Girl Crazy

Last updated
Girl Crazy
Girl Crazy programme ethel merman.jpg
Original Broadway programme from 1931
Music George Gershwin
Lyrics Ira Gershwin
Book Guy Bolton
John McGowan
Productions1930 Broadway
1932 film
1943 film

Girl Crazy is a 1930 musical by George Gershwin with lyrics by Ira Gershwin and book by Guy Bolton and John McGowan. Ethel Merman made her stage debut in the first production and co-lead Ginger Rogers became an overnight star. Rich in song, it follows the story of Danny Churchill who has been sent to fictional Custerville, Arizona, to manage his family's ranch. His father wants him there to focus on matters more serious than alcohol and women but Danny turns the place into a dude ranch, importing showgirls from Broadway and hiring Kate Forthergill (Merman's role) as entertainer. Visitors come from both coasts and Danny falls in love with the local postmistress, Molly Gray (Rogers' role).

Contents

Three subsequent film adaptations adjusted the plot. The most notable, in 1943, starred Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland, with the latter playing a combined Kate and Molly.

Productions

The musical opened at the Alvin Theatre on October 14, 1930, and closed on June 6, 1931, after 272 performances. It was directed by Alexander Leftwich, with choreography by George Hale and sets by Donald Oenslager. This musical made a star of Ginger Rogers, who, with Allen Kearns, sang "Could You Use Me?" and "Embraceable You" and, with Willie Howard, "But Not for Me". Ethel Merman, in her Broadway debut [1] [2] sang "I Got Rhythm", "Sam and Delilah", and "Boy! What Love Has Done To Me!" and "became an overnight sensation...that launched her fifty year career." [3] Also of note is the opening night pit orchestra, which was composed of many well-known jazz musicians, including Benny Goodman, Gene Krupa, Glenn Miller and Jimmy Dorsey. [4]

"The score was one of the Gershwins' best" according to theatre writer Ken Bloom. [5]

A version with a heavily revised book was presented in 1975 by the St. Louis Municipal Opera Theatre [6] and in 1979 by the Coachlight Dinner Theater (East Windsor, CT). [7]

In 1992 the show appeared on Broadway in a heavily revised version. It was given a new title, Crazy for You , and a completely new plot, and interpolated with material from other Gershwin stage shows and films, specifically songs written for the Fred Astaire movies of the 1930s such as "Nice Work If You Can Get It" from A Damsel in Distress and "They Can't Take That Away From Me" from Shall We Dance.

"Musicals Tonight!", New York City, presented a staged concert in September 2001. [8]

An abridged version of Girl Crazy was presented at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC October 2–5, 2008 as part of their Broadway: Three Generations production. Max von Essen played Danny, Jenn Colella played Molly, and Randy Graff played Kate, directed by Lonny Price. [9]

The New York City Center Encores! staged concert was held in November 2009. Directed by Jerry Zaks, it starred Ana Gasteyer, Marc Kudisch, Becki Newton, and Wayne Knight. [10]

The two-time Olympic champion and Emmy-winning television commentator Dick Button starred as Danny in a 1958 production, which also co-starred Jane Connell as Kate and Gordon Connell as Pete; it interpolated Gershwin's "They All Laughed" and "Nice Work If You can Get It" into the score.

Songs (per 1954 published score from Harms, Inc. – New World Music Corp.)

Original cast

The pit orchestra included "Red" Nichols, Glenn Miller, Gene Krupa, Tommy Dorsey, Benny Goodman and Jack Teagarden. [11] [12] Roger Edens was the onstage pianist for Ethel Merman. It was conducted on opening night by George Gershwin himself. [13] The 1953 biopic The Glenn Miller Story recreated the "I'm Biding My Time" scene, with Miller (Stewart) playing trombone in the orchestra.

Reception

It was said by one critic to be "fresh, ingenious...a rich delight". [12]

Film adaptations

Poster for Girl Crazy (1932) Girl Crazy poster.jpg
Poster for Girl Crazy (1932)

The 1932 RKO Radio Pictures production was very unlike the stage play except for its score. The film was tailored for the comic talents of Wheeler & Woolsey, a then-popular comedy team. In 1943, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer produced a lavish version starring Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland. In 1965, MGM once again made the musical into a film, for Connie Francis. Unlike the previous two versions, the title was changed to When the Boys Meet the Girls . It co-starred Herman's Hermits, Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs, Louis Armstrong, and Liberace. A number of Gershwin songs were retained, including "Embraceable You", "Bidin' My Time", "But Not for Me", "Treat Me Rough", and "I Got Rhythm".

Recordings

No original cast recording was ever made, as original cast recordings did not exist in the U.S. prior to 1943. [14] Several studio recordings of the score have been released, including an early 1950s version with Mary Martin, but the only one using the full score and original 1930 orchestrations was released by Nonesuch Records (Nonesuch 9 79250–2) in 1990 with Lorna Luft (Kate), Frank Gorshin (Gieber Goldfarb), David Carroll (Danny), and Judy Blazer (Molly). [15]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ginger Rogers</span> American actress and dancer (1911–1995)

Ginger Rogers was an American actress, dancer and singer during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starring role in Kitty Foyle (1940), and performed during the 1930s in RKO's musical films with Fred Astaire. Her career continued on stage, radio and television throughout much of the 20th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ethel Merman</span> American actress, singer (1908–1984)

Ethel Merman was an American actress and singer. Known for her distinctive, powerful voice, and her leading roles in musical theater, she has been called "the undisputed First Lady of the musical comedy stage." She performed on Broadway in Anything Goes, Annie Get Your Gun, Gypsy, and Hello, Dolly!

<i>Annie Get Your Gun</i> (musical) 1946 musical by Irving Berlin

Annie Get Your Gun is a musical with lyrics and music by Irving Berlin and a book by Dorothy Fields and her brother Herbert Fields. The story is a fictionalized version of the life of Annie Oakley (1860–1926), a sharpshooter who starred in Buffalo Bill's Wild West, and her romance with sharpshooter Frank E. Butler (1847–1926).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arthur Schwartz</span> American composer and film producer (1900–1984)

Arthur Schwartz was an American composer and film producer, widely noted for his songwriting collaborations with Howard Dietz.

Saul Chaplin was an American composer and musical director.

"I Got Rhythm" is a piece composed by George Gershwin with lyrics by Ira Gershwin and published in 1930, which became a jazz standard. Its chord progression, known as the "rhythm changes", is the foundation for many other popular jazz tunes such as Charlie Parker's and Dizzy Gillespie's bebop standard "Anthropology ".

Roger Edens was a Hollywood composer, arranger and associate producer, and is considered one of the major creative figures in Arthur Freed's musical film production unit at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer during the "golden era of Hollywood".

<i>Thats Entertainment, Part II</i> 1976 film directedby Gene Kelly

That's Entertainment, Part II is a 1976 American compilation film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and a sequel to That's Entertainment! (1974). Like the previous film, That's Entertainment, Part II was a retrospective of famous films released by MGM from the 1930s to the 1950s. Some posters for the film use Part 2 rather than Part II in the title.

<i>The Barkleys of Broadway</i> 1949 film by Charles Walters

The Barkleys of Broadway is a 1949 American Technicolor musical comedy film from the Arthur Freed unit at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer that reunited Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers after ten years apart. Directed by Charles Walters, the screenplay is by Betty Comden, Adolph Green, and Sidney Sheldon, the songs are by Harry Warren (music) and Ira Gershwin (lyrics) with the addition of "They Can't Take That Away from Me" by George and Ira Gershwin, and the choreography was created by Robert Alton and Hermes Pan. Also featured in the cast were Oscar Levant, Billie Burke, Jacques François and Gale Robbins. It is the last film that Astaire and Rogers made together, and their only film together in color. Rogers came in as a last-minute replacement for Judy Garland, whose frequent absences due to a dependence on prescription medication cost her the role.

<i>Shall We Dance</i> (1937 film) 1937 film by Mark Sandrich

Shall We Dance is a 1937 American musical comedy film directed by Mark Sandrich. It is the seventh of the ten Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers films. The story follows an American ballet dancer (Astaire) who falls in love with a tap dancer (Rogers); the tabloid press concocts a story of their marriage, after which life imitates art. George Gershwin wrote the symphonic underscore and Ira Gershwin the lyrics, for their second Hollywood musical.

"Everything's Coming Up Roses" is a song with music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, written initially for the 1959 Broadway musical Gypsy. Introduced in the show's inaugural production by Ethel Merman, "Everything's Coming Up Roses" became one of Merman's signature songs.

"Embraceable You" is a jazz standard song with music by George Gershwin and lyrics by Ira Gershwin. The song was written in 1928 for an unpublished operetta named East Is West. It was published in 1930 and included in that year's Broadway musical Girl Crazy, performed by Ginger Rogers in a song and dance routine choreographed by Fred Astaire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lehman Engel</span>

A. Lehman Engel was an American composer and conductor of Broadway musicals, television and film.

"Boy! What Love Has Done to Me!" is a song composed by George Gershwin, with lyrics by Ira Gershwin. It was introduced by Ethel Merman in the 1930 musical Girl Crazy. In the 1943 film version, the song was performed by Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra.

"Sam and Delilah" is a song composed by George Gershwin, with lyrics by Ira Gershwin. It was introduced by Ethel Merman in the 1930 musical Girl Crazy. The song is an interpretation of the biblical story of Samson and Delilah in the Book of Judges of the Hebrew Bible.

<i>Girl Crazy</i> (1943 film) 1943 film by Norman Taurog and Busby Berkeley

Girl Crazy is a 1943 American musical film starring Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney. Produced by the Freed Unit of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, it is based on the stage musical Girl Crazy – which was written by Guy Bolton and Jack McGowan, with music and lyrics by George and Ira Gershwin. It was the last of Garland and Rooney's nine movies as co-stars, the pair appearing only once more together on film, as guest stars in 1948's Words and Music.

<i>Girl Crazy</i> (1932 film) 1932 film

Girl Crazy is a 1932 American pre-Code musical film adaptation of the 1930 stage play of the same name. The film was very unlike the stage play except for its score. It was tailored for the comic talents of Wheeler & Woolsey, a popular comedy team of the time. Three songs written by George and Ira Gershwin for the play were retained: "Bidin' My Time", "I Got Rhythm", and "But Not for Me". According to RKO records, the film lost $150,000.

Daniel Joseph Lockin was an American actor and dancer who appeared on stage, television, and film. He was best known for his portrayal of the character Barnaby Tucker in the 1969 film Hello, Dolly!.

<i>When the Boys Meet the Girls</i> 1965 film

When the Boys Meet the Girls is a 1965 American musical film directed by Alvin Ganzer and starring Connie Francis and Harve Presnell based on the musical Girl Crazy and a remake of MGM's 1943 film Girl Crazy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1930s in jazz</span> Jazz music-related events during the 1930s

Swing jazz emerged as a dominant form in American music, in which some virtuoso soloists became as famous as the band leaders. Key figures in developing the "big" jazz band included bandleaders and arrangers Count Basie, Cab Calloway, Jimmy and Tommy Dorsey, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Fletcher Henderson, Earl Hines, Glenn Miller, and Artie Shaw. Duke Ellington and his band members composed numerous swing era hits that have become standards: "It Don't Mean a Thing " (1932), "Sophisticated Lady" (1933) and "Caravan" (1936), among others. Other influential bandleaders of this period were Benny Goodman and Count Basie.

References

  1. Morrison, William (1999). Broadway Theatres: History and Architecture. Dover Books on Architecture. Mineola, New York: Dover Publications. pp. 154–55. ISBN   0-486-40244-4.
  2. Ethel Merman at the Internet Broadway Database
  3. Vlastnik, Frank; Bloom, Ken. "Girl Crazy" Broadway Musicals: The 101 Greatest Shows of All Time, Black Dog Publishing, 2010, ISBN   1-57912-849-1, p. 132
  4. Wilson, Jeremy. "Origin and Chart Information: I Got Rhythm." JazzStandards.com, 2005.
  5. Bloom, Ken. "Chapter:Aarons and Freedley" Broadway: Its History, People, and Places: An Encyclopedia, Taylor & Francis, 2004, ISBN   0-415-93704-3, p. 2
  6. Girl Crazy in libraries ( WorldCat catalog)
  7. Frankel, Haskell. "Good Gershwin, Pleasantly Sung",The New York Times, May 20, 1979
  8. "'Girl Crazy' listing and reviews" Archived 2010-05-14 at the Wayback Machine , musicalstonight.org, accessed February 16, 2010
  9. Gans, Andrew."Graff, Ashmanskas, Brescia, Osnes, von Essen Explore Broadway: Three Generations Oct. 2–5" playbill.com, October 2, 2008
  10. Isherwood, Charles."Home on the Range and on the Stage",The New York Times, November 21, 2009
  11. Girl Crazy notes", New York City Center, accessed January 16, 2011 [ dead link ]
  12. 1 2 Hyland, William. "Girl Crazy" George Gershwin: A New Biography, Greenwood Publishing Group, 2003, ISBN   0-275-98111-8, pp. 74, 131–132 [ dead link ]
  13. Wyatt, Robert; Johnson, John Andrew. "Chronology, 1930" The George Gershwin Reader, Oxford University Press US, 2004, ISBN   0-19-513019-7, p. 318
  14. Stempel, Larry. Showtime: A History of the Broadway Musical Theater. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2010, p. 311
  15. Schwartz, Steve."Review:'Girl Crazy'", classical.net, accessed February 16, 2010