Today's Birthdays 8/8

[do_re_milla]

Posted: 8/8/04 at 11:25am

Victor Young 08/08/1900 - Nov 10, 1956 Lyricist, Composer, Performer - MURDER AT THE VANITIES (Earl Carroll Cameo appearance (his only time on stage as an actor), Bob Cummings, Bela Lugosi); 7TH HEAVEN (Gloria DeHaven, Ricardo Montalbon, Bea Arthur, Chita Rivera)

Dayton Lummis 08/08/1903 - Mar 23, 1988 performer - orig EDWARD, MY SON (Peggy Ashcroft, Ian Hunter, 1950 AS YOU LIKE IT (Kate Hepburn, Richard Hepburn)

Sylvia Sidney 08/08/1910 - Jul 1, 1999 performer - origs ENTER LAUGHING (Alan Arkin, Vivian Blaine); ME JACK, YOU JILL (Russ Thacker, Lisa Kirk, Barbara Baxley); VIEUX CARRE (Olive Deering, Iris Whitney); film's AN AMERICAN TRAGEDY; DEAD END; STREET SCENE; SABOTAGE; BEETLEJUICE

Rosetta LeNoire 08/08/1911 - Mar 17, 2002 Producer, Writer, Performer, Other, Choreographer, goddaughter of Bill "BOJANGLES" Robinson, Founded AMAS Musical Theatre in 1968 - THE HOT MIKADO; I HAD A BALL; BUBBLING BROWN SUGAR

Anne Francine 08/08/1917 - Dec 3, 1999 performer, I only saw Anne perform in Cabaret Clubs, also had the privilege of working w/her at the O'Neill Center Cabaret Symposium; She's 1 of my all time favs, a brilliant comedianne; in her club acts, she was famous for going up on her lyrics & coming up w/a perfect line. Turns out sadly that these were symptoms of mini strokes which lead to a bigger 1 leaving her unable to speak/sing clearly. So sad - origs THE FILES; BY THE BEAUTIFUL SEA (Shirley Booth, Mary Harmon, Mae Barnes); THE GREAT SEBASTIANS (Lynn Fontanne, Alfred Lunt; TENDERLOIN; MAME; A BROADWAY MUSICAL; 1987 ANYTHING GOES (Patti LuPone, Howard McGillin)

Esther Williams 08/08/1923 performer - film's DANGEROUS WHEN WET; NEPTUNE'S DAUGHTER; TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALL GAME

Rory Calhoun 08/08/1923 - 4/28/1999 performer - film's 1 of my fav Marilyn Monroe movie RIVER OF NO RETURN

Ed Kenney 08/08/1933 performer - origs SHANGRI-LA; FLOWER DRUM SONG; 13 DAUGHTERS (Don Ameche, Sylvia Sims [another wonderful Cabaret Diva]}

Dustin Hoffman 08/08/1937 Producer, Director, Performer, Stage Manager, Oscar Winner - A COOK FOR MR. GENERAL (Geo. Furth); JIMMY SHINE (Rue McClanahan, Cleavon Little, Pamela Payton-Wright); ALL OVER TOWN (Jill Eikenberry, Patti Perkins, Wm LeMassena); DEATH OF A SALESMAN; film's RAINMAN, TOOTSIE

Connie Stevens 08/08/1938 performer, Eddie Fisher's ex, Joely Fisher's mom- HILARITIES; STAR SPANGLED GIRL (Richard Benjamin, Anthony Perkins); film's PARRISH (can't figure out why Claudette Colbert made this 1)

Marcia Lewis 08/08/1938 performer & terrific cabaret singer - 1969 TIME OF YOUR LIFE; RAGS (Teresa Stratas, opera divissima(!), Larry Kert, Andy Gale, Judy Kuhn, Dick Latessa, Audry Lavine(another terrific cabaret singer!), Terrence Mann, Lonny Price - What a great cast! Another 1 I wish I saw. Any chance this show is fixable & can be brought back?); ROZA (Georgia Brown, Neal Ben-Ari); 1989 ORPHEUS DESCENDING (Vanessa Redgrave, Tammy Grimes, Kevin Anderson); 1996 CHICAGO

Percy Granger 08/08/1945 - Mar 10, 1997 writer - EMINENT DOMAIN (Philip Bosco, Betty Miller)

Keith Carradine 08/08/1949 performer - orig HAIR (replacement); FOXFIRE (Hume Cronin, Jessica Tandy); WILL ROGERS FOLLIES (Dee Hoty, Cady Hufman, Dick Latessa, Paul Ukena, Jr.)

Kohl Sudduth 08/08/1974 performer, Skipp Sudduth's bro - TAKE ME OUT

SHOWS THAT OPENED ON THIS DATE:

1989 Shenandoah - John Cullum, Thomas Cavanagh

2002 Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune

ON THIS DAY IN:

1975 Liza Minnelli to the rescue! With only six days to learn the role of merry murderess Roxie Hart, the Academy Award-winning stage and film star agrees to fill in for an ailing Gwen Verdon in Chicago. Minnelli will stay with the show until mid-September. Always willing to do a friend a favor, Minnelli will make a highly-publicized return to the stage in 1997 as she fills in for a vacationing Julie Andrews in the musical Victor/Victoria.

2002 Edie Falco and Stanley Tucci open on Broadway in Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune at the Belasco Theatre. This marks the Broadway debut for Terrence McNally's romance, which played Off-Broadway's Manhattan Theatre Club in 1987. The production has been much in the press due to the presence of screen actors Falco and Tucci and their onstage nudity throughout the opening scene.

(sources: IBDB, NYT On This Day, & 440.com’s Those Were The Days, Playbill.com)

Milla