Lincoln Abraham Wagenhals (1869-1931) co-owned the theatrical firm Wagenhals & Kemper. He was elected to The Lambs in 1903.
Wagenhals lived in Newark as a boy. He was “originally a road-show man,” wrote the New York Daily News in June 1933. “While on the road he was shot in a holdup. The bullet remained embedded in his back for the rest of his life. He collected $5,000 accident insurance, however, and with this money as a foundation built up a business which earned several million for himself and partner.”
Wagenhals formed the firm with partner Colin Kemper in 1887. Both actors, they formed their own stock company. They found early success with road companies of Shakespearan productions. Setting up in New York, they rented the Astor Theatre for many seasons. On Broadway, they had hits with Paid in Full, The Man From Home, Seven Days, and The Greyhound.
The smash-hit The Bat was a three-act mystery play by Mary Roberts Rinehart and Lamb Avery Hopwood that was first produced by Wagenhals & Kemper in 1920. It grossed a record $5 million. The partners then closed the company and retired.
His wife, Hope Lathan, was an actress. They were frequent travelers to Europe and Asia.
He died while recovering from pneumonia on September 11, 1931, at his estate at Montrose-on-the-Hudson, in the northwestern corner of Westchester County, New York. He was 52. At the time of his death, it was claimed the firm was the wealthiest theatrical business in the world.
Lincoln A. Wagenhals is interred in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, Westchester County.
—Researched by Kevin C. Fitzpatrick, Shepherd of The Lambs, 2025.