Charles Macklin (1690-1797), originally Mclaughlin, was an actor and dramatist born in Ireland, and one of the most distinguished actors of his day, equally in tragedy and comedy. He gained his greatest fame in the role of Shylock in The Merchant of Venice. He wrote many plays, some failures, and some successful comedies, like Love a la Mode (1759), The School for Husbands, or The Married Libertine (1761), and The Man of the World (1781). The True- Born Irishman (1763) was a hit in Ireland, and a flop in England.