 Although officially retired , Grimaldi still received half of his former small salary from Drury Lane until 1824 . Soon after the fee stopped , Grimaldi fell into poverty after a number of ill @-@ conceived business ventures and because he had entrusted management of his provincial earnings to people who cheated him . Despite his disabilities , he offered his services as a cameo performer in Christmas pantomimes . Along with Bologna , he re @-@ appeared briefly at Sadler 's Wells where he gave some acting instruction to the mime artist William Payne , the future father of the Payne Brothers . He also started working for Richard Brinsley Peake , namesake of Richard Brinsley Sheridan , who was the dramaturge at the English Opera House . Peake hired Grimaldi to star in Monkey Island alongside his son JS . However , Grimaldi 's health deteriorated further and he was forced to quit before the show opened ; his scene was cut . The early end to his career , worries about money , and the uncertainty over his son 's future made him increasingly depressed . To make light of it , he would often joke about his condition : " I make you laugh at night but am Grim @-@ all @-@ day " . In 1828 , two " farewell " benefit performances were held for him . In the first , he appeared as Hock the German soldier and a drunken sailor in Thomas Dibdin 's melodrama The Sixes ; or , The Fiends at Sadler 's Wells to an audience of 2 @,@ 000 people . Unable to stand for long periods of time , he sang a duet with JS and finished the evening with a scene from Mother Goose . His last farewell benefit performance on 27 June 1828 was at Drury Lane . Between 1828 and 1836 , Grimaldi relied on charity benefits to replace his lost income . 
