WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

RedRiver
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Re: WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

Post by RedRiver »

Maybe "Pet Me, Papa" had a racy appeal while "Bushel" was considered too fluffy. Who knows how producers think? It's a good thing Sinatra was such a good singer. "Adelaide" is an odd and incongruent song.
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JackFavell
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Re: WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

Post by JackFavell »

That's funny, I've always thought Frank would have made a perfect Sky Masterson.

And I think they did cut Marry the Man Today, which is one of my favorite songs. It's just so dark and evil and I love the rondelay style of the song.
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Vienna
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Re: WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

Post by Vienna »

I too love 'Marry the man today' , but a Broadway score generally never survives intact when filmed.
I 'll always remember a 1980s production at the National Theatre in London,with JULIA McKenzie, the late Ian Charleson,Bob Hoskins and Julie Covington. Top notch.
And to think that Alan Alda's dad ,Robert Alda, was the original Sky Masterson.
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JackFavell
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Re: WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

Post by JackFavell »

That's a fascinating British cast, Vienna!

Robert Alda is who I always think of as Sky, from the cast recording. I always wished he'd had a role like this in the movies. I always feel like he got short shrift as an actor in films. They never really took advantage of his talents, didn't cast him in roles that suited his personality, to my way of thinking.
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JackFavell
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Re: WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

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I was listening to Annie Get Your Gun while it was on TCM today. I wasn't into Betty Hutton this time through, though I usually don't mind her at all. I was just thinking about our talk about recasting musicals from Broadway, and having seen Merman in Strike Me Pink the other night I guess she was on my brain. I would have LOVED to see her here. So I listened instead and enjoyed it so much.

Anyway, listening to this and Guys and Dolls recently, I was just gobsmacked by the musical talent of both Frank Loesser and Irving Berlin, who created wholly original and memorable songs end to end for these two musicals... I mean there is hardly a musical around that boasts as many good songs as these two have back to back to back.

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JackFavell
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Re: WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

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I can totally see Annie Get Your Gun with Judy, she always got those pining away for love roles, where she couldn't compete with more glamorous women for the man's affections. And she was a good comic. But the backwoods theme is a little bit of a stretch, I feel that Ethel probably fit the role best, because she was able to seem course without trying too hard...she was the most 'naturally' loud and overt of the three. Her voice is such that she can take a backwoods heroine from boisterous and even mannish to romantic and soft in a twinkling and make it believable because she was a very good actress as well.

That clip from the Judy version of Annie Get Your Gun was made when Judy was terribly terribly ill and the studio refused to let her take a vacation to recuperate.

My mother and father got all the original cast albums from Broadway shows, everything from Camelot to Oliver! to Sound of Music to Oklahoma. My best friend Pammy who lived down the street from me used to come over and we'd dance around the living room to these showtunes, or go to her house where we could actually jump on the furniture. I have a great love of these musicals from that experience, it seemed every family at that time had these showtune records, probably because of Jackie and Jack Kennedy promoting the arts so much.

But for me the ones I always come back to are Annie Get Your Gun and Guys and Dolls, and then Gypsy. They are just jam packed with great songs beginning to end, with no loser songs among them, or ones you want to skip over. OK, well, I'll admit to skipping My Time of Day for years, but now I realize it's a pretty interesting song.

And yes, Arthur Freed was an AMAZING producer, a once in a lifetime kind of artist who made the musical what it was at it's prime by digging out the best of the best from Broadway and the stage. Wonderful man who made so many of us happy.
RedRiver
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Re: WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

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it seemed every family at that time had these showtune records

I had them.

Robert Alda (...) I always feel like he got short shrift as an actor in films

I didn't even know he was a lead player in theatre until recently. He was just Hawkeye's father!

I was just gobsmacked by the musical talent of both Frank Loesser and Irving Berlin

As the 1900s drew to a close, at least one article cited Berlin as the century's greatest musical talent.
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JackFavell
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Re: WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

Post by JackFavell »

I would have to agree. Berlin did it all, words and music, and though many of the songwriters had very specific styles, he seemed to be able to write any kind of song, never really repeating himself.

When I read 'the turn of the century' I immediately thought 1900.
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Fossy
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Re: WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

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Lady In The Dark (1944)

Liza Elliott (Ginger Rogers) is the editor of a magazine. She is engaged to Kendall (Warner Baxter), who is married, but his wife will not give him a divorce. Liza has headaches, and is close to a breakdown. Her doctor suggests that she see a Psychiatrist, Dr. Brooks (Barry Sullivan). At first she refuses, but eventually goes to see him.On her visits she tells of her childhood, and the colourful dreams she has. The dreams become dance scenes which are really great.

Her condition is aggravated by Charley Johnson (Ray Milland) who teases her at every opportunity. He actually wants her job, and makes no secret of it.
Eventually she comes to realise that she wants to be dominated. Kendall wants to be mothered, and Randy (Jon Hall), another fiancé also wants to be mothered.
Charley has given notice and is about to quit. Liza does not want him to go and offers to listen to his ideas. He tells her in no uncertain terms of his ideas, and of course they end up in each other`s arms.
The film was good, but the dream sequences were absolutely brilliant. The film received 3 Oscar nominations.
RedRiver
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Re: WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

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LADY IN THE DARK is interesting, especially if you imagine its effect at the time. The incredibly imaginative Moss Hart wrote the stage play. Theatre dealing with the psyche was rare. Dream sequences weren't something you saw every day. The show starred Gertrude Lawrence, and made a star of a manic young comedian named Danny Kaye. It inspired other writers and directors to take a new look at the way stories can be told.

The movie is not a great one. But it's well worth watching, and considering its history.
Last edited by RedRiver on February 17th, 2014, 1:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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sandykaypax
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Re: WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

Post by sandykaypax »

Fossy--where did you see Lady in the Dark? I've always wanted to see it. I don't think it's ever been shown on TCM.

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Fossy
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Re: WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

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sandykaypax wrote:Fossy--where did you see Lady in the Dark? I've always wanted to see it. I don't think it's ever been shown on TCM.

Sandy K
It is a recent addition to my Ginger Rogers Collection. I bought it from http://www.jubileedvds.com
RedRiver
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Re: WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

Post by RedRiver »

There's a sequel where she opens a photography studio. LADY IN THE DARKROOM!
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Fossy
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Re: WHAT MUSICALS HAVE YOU SEEN LATELY?

Post by Fossy »

RedRiver wrote:There's a sequel where she opens a photography studio. LADY IN THE DARKROOM!
You had me puzzled for a while. I searched Ginger Rogers movies for a movie called Lady in The Darkroom, but could not find it. Eventually I did find a remake of Lady In The Dark, (called Lady In The Dark) made for TV in 1954 and starring Ann Sothern. I have been unable to find any movie called "Lady In The Darkroom". Perhaps it has an aka.

There are 12 Ginger Rogers movies I do not have.
A Day Of A Man Of Affairs (1929) (short)
Campus Sweethearts (1930)(short)
Queen High (1930)
Follow The Leader(1930)
Honor Among Lovers (1930)
Hat Check Girl (1932)
Don`t Bet on Love (1933)
Magnificent Doll aka Magnificent Lady (1946)
Dreamboat (1952)
Forever Female (1953)
First Travelling Saleslady (1956)
Harlow (1965)
Last edited by Fossy on February 20th, 2014, 4:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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