From the days of Thespis to the knighthood of Henry Irving, society in general censured those who trod the boards, and historians frowned upon the theatre as a discipline worthy of scholarly attention. The records of performance, past and present, were neglected, ignored, and uncataloged—either tossed into cartons and relegated to attics and basements for future generations to discard, or they were filed in the nearest wastebasket. Only the drama and the literature of the stage (commentaries and criticisms, histories and reviews) were considered to be of substantial interest.