Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (play)

Gentleman Prefer Blondes is a 1926 play by Anita Loos and John Emerson, based upon Loos' 1925 international best-selling novel of the same name.

History

June Walker (left) portrayed Lorelei and Edna Hibbard (right) portrayed Dorothy in the 1926 play.

In 1925 Loos published the novel, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes: The Intimate Diary of a Professional Lady , a comic novel. By the end of the year, there was discussion that the novel would be made into a play. ^{[1] [2]} The play was produced by Edgar Selwyn. ^[3] The play premiered in Detroit on April 28, 1926, at the Shubert-Detroit. ^[4] It opened in Chicago on May 2, 1926, at the Selwyn Theatre, and was received positively by the Chicago Tribune . ^[5] The play opened on Broadway at the Selwyn Theatre, ^[6] on Tuesday, September 26, 1926, closing at Times Square Theatre. ^[7]

Cast

Broadway opening night cast: ^[8] )

• Katherine Brook as Miss Chapman
• Grace Burgess as Lulu
• Grace Cornell as Ann Spoffard
• Roy Gorham as William Gwynn
• Grace Hampton as Lady Beekman
• William T. Hays as Old Spoffard
• Edna Hibbard as Dorothy Shaw
• Bruce Huntley as H. Gilbertson Montrose
• G.P. Huntley as Sir Francis Beekman
• Mrs. Jacques Martin as Mrs. Spoffard
• Frank Morgan as Henry Spoffard
• Edwina Prue as Dickie
• Vivian Purcell as Connie
• Ruth Raymonde as Gloria Atwell
• Georges Romain as Robert Broussard
• Adrian Rosely as Louis Broussard
• Arthur S. Ross as Gus Eisman
• Harold Thomas as Harry
• June Walker as Lorelei Lee
• Daniel Wolf as Leon

Reception

The Daily News gave the play a positive review, although they felt it didn't perform as well as they expected. ^[9]

References

1. "Theatre Notes". Daily News . December 26, 1925. p. 18. Retrieved June 26, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
2. "Theatrical Notes". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle . November 17, 1925. p. 18. Retrieved June 26, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
3. "Theatre Notes". Daily News . November 27, 1925. p. 40. Retrieved June 26, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
4. "'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes' Gets World Premiere Next Week". Detroit Free Press. April 11, 1926.
5. "Theater: "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes". Chicago Tribune . May 3, 1926. p. 27. Retrieved June 27, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
6. "This Week's Openings". Daily News . September 26, 1926. pp. D15. Retrieved June 26, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes: About This Production". Internet Broadway Database. Archived from the original on April 5, 2023. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
8. "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes: Opening Night Cast". Internet Broadway Database. Archived from the original on June 26, 2023. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
9. "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes; "Woman Disputed War Drama". Daily News . September 29, 1926. p. 32. Retrieved June 26, 2023– via Newspapers.com.

External links

• "Without Offense to the Moralists". Chicago Tribune . May 7, 1926. p. 8. Retrieved June 28, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
• "June Walker Tells Why Gentlemen Prefer Blondes". Brooklyn Daily Times . October 31, 1926. pp. 1B. Retrieved June 28, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
• "Decorative Evening Types Glisten at Play Premiere". The Buffalo News . October 11, 1926. p. 27. Retrieved June 28, 2023– via Newspapers.com.