Does anyone remember 1981's 'The Supporting Cast' ?

[David10086]

Posted: 2/15/22 at 5:03pm

The other day I was reading about actress Betty Garrett who was most familiar to television audiences playing 'Irene Lorenzo' on 'All In The Family', and later the landlady 'Mrs. Babbish' on 'Laverne and Shirley'. Garrett, though, had a background in theater. 

According to the article, Garrett left the series 'Laverne and Shirley' in 1981 when 'Laverne and Shirley' was scheduled to end their run, but ABC then renewed the series for another two years. It was too late for Garrett - she had committed to a comedy on Broadway called 'The Supporting Cast' which also starred Hope Lange, Sandy Dennis, Joyce Van Patten and Jack Gilford.  The play ran for eight previews, and then lasted a month on Broadway before closing (it played August, 1981). Garrett couldn't return to 'L & S' because the writers permanently wrote out her character. 

 

Does anyone remember this play ? Was it very bad that it closed in a month ? With such a stellar cast, I would think it would have lasted longer - anyone know the details ? 

[PeterC6482]

Posted: 2/15/22 at 7:42pm

I saw it at a Saturday matinee preview in early August. It was lackluster. I did enjoy the cast, particularly Joyce Van Patten, Betty Garrett and Jack Gilford. It did poorly out of town (Eisenhower Theatre, Washington, D.C.) and was having money problems. It was booked into the Nederlanders' Biltmore Theatre on W. 47th Street. Terry Allen Kramer was the lead producer. She asked Jimmy Nederlander for help. He put some $$ in. It didn't help, since the NY reviews were bad. I think it played for less than a month. The Biltmore was then snapped up by the murder mystery  "A Talent For Murder," which had a temporary booking at the Barrymore due to Katharine Hepburn's imminent arrival in "The West Side Waltz." "A Talent For Murder," starring Claudette Colbert, did grim business and closed around Thanksgiving. The Biltmore was then taken by "Deathtrap," transferring from the Music Box.

Updated On: 2/15/22 at 07:42 PM

[ijest22]

Posted: 2/16/22 at 10:38am

I saw it and thoroughly enjoyed it. Fairly standard sitcom stuff, but the cast was amazing. They all came out after the show and signed and chatted. Sandy Dennis was everything you’d expect, feeding the local alley cats.  There’s a grainy tape of it floating around the internet somewhere. 

[PeterC6482]

Posted: 2/16/22 at 12:18pm

Yes, it was very funny..there was a great deal of laughter and applause from the audience. I think the money was the main problem--not enough was available to let the show build an audience.

Updated On: 2/16/22 at 12:18 PM

[David10086]

Posted: 2/17/22 at 7:45pm

Thanks everyone for the responses! From what I read it sounds like it had a fun story to it. Too bad it’s never been revived. 

[cliffordbradshaw2]

Posted: 2/17/22 at 10:43pm

Has anyone mentioned that "The Supporting Cast" was written by George Furth, who wrote the books for "Company," "The Act," and "Merrily We Roll Along"?  "Merrily" began previews not long after "Supporting Cast" closed.  Furth's other Broadway plays include the flops "Precious Sons" and "Getting Away with Murder" (the latter co-authored by Sondheim), and one success, "Twigs."

[Jarethan]

Posted: 2/18/22 at 10:32am

I enjoyed it quite a lot, which is surprising, given that I thought that Furth was a borderline hack.  I remember laughing a lot...it did have a terrific cast and Lange brought a lot of warmth.  The funny thing is that, although I do remember enjoying it thoroughly, I do not remember anything about the plot.  Go figure.

[David10086]

Posted: 2/22/22 at 1:22am

It’s too bad shows like these never get a second chance. Not even in smaller houses. 

[SidebySidebyLogan]

Posted: 2/22/22 at 9:49am

Agreed. Flop musicals are given a second life all the time. I’d be interested to learn about some straight plays with a similar trajectory 

[David10086]

Posted: 2/22/22 at 10:12pm

Me, too. Does anyone know any flop plays which have been revived in the past 60 years? I’m sure it’s very few.