Sons o' Fun

Last updated
Sons o' Fun
Music Sammy Fain
Jack Yellen
LyricsSammy Fain
Jack Yellen
Book Harold "Chic" Johnson
John "Ole" Olsen
Hal Block
Productions1941 Broadway

Sons o' Fun is a musical revue written by the comedy team of Olsen and Johnson, consisting of John "Ole" Olsen and Harold "Chic" Johnson, also starring Ella Logan and Carmen Miranda, [1] with music and lyrics by Sammy Fain and Jack Yellen. The revue ran on Broadway from December 1, 1941, through August 29, 1943.

Contents

Production

Sons o' Fun opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on December 1, 1941, and remained there until March 29, 1943, when it transferred to the 46th Street Theatre, remaining there until the show's closing on August 29, 1943. The musical was directed by Lee and J.J. Shubert and produced by Eddie Dowling. It ran for a total of 742 performances. [2] It included performances by The Blackburn Twins.

Related Research Articles

Jerry Herman American composer and lyricist

Gerald Sheldon Herman was an American composer and lyricist, known for his work in Broadway musical theater.

Clifton Webb American actor, singer, dancer

Webb Parmelee Hollenbeck, known professionally as Clifton Webb, was an American actor, dancer, and singer remembered for his roles in such films as Laura (1944), The Razor's Edge (1946), and Sitting Pretty (1948). Webb was Oscar-nominated for all three. He was known for his stage appearances in the plays of Noël Coward, including Blithe Spirit, as well as appearances on Broadway in a number of successful musical revues.

This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1930.

This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1923.

Eric Blore English actor

Eric Blore Sr. was an English actor and writer. His early stage career, mostly in the West End of London, centred on revue and musical comedy, but also included straight plays. He wrote sketches for and appeared in variety. In the 1930s Blore acted mostly in Broadway productions. He made his last London appearance in 1933 in the Fred Astaire hit Gay Divorce. Between 1930 and 1955 he made more than 60 Hollywood films, becoming particularly well known for playing butlers and other superior domestic servants. He retired in 1956 for health reasons, and died in Hollywood in 1959 at the age of 71.

Winter Garden Theatre Broadway theatre in Manhattan, New York

The Winter Garden Theatre is a Broadway theatre at 1634 Broadway in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It opened in 1911 under designs by architect William Albert Swasey. The Winter Garden's current design dates to 1922, when it was completely remodeled by Herbert J. Krapp. Due to the size of its auditorium, stage, and backstage facilities, it is favored for large musical productions. It has 1,600 seats and is operated by The Shubert Organization. The auditorium interior is a New York City landmark.

Betty Garrett American actress, comedian, singer and dancer (1919–2011)

Betty Garrett was an American actress, comedian, singer and dancer. She originally performed on Broadway, and was then signed to a film contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. She appeared in several musical films, then returned to Broadway and made guest appearances on several television series.

Imperial Theatre Broadway theatre in Manhattan, New York

The Imperial Theatre is a Broadway theatre located at 249 West 45th Street in Midtown Manhattan. The theater has a capacity of 1,417.

<i>Hellzapoppin</i> (musical)

Hellzapoppin is a musical revue written by the comedy team of Olsen and Johnson, consisting of John "Ole" Olsen and Harold "Chic" Johnson, with music and lyrics by Sammy Fain and Charles Tobias. The revue was a hit, running for over three years, and was at the time the longest-running Broadway musical, with 1,404 performances, making it one of only three plays to run more than 500 performances in the 1930s.

Martin Charnin was an American lyricist, writer, and theatre director. Charnin's best-known work is as conceiver, director and lyricist of the musical Annie.

Bobby Howes Actor (1895–1972)

Bobby Howes was a British entertainer who was a leading musical comedy performer in London's West End theatres in the 1930s and 1940s.

Max Adrian Northern Irish actor

Max Adrian was an Irish stage, film and television actor and singer. He was a founding member of both the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre.

Chic Johnson Vaudevillian and Comedian

Harold Ogden "Chic" Johnson was the barrel-chested half of the American comedy team of Olsen and Johnson, known for his strangely infectious, high-pitched "Woo-Woo" laugh.

Morosco Theatre Broadway theatre in Manhattan, New York

The Morosco Theatre was a Broadway theatre near Times Square in New York City from 1917 to 1982. It housed many notable productions and its demolition, along with four adjacent theaters, was controversial.

Olsen and Johnson

John Sigvard "Ole" Olsen and Harold Ogden "Chic" Johnson were American comedians of vaudeville, radio, the Broadway stage, motion pictures and television. Their shows were noted for their crazy blackout gags and orchestrated mayhem. Their most famous concept, Hellzapoppin, has become show-business shorthand for freewheeling, anything-goes comedy.

<i>Hellzapoppin</i> (film) 1941 film

Hellzapoppin' is a 1941 film adaptation of Hellzapoppin, the musical that ran on Broadway from 1938 to 1941. It was a production for Universal Pictures directed by H. C. Potter. Although the Broadway cast was initially slated to appear in the film, except for Olsen and Johnson and the Whitey's Lindy Hoppers, no one else from any of the stage productions appeared in the movie. The cast includes Ole Olsen and Chic Johnson, both of whom produced and starred in the Broadway musical, as well as Martha Raye, Mischa Auer, Shemp Howard, Slim and Slam, and Whitey's Lindy Hoppers. The film is fourth wall breaking and full of surreal humour.

Laffing Room Only is a vaudeville revue in two acts by Ole Olsen, Chic Johnson, and Eugene Conrad, with music and lyrics by Burton Lane. This was the first show for which Burton Lane wrote both the words and the music. It was produced by the Shuberts, Olsen, and Johnson at the Winter Garden Theatre, New York City, opening December 23, 1944. Laffing Room Only was staged by John Murray Anderson, with comedy directed by Edward F. Cline, music directed by John McManus, dances by Robert Alton, settings by Stewart Chaney, and costumes by Billy Livingston. The production was supervised by Harry Kaufman. It ran for 232 performances, closing on July 14, 1945.

John Golden

John Lionel Golden was an American actor, songwriter, author, and theatrical producer. As a songwriter, he is best-known as lyricist for "Poor Butterfly" (1916). He produced many Broadway shows and four films.

Jesse C. Huffman (1869–1935) was an American theatrical director. Between 1906 and 1932 he directed or staged over 200 shows, mostly for the Shubert Brothers. Many of them were musical revues, musicals or operettas. He is known for The Passing Show series of revues that he staged from 1914 to 1924 at the Winter Garden Theatre on Broadway, daring alternatives to the Ziegfeld Follies.

The Cotton Club Boys were African American chorus line entertainers who, from 1934, performed class act dance routines in musical revues produced by the Cotton Club until 1940, when the club closed, then as part of Cab Calloway's revue on tour through 1942.

References

  1. "Sons o' Fun – Broadway Musical – Original | IBDB".
  2. Songwriters Hall of Fame