Today's Birthdays 9/23
Today's Birthdays 9/23
#0Today's Birthdays 9/23
Posted: 9/22/06 at 9:14pm
Caesar Augustus 9/23/63 BC - 8/19/14 AD born in Rome. 1st Roman Emperor.
Baroness Orczy 09/23/1865 - Nov 12, 1947 Source Material, Writer - SCARLET PIMPERNELL (play & musical)(Christine Andreas, Doug Sills, Terrance Mann, Sutton Foster, Craig Rubano)
Walter Pidgeon 09/23/1897 - Sep 25, 1984 performer - TAKE ME ALONG (Jackie Gleason, Eileen Herlie, Una Merkel, Valerie Harper); 1966 DINNER AT 8 (Pamela Tiffin, Darren McGavin, June Havoc, Arlene Francis, Judith Barcroft); film's Mrs. Miniver, How Green was My Valley
Frederick Hazlitt Brennan 09/23/1901 - Jul 1, 1962 Hidden Valley, CA writer - THE WOOKEY (Edmund Gwenn); STICK-IN-THE-MUD (Jose Ferrer, Rex Ingram); MAGDALENA (Music by Heitor Villa-Lobos; Lyrics by Robert Wright and George Forrest)(John Raitt, Irina Petina, Dorothy Sarnoff)
Mickey Rooney 09/23/1920 performer son of Joe Yule - SUGAR BABIES (Ann Miller, Ann Jillian, Sid Stone); film's forever Mickey & Judy movies, NATIONAL VELVET, Boy’s Town, Captains Courageous, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, The Human Comedy, The Black Stallion, Babes in Arms, Babes on Broadway, Andy Hardy series
Ray Charles (Robinson) 9/23/1930 - 6/10/2004 singer/performer, source mat'l -‘The Genius’: Grammy Award-winning singer: Georgia on My Mind [1960], Let the Good Times Roll [1960], Hit the Road Jack [1961], I Can’t Stop Loving You [1962], Crying Time [1966],Lifetime Achievement Award of 1986; tv's & film's The Blues Brothers, THE GOLDEN GIRLS, The Nanny, Ray
Pat Suzuki (Chiyoko Suzuki) 09/23/1934 performer - orig FLOWER DRUM SONG; tv's Year of the Dragon; she played Dorothy in summer stock Wizard of Oz
Romy Schneider 9/23/1938 - 5/29/1982 performer - film's What’s New Pussycat?, Bloodline, Death Watch, La Passante
Julio Iglesias 9/23/1943 singer/performer: To All the Girls I’ve Loved Before [w/Willie Nelson]; Guinness Book of Records: sales of more than 100 million copies of 60 LPs in five languages; soccer: professional goalie [Spain]; tv's GOLDEN GIRLS
George C. Wolfe 09/23/1954 Producer, Writer, Lyricist, Source Material, Director, Other - JELLY'S LAST JAM (Gregory Hines, Mary Bond Davis, Keith David, Savion Glover, Stephanie Pope, Ann Duquesnay); ANGELS IN AMERICA I & II, ELAINE STRITCH AT LIBERTY; TAKE ME OUT; 2006 Mother Courage in CP
Pippa Pearthree 09/23/1956 performer - WHOSE LIFE IS IT ANYWAY? (Tom Conti[debut], Jean Marsh); Frozen; The History Boys [replacement]
Jason Alexander (Jason Scott Greenspan) 09/23/1959 performer - orig MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG (Liz Callaway [debut], Tonya Pinkins, Lonny Price, Daisy Prince, Ann Morrison); THE RINK (Liza Minelli, Chita Rivera, Scott Ellis, Rob Marshall[u/s]); BROADWAY BOUND (John Randolph, Phyllis Newman, Linda Lavin, Ed Herlihy, Scott Wise, Debbie Shapiro, Faith Prince); ACCOMPLICE (Pamela Brull, Michael McKean, Natalia Nogulich, by Rupert Holmes); tv's SEINFELD; Monk; How to Go Out on a Date in Queens
Happy Birthday TsuHsi
SHOWS THAT OPENED ON THIS DATE:
1940 The Time of Your Life with William Bendix, Celeste Holm; Gene Kelly and Eddie Dowling
1974 Despite the bomb scare from a few nights before, Angela Lansbury opens tonight in the revival of Gypsy at the Winter Garden Theatre. Following in the footsteps of the legendary Ethel Merman was probably very frightening, but Lansbury wins over everyone. Variety critic Hobe Morrison reports, however, that she had "visible stage fright during much of the first act." The show will run 120 performances.
1980 Passione with Jerry Stiller, Dick Latessa, dir'd by Frank Langella
1982 A Doll's Life with George Hearn, Betsy Joslyn, Patti Cohenour and Peter Gallagher
2002 Funny Girl - The Actors Fund hosts a special concert version of the musical Funny Girl with numerous stage stars alternating in the title role of Fanny Brice. These include: Carolee Carmello, Kristin Chenoweth, Sutton Foster, Ana Gasteyer, Whoopi Goldberg, Spencer Kayden, Jane Krakowski, Judy Kuhn, La Chanze, Ricki Lake, Andrea Martin, Idina Menzel, Julia Murney, Bebe Neuwirth and Lillias White. Peter Gallagher was terriffic!
ON THIS DAY IN:
1939 Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis, died in London.
1946 There is a vote today on behalf of the New York Drama Critics Circle to ensure a "best play" citation every year, no matter what the quality of the year's offerings. 1946 poses no problem, however; Arthur Miller's post-war classic, All My Sons, is the winner for Best American Play.
1968 The Juilliard School starts its new four-year program of the Drama Division. As classes begin today, Kevin Kline and Patti LuPone are present. The school's director, John Houseman, will go on to call this first class of students "Group I". Among other graduates of this prestigious school's program are William Hurt, Christopher Reeve, Keith David and Kevin Spacey.
1973 Former Argentine president Juan Peron was returned to power.
1987 Legendary dancer and choreographer, Bob Fosse, died today while walking down a Washington, D.C. street with wife Gwen Verdon. He had been directing a revival of Sweet Charity at the National Theatre. Fosse's style of choreography will always be remembered from the original Broadway productions of Chicago and Pippin. The hit musical revue of his choreography, Fosse, opened on Broadway in 1999 and went on to win the 1999 Tony Award for Best Musical.
2001 Unexpected drama on the stage of the Martin Beck Theatre. Kiss Me, Kate, which was supposed to close today in the wake of the WTC attacks, gets an 11th-hour reprieve when the cast agrees to give back part of their salaries to buy tickets for the show (donated to firefighters and relief workers). The tearful announcement is made from the stage after the final curtain, at which the producer tears up the closing notice. The show goes on to run through the end of the year. Others aren't so lucky: plunging box office receipts kayo A Thousand Clowns, Blast, Bat Boy, Stones in His Pockets and If You Leave Me...I'm Going With You!, all of which play their final performances today.
2002 Also on this date the final issue of Show Music magazine appears. The glossy quarterly bible for lovers of musical theatre was founded in the early 1980s, and was taken under the wing of Connecticut-based Goodspeed Musicals in 1991. The magazine was cherished by readers who sought news and reviews about musicals and cast albums from Broadway and around the world, but was not a moneymaker for Goodspeed.
2003 New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg presents the key to Studio 54 to its new owner, Roundabout Theatre Company artistic director Todd Haimes, at a special celebration commemorating the non-profit's purchase of the former discotheque as its new Broadway home. Actually, it's full-circle for the space, which started life in the 1920s as a Broadway theatre: The Gallo Opera House.
(sources: IBDB, IMDB, NYT's ON THIS DAY, 440.com’s Those Were The Days, Playbill.com)
Milla
#3re: Today's Birthdays 9/23
Posted: 9/23/06 at 9:00pm
It's a good day for birthdays. 
The choice may have been mistaken, The choosing was not... "Every day has the potential to be the greatest day of your life." - Lin-Manuel Miranda
Coolkid123
Chorus Member Joined: 9/23/06
#5re: Today's Birthdays 9/23
Posted: 9/23/06 at 9:09pmDidn't Fosse die today? That's what my Today in Musical History book says.
SondheimGeek: Is it slightly pathetic that you guys get to be Jedi bitches, and I'm Bitchy the Hutt?
LizzieCurry: No, you're more memorable
LizzieCurry: No, you're more memorable
#6re: Today's Birthdays 9/23
Posted: 9/23/06 at 9:30pm
Yes, SG, good point. It's noted in the "On This Day" section of my post. A sad day.... Thankfully, we were graced with Gwen Verdon's presence thru 10/17/2000.
"1987 Legendary dancer and choreographer, Bob Fosse, died today while walking down a Washington, D.C. street with wife Gwen Verdon. He had been directing a revival of Sweet Charity at the National Theatre. Fosse's style of choreography will always be remembered from the original Broadway productions of Chicago and Pippin. The hit musical revue of his choreography, Fosse, opened on Broadway in 1999 and went on to win the 1999 Tony Award for Best Musical."
Milla
#7re: Today's Birthdays 9/23
Posted: 9/23/06 at 9:55pmStupidity on my part... thanks for pointing that out!
SondheimGeek: Is it slightly pathetic that you guys get to be Jedi bitches, and I'm Bitchy the Hutt?
LizzieCurry: No, you're more memorable
LizzieCurry: No, you're more memorable
#8re: Today's Birthdays 9/23
Posted: 9/23/06 at 10:08pm
No prob, SG. It was easy to miss, there was so much info in the post.
Milla
#9re: Today's Birthdays 9/23
Posted: 9/23/06 at 10:17pmCoolkid123, I agree with you. I love Funny Girl.
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