A popular show about legendary author Mark Twain is back in Elmira, but with a new performer.
Actor Hal Holbrook wrote and performed Mark Twain Tonight! and played that role for more than 60 years before his death in 2021.
Holbrook brought the show to Elmira — where Samuel Langhorne Clemens, better known by his pen name, Mark Twain — wrote most of his novels and where he is buried, several times, most recently in 2014.
Leading the latest incarnation of the show is Emmy Award-winning actor Richard Thomas, best known for his portrayal of John Boy on the TV series “The Waltons.”
During a news conference Tuesday, Oct. 14 at the Clemens Center, Thomas said he was asked by Holbrook’s estate if he would be interested in continuing the role, and he said it would be an honor.
“Every time I go out there, I try to honor both of them,” Thomas said of Holbrook and Twain. “I’m very humbled to be here.
“I am so happy to be in Elmira,” he added. “This is a very important stop. I knew Hal. He was a very warm individual. He did all the homework on Twain.”
Holbrook first performed Mark Twain Live! in 1954 and played more than 2,300 performances in front of more than 2 million people nationwide. Thomas is the first and only other actor authorized to perform the role.
Clemens Center Executive Director Karen Cromer acknowledged Holbrook is a tough act to follow but believes Thomas, a 2025 Theater Hall of Fame inductee, is up to the task.
“Hal Holbrook was here five times. Many of you saw Holbrook as Twain himself,” Cromer said. “For a successor, they found a winner in Richard Thomas.”
During Tuesday’s ceremony, Elmira Mayor Dan Mandell also presented Thomas with a key to the city.
“This is a very special occasion, welcoming Richard Thomas to Elmira,” Mandell said.
Mark Twain Tonight! was scheduled for two performances at the Clemens Center, at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, continuing a surge in recent Twain interest.
Pulitzer Prize winning biographer Ron Chernow visited Elmira Oct. 8 to kick off the fall Trouble Begins lecture series, presented by the Elmira College Center for Mark Twain Studies.
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This article originally appeared on Elmira Star-Gazette: Actor Richard Thomas discusses replacing Hal Holbrook as Mark Twain during Elmira visit
Reporting by Jeff Murray, Elmira Star-Gazette / Elmira Star-Gazette
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