Thornton Wilder, Grace Wilder, Telegraph Hill & ButohDrawing
Titanic
Titanic
Kathy Bates - 1967
photographer unknown
Showing posts with label Tammy Grimes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tammy Grimes. Show all posts
April 20, 2021
September 22, 2020
Titanic articles/mentions
~
Gavin Bryars ~ The Sinking of the Titanic
Titanic LaserDisc
mentions:
Tammy Grimes ~ The Unsinkable Molly Brown
~
June 12, 2020
May 19, 2019
February 4, 2019
Otto Bettmann photo archive
~ Ella Fitzgerald ~ Queen of Jazz
Audrey Hepburn
Tammy Grimes
Bettmann Archive founder - 1947
photo by
~
~
January 30, 2019
20,000 vinyl LPs 167: Tammy Grimes ~ The Unsinkable Molly Brown
~
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A1 - Overture
A2 - I Ain't Down Yet
A3 - Belly Up To The Bar, Boys
A4 - I've A'ready Started In
A5 - I'll Never Say No
A6 - My Own Brass Bed
A7 - The Denver Police
A8 - Bea-U-Ti-Ful People Of Denver
A9 - Are You Sure
Side 2:
B1 - I Ain't Down Yet (Reprise)
B2 - Happy Birthday, Mrs. J. J. Brown
B3 - Bon Jour (The Language Song)
B4 - If I Knew
B5 - Chick-A-Pen
B6 - Keep-A-Hoppin' And Leadville Johnny Brown
B7 - Up Where The People Are
B8 - Dolce Far Niente And I May Never Fall In Love With You
B9 - I Ain't Down Yet (Finale)
Credits:
Illustration – Tom Morrow*
Gavin Bryars ~ The Sinkinig of the Titanic
RMS Titanic images
Titanic (1997 film
Tammy Grimes Stage work
NY Times ~ obit
Playbill ~ obit
Variety ~ obit
Styrous® ~ Wednesday, January 30, 2019
vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
Today is the birthday of Tammy Grimes who had a unique, sort of quirky voice that intrigued me from the first time I heard it.
Known for a speaking voice compared to a buzz saw, a "lyric baritone" singing voice that one critic called "a low, throaty quiver, a hum that takes wings", and "the stage personality of a daffy but endearing pseudo-English eccentric".
Tammy Grimes was a Broadway theatre actress, who was catapulted to stardom with The Unsinkable Molly Brown.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown is a 1960 musical with music and lyrics by Meredith Willson whose previous credit was The Music Man. The libretto was by Richard Morris. The plot is a fictionalized account of the life of Margaret Brown and her wealthy miner-husband, who survived the sinking of the RMS Titanic. The Titanic incident is but a small part of the musical.
Margaret (aka Molly) Brown giving Captain Arthur Henry Rostron an award on May 29, 1912 for his service in the rescue of survivors of the Titanic.
Tammy Grimes won a Tony Award for her portrayal of the real life character, Margaret Brown, but was largely unknown in 1960 when she was cast in the title role. The show’s producers considered the music and lyrics by Willson more marketable than Grimes, so, declined to put her name above the title, which meant that (because of the Tony regulations of the time) she could be nominated only in the featured-actress category.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown is a 1960 musical with music and lyrics by Meredith Willson whose previous credit was The Music Man. The libretto was by Richard Morris. The plot is a fictionalized account of the life of Margaret Brown and her wealthy miner-husband, who survived the sinking of the RMS Titanic. The Titanic incident is but a small part of the musical.
Margaret (aka Molly) Brown giving Captain Arthur Henry Rostron an award on May 29, 1912 for his service in the rescue of survivors of the Titanic.
photographer unknown
Tammy Grimes won a Tony Award for her portrayal of the real life character, Margaret Brown, but was largely unknown in 1960 when she was cast in the title role. The show’s producers considered the music and lyrics by Willson more marketable than Grimes, so, declined to put her name above the title, which meant that (because of the Tony regulations of the time) she could be nominated only in the featured-actress category.
vinyl LP front cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Tammy Grimes portrayed the character of Margaret Brown and her rendition of I Ain't Down Yet is the absolutely best version of the tune (link below). Although it sounds nothing like it, the song has the essence of Hey Look Me Over from the musical, Wildcat, which starred Lucille Ball (links below);
both songs proclaim the refusal to admit defeat even at the lowest point in
one's life and they are rousing, inspiring, fight and get-on-with-life
songs.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP front cover
Illustration by Tom Morrow
photo of album cover by Styrous®
vinyl LP front cover
Illustration by Tom Morrow
photo of album cover by Styrous®
Grimes made her debut on the New York stage at
the Neighborhood Playhouse in May 1955 in Jonah and the Whale.
In 1964 The Unsinkable Molly Brown was made into a movie. Debbie Reynolds (link below) portrayed the role of Molly Brown and did a great interpretation of the role.
In 1964 The Unsinkable Molly Brown was made into a movie. Debbie Reynolds (link below) portrayed the role of Molly Brown and did a great interpretation of the role.
In 1997 Kathy Bates portrayed the Molly Brown character in the film Titanic (link below);
she did not sing but did a marvelous job of projecting a strong-willed
woman who takes everything in her stride but nothing for granted. I've
always liked ANY film Bates has been in. Titanic, directed by James Cameron, won Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Film Editing.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
Grimes made her Broadway stage debut as an understudy for Kim Stanley in the starring role in Bus Stop in June 1955.
On May 16, 1960, she acted and sang as Mehitabel in an abridged version of the musical Archy and Mehitabel as part of the syndicated TV anthology series Play of the Week presented by David Susskind, and co-written by Mel Brooks and Joe Darion. The cast included Eddie Bracken, who reprised the role in the 1970 animated feature version Shinbone Alley with Carol Channing (link below) in the Mehitabel role, and Jules Munshin.
On May 16, 1960, she acted and sang as Mehitabel in an abridged version of the musical Archy and Mehitabel as part of the syndicated TV anthology series Play of the Week presented by David Susskind, and co-written by Mel Brooks and Joe Darion. The cast included Eddie Bracken, who reprised the role in the 1970 animated feature version Shinbone Alley with Carol Channing (link below) in the Mehitabel role, and Jules Munshin.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
Cleavon Little, Lauren Bacall, Tammy Grimes & Fritz Weaver -1970
vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
Grimes starred in her second Broadway musical, High Spirits, which opened on Broadway at the Alvin Theatre on April 7, 1964. It is an adaptation of the Noël Coward comic play Blithe Spirit, with
songs by Hugh Martin and Timothy Gray. It ran for 375 performances. The original cast recording of the Broadway cast was released by ABC Records and it made the Top 20.
High Spirits was nominated for eight Tony Awards, but did not win any of them. Other major musical nominees that same year (1964) were Funny Girl with Barbra Streisand (link below), and Hello, Dolly! with Carol Channing (link below); most of the major Tony wins went to Dolly!.
According to the Lyndon Johnson presidential diaries, on Wednesday 26th January, 1966, Grimes sang songs from The Unsinkable Molly Brown in the East Room of the White House.
She starred in her own ABC television series, The Tammy Grimes Show, which aired during the 1966–67 season on the ABC network. It Premiered on September 8, 1966, but was cancelled after only one month (links below).
In 1969 after almost a decade of performing in what The New York Times called "dubious delights", Grimes appeared in a revival of Private Lives by Noël Coward as Amanda, winning the Tony Award for Best Actress the next year.
High Spirits was nominated for eight Tony Awards, but did not win any of them. Other major musical nominees that same year (1964) were Funny Girl with Barbra Streisand (link below), and Hello, Dolly! with Carol Channing (link below); most of the major Tony wins went to Dolly!.
According to the Lyndon Johnson presidential diaries, on Wednesday 26th January, 1966, Grimes sang songs from The Unsinkable Molly Brown in the East Room of the White House.
She starred in her own ABC television series, The Tammy Grimes Show, which aired during the 1966–67 season on the ABC network. It Premiered on September 8, 1966, but was cancelled after only one month (links below).
In 1969 after almost a decade of performing in what The New York Times called "dubious delights", Grimes appeared in a revival of Private Lives by Noël Coward as Amanda, winning the Tony Award for Best Actress the next year.
photo: AP/REX/Shutterstock
The The Unsinkable Molly Brown record album came with a Souvenir Programme that had images from the stage production as well as bios of all the performers (link below).
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP back cover w/Souvenir Programme
Illustration by Tom Morrow
photo of album cover by Styrous®
vinyl LP back cover w/Souvenir Programme
Illustration by Tom Morrow
photo of album cover by Styrous®
vinyl LP back cover
photo by Styrous®
There are videos of her that demonstrate her bizarre voice on YouTube (links below) one, I Can't Remember Ever Loving You, was written by Randy Newman (link below).
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Grimes was born in Lynn, Massachusetts, on January 30, 1934. Her mother was Eola Willard (née Niles), a naturalist and spiritualist, and Luther Nichols Grimes, an innkeeper, country-club manager, and farmer. She studied singing with Beverley Peck Johnson.
Grimes married Christopher Plummer on August 16, 1956. She married Jeremy Slate in 1966 and divorced him a year later. She married composer Richard Bell in 1971 and the couple remained wed until Bell's death in 2005.
In 1965, Grimes made headlines after she had been beaten and injured twice in four days in New York City, by what were described as "white racists". According to a report, she believed the attacks were related to her association with several black entertainers and recent appearances in public with Sammy Davis Jr., who was said to be staging a nightclub act for her.
Grimes married Christopher Plummer on August 16, 1956. She married Jeremy Slate in 1966 and divorced him a year later. She married composer Richard Bell in 1971 and the couple remained wed until Bell's death in 2005.
In 1965, Grimes made headlines after she had been beaten and injured twice in four days in New York City, by what were described as "white racists". According to a report, she believed the attacks were related to her association with several black entertainers and recent appearances in public with Sammy Davis Jr., who was said to be staging a nightclub act for her.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Tammy Grimes died from natural causes on October 30, 2016, in Englewood, New Jersey. She was 82 years old.
vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Tammy Grimes died from natural causes on October 30, 2016, in Englewood, New Jersey. She was 82 years old.
Side 1:
A1 - Overture
A2 - I Ain't Down Yet
A3 - Belly Up To The Bar, Boys
A4 - I've A'ready Started In
A5 - I'll Never Say No
A6 - My Own Brass Bed
A7 - The Denver Police
A8 - Bea-U-Ti-Ful People Of Denver
A9 - Are You Sure
Side 2:
B1 - I Ain't Down Yet (Reprise)
B2 - Happy Birthday, Mrs. J. J. Brown
B3 - Bon Jour (The Language Song)
B4 - If I Knew
B5 - Chick-A-Pen
B6 - Keep-A-Hoppin' And Leadville Johnny Brown
B7 - Up Where The People Are
B8 - Dolce Far Niente And I May Never Fall In Love With You
B9 - I Ain't Down Yet (Finale)
Credits:
Illustration – Tom Morrow*
Viewfinder links:
archy, mehitabel & Carol
Lucille Ball
Eddie Bracken
Carol Channing
Noël Coward
Tammy Grimes
Debbie Reynolds
Titanic subjects: archy, mehitabel & Carol
Lucille Ball
Eddie Bracken
Carol Channing
Noël Coward
Tammy Grimes
Debbie Reynolds
Gavin Bryars ~ The Sinkinig of the Titanic
RMS Titanic images
Titanic (1997 film
Net links:
Tammy Grimes Filmography Tammy Grimes Stage work
NY Times ~ obit
Playbill ~ obit
Variety ~ obit
YouTube link:
Tammy Grimes ~ Dolce Far Niente
~ I Can't Remember Ever Loving You
~ Limehouse Blues
~ Quest-ce Que C'est
~ Sophisticated Lady
The Tammy Grimes Show ~
Part 1 (9 min., 50 sec.)
Part 2 (9 min., 44 sec.)
Part 3 (9 min., 24 sec.)
Tammy Grimes ~ Dolce Far Niente
~ I Can't Remember Ever Loving You
~ Limehouse Blues
~ Quest-ce Que C'est
~ Sophisticated Lady
The Tammy Grimes Show ~
Part 1 (9 min., 50 sec.)
Part 2 (9 min., 44 sec.)
Part 3 (9 min., 24 sec.)
photo by Leo Friedman
Styrous® ~ Wednesday, January 30, 2019
The Unsinkable Molly Brown Souvenir Programme
~
Souvenir Programme photographer credits:
Michael Denning
Friedman Abeles
Marth Holmes
Duane Michals
Daniel Ross, Galaxy
Maurice Seymour
Editta Sherman
Forence Vandamm
Milton H. Green
Viewfinder links:
Tammy Grimes
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
Styrous® ~ Saturday, January 26, 2019
Souvenir Programme front cover
Illustration by Tom Morrow
photo by Styrous®
selected pages from the booklet
Souvenir Programme photographer credits:
Michael Denning
Friedman Abeles
Marth Holmes
Duane Michals
Daniel Ross, Galaxy
Maurice Seymour
Editta Sherman
Forence Vandamm
Milton H. Green
Viewfinder links:
Tammy Grimes
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
Souvenir Programme back cover
photo by Styrous®
Styrous® ~ Saturday, January 26, 2019
~
~
January 15, 2019
20,000 vinyl LPs 164: archy, mehitabel & Carol
~
The opera is recorded on one side, with a sequel, Echoes Of Archy, was recorded on side 2. It tells the tale of life after archy has gone.
That same year a concert version was presented by the Little Orchestra Society at The Town Hall in New York City. With an expanded book, the addition of several lengthy ballet sequences, and a cast of animal characters, the rechristened Shinbone Alley preceded Cats by a couple of decades and was a precursor of the far more successful Andrew Lloyd Webber hit. It was one of the first Broadway shows to feature a fully integrated cast.
Carol Channing And Eddie Bracken (2) – Archy And Mehitabel (A Back-Alley Opera)
Label: Columbia Masterworks – OL 4968
Format: Vinyl, LP
Country: US
Released:
Genre: Stage & Screen
Style: Story, Musical
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A Archy And Mehitabel - A Back-Alley Opera
Side 2:
B Echoes Of Archy
Companies, etc.
Engineered At – Columbia Sound Laboratories
Designed At – Columbia Sound Laboratories
Credits:
Illustration [Uncredited] – George Herriman
Liner Notes – E. B. White*
Music By – George Kleinsinger
Narrator – David Wayne (3)
Photography By – Howard Zieff
Words By – Joe Darion
Notes
"From the book, the lives and times of archy and mehitabel, by Don Marquis"
Title styled entirely in lowercase on album.
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Matrix / Runout (Side 1, Runout): XLP15049-1K
Matrix / Runout (Side 2, Runout): XLP15050-1G
Other (Side 1): x"Lp" 15049
Other (Side 2): x"Lp" 15050
Viewfinder links:
Net links:
Carol Channing ~
Discography
Filmography
Theater credits
YouTube links:
Shinbone Alley
Tojours Gai
Styrous® ~ Tuesday, January 15. 2018
Carol Channing died this morning; once again, it was a shock to me to realize
that one of my idols was not going to live forever!
archy and mehitabel are the names of two fictional characters created in 1916, by Don Marquis, a columnist for The Evening Sun newspaper in New York City. Archy, a cockroach, and Mehitabel, an alley cat, appeared in hundreds of humorous verses and short stories in Marquis’ daily column, "The Sun Dial". Their exploits were first collected in the 1927 book archy and mehitabel, which remains in print today, and in two later volumes, archys life of mehitabel (1933) and archy does his part (1935). Many editions are recognized by their iconic illustrations by George Herriman, the creator of Krazy Kat.
Channing is at the beginning of her career; she is young, pretty and delightful as the ever upbeat (usually), frivolous and forever optimistic, Mehitabel; her leit motif is,”toujour gai”, always happy! Which she sings several times, even when things are not really so very happy!
A musical version, this recording, of the Archy and Mehitabel materials was recorded July 7, 1953 and April 9, 1954, entitled archy and mehitabel with Carol Channing as Mehitabel and Eddie Bracken as Archy, and narrated by David Wayne, with Percival Dove as Bill, the fierce tomcat. It was followed by echoes of archy, narrated by David Wayne, recorded August 31, 1954. The credits read: Words - Joe Darion, Music - George Kleinsinger. It was originally released as Columbia Masterworks ML 4963 in 1955.
My first awareness of her was in the late fifties with this recording, archy and mehitabel - a back-alley opera.
archy and mehitabel - a back-alley opera, began in 1954 as a Columbia Records concept album with Marquis' original title, featuring Eddie Bracken, Carol Channing, and David Wayne. The use of lower case for the names is intentional as the character, archy, is a cockroach who
can only type one letter at a time by jumping from the top of the
typwriter to the key typing one letter at a time; forget using the shift
key for capital letters.
archy and mehitabel are the names of two fictional characters created in 1916, by Don Marquis, a columnist for The Evening Sun newspaper in New York City. Archy, a cockroach, and Mehitabel, an alley cat, appeared in hundreds of humorous verses and short stories in Marquis’ daily column, "The Sun Dial". Their exploits were first collected in the 1927 book archy and mehitabel, which remains in print today, and in two later volumes, archys life of mehitabel (1933) and archy does his part (1935). Many editions are recognized by their iconic illustrations by George Herriman, the creator of Krazy Kat.
Channing is at the beginning of her career; she is young, pretty and delightful as the ever upbeat (usually), frivolous and forever optimistic, Mehitabel; her leit motif is,”toujour gai”, always happy! Which she sings several times, even when things are not really so very happy!
A musical version, this recording, of the Archy and Mehitabel materials was recorded July 7, 1953 and April 9, 1954, entitled archy and mehitabel with Carol Channing as Mehitabel and Eddie Bracken as Archy, and narrated by David Wayne, with Percival Dove as Bill, the fierce tomcat. It was followed by echoes of archy, narrated by David Wayne, recorded August 31, 1954. The credits read: Words - Joe Darion, Music - George Kleinsinger. It was originally released as Columbia Masterworks ML 4963 in 1955.
The opera is recorded on one side, with a sequel, Echoes Of Archy, was recorded on side 2. It tells the tale of life after archy has gone.
That same year a concert version was presented by the Little Orchestra Society at The Town Hall in New York City. With an expanded book, the addition of several lengthy ballet sequences, and a cast of animal characters, the rechristened Shinbone Alley preceded Cats by a couple of decades and was a precursor of the far more successful Andrew Lloyd Webber hit. It was one of the first Broadway shows to feature a fully integrated cast.
On May 16, 1960, an abridged version of the musical was broadcast under the original title archy & mehitabel as part of the syndicated TV anthology series Play of the Week presented by David Susskind. The cast included Bracken, Tammy Grimes, and Jules Munshin.
The story was made into an animated film musical in 1970, entitled, Shinbone Alley (link below), about a suicidal poet Archy (Eddie Bracken) who tries to end his life by jumping off a bridge, but awakens to find he has assumed the life of a cockroach and has become a part of a community of creatures living in a newspaper office. He also discovers that he can still write poetry, using a typewriter, and begins to enjoy his new life. Archy develops deep feelings for the lovely but self-destructive cat Mehitabel (Carol Channing), but will have to fight to win her from bad-boy tomcat Bill (Alan Reed, who was later to become, Fred Flintstone).
The story was made into an animated film musical in 1970, entitled, Shinbone Alley (link below), about a suicidal poet Archy (Eddie Bracken) who tries to end his life by jumping off a bridge, but awakens to find he has assumed the life of a cockroach and has become a part of a community of creatures living in a newspaper office. He also discovers that he can still write poetry, using a typewriter, and begins to enjoy his new life. Archy develops deep feelings for the lovely but self-destructive cat Mehitabel (Carol Channing), but will have to fight to win her from bad-boy tomcat Bill (Alan Reed, who was later to become, Fred Flintstone).
Carol Channing And Eddie Bracken (2) – Archy And Mehitabel (A Back-Alley Opera)
Label: Columbia Masterworks – OL 4968
Format: Vinyl, LP
Country: US
Released:
Genre: Stage & Screen
Style: Story, Musical
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A Archy And Mehitabel - A Back-Alley Opera
Side 2:
B Echoes Of Archy
Companies, etc.
Engineered At – Columbia Sound Laboratories
Designed At – Columbia Sound Laboratories
Credits:
Illustration [Uncredited] – George Herriman
Liner Notes – E. B. White*
Music By – George Kleinsinger
Narrator – David Wayne (3)
Photography By – Howard Zieff
Words By – Joe Darion
Notes
"From the book, the lives and times of archy and mehitabel, by Don Marquis"
Title styled entirely in lowercase on album.
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Matrix / Runout (Side 1, Runout): XLP15049-1K
Matrix / Runout (Side 2, Runout): XLP15050-1G
Other (Side 1): x"Lp" 15049
Other (Side 2): x"Lp" 15050
Viewfinder links:
Net links:
Carol Channing ~
Discography
Filmography
Theater credits
YouTube links:
Shinbone Alley
Tojours Gai
Carol Channing died on January 15, 2019, of natural causes at her home in
Rancho Mirage, California, sixteen days shy of her 98th birthday and a
day before the 55th anniversary of the opening of Hello, Dolly!
Toujour gai!
Styrous® ~ Tuesday, January 15. 2018
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