan on Facebook.