我的祖父王茂源是绍剧的著名小丑,因谢世甚早,业已消声匿迹,后人知者不多。不料在一九八七年上海艺术研究所为撰写“王茂源条目”(将编入《中国戏曲志》(上海卷)),来信向我索要祖父生前的艺术资料、照片等。遗憾的是在“文革”时期被抄了家,许多艺术资料作为封、资、修“毒草”已被一把火化为灰烬,而今荡然无存。感谢上海艺术研究所,寄给我一份珍贵的历史资料——《越剧日报》。祖父逝世的消息在一九四二年登载,兹将《王茂源逝世》一文节录如下:“一代艺人身后萧条,王茂源的小丑,在乱弹班中是可以数数的了。他是浙、沪闻名,享誉三十余年了,就是在天香大戏院演唱的时候,他的年事虽高,已近花甲,但是他的一副嗓子,始终不变,与昔无二。不过在台上有点龙钟之态,与后辈小丑较之,还是他的戏有味。总言之,他是不贪懒,不马虎。这就是他能享誉三十余年的原因。自天香戏院辍演后,留居沪上,兹得噩耗传 My grandfather Wang Maoyuan is a famous clown in Shaoxing Opera. Because of his very early death, he has disappeared, and there are not many later generations. Unexpectedly, in 1987, the Shanghai Art Institute wrote a letter to Wang Maoyuan Encyclopedia (to be included in the ”Chinese Opera Chronicles“ (Shanghai Volume)) and asked me for my grandfather’s art materials and photos. It is regrettable that during the Cultural Revolution period, many people were copied from home and many artistic materials were sealed off, capital, and cultivation. Thank Shanghai Institute of Art, sent me a precious historical data - ”Shaddar Daily.“ The news about the death of his grandfather was published in 1942 and the text of the death of Wang Maoyuan is hereby quoted as follows: ”The clown of a generation of artists is sluggish and the clown of Wang Maoyuan is counted in the chaos class. , Known for more than thirty years, that is, singing in the Tianxiang Theater, although his age is high, almost Huajia, but his voice, always the same, and the past, but on the stage a bit of a dragon Bell state, compared with the older clown, or his playful taste. In short, he is not greedy, not sloppy. This is why he can be renowned for more than thirty years. In Shanghai, it is bad news