1880-83: Forbes
Ben Cotton Jr. died in the fall of 1880. He had married in the States just 6 months before. The Cottons' play - written exclusively for them - underwent revision. Cotton signed a three year contract with Charles Forbes in exchange for his management responsibilities. Their first break came less than a year later. For a short while "The Ben Cotton Dramatic Company" performed under Z.W. Sprague. There would be two reconciliations with Forbes, and two more tiffs, before a final parting of the ways.
Ironically, Idalene and her future husband, Nick Long, would tour in the turn-of-the century vaudeville circuits in a play titled "Managerial Troubles."