Alan Jay Lerner: A Lyricist's Letters (58 page)

    
22
Yentl
(1983) is a major film project co-produced, co-written, directed by and starring Barbra Streisand.

    
23
Ernst Lubitsch (1892–1947) was a major figure in the early days of sound film. His musicals included
The Love Parade
(1929),
Monte Carlo
(1930), and
The Smiling Lieutenant
(1931). His version of
The Merry Widow
(1934), which Lerner refers to in this letter, starred his regular collaborators, Maurice Chevalier and Jeanette MacDonald.

    
24
Joseph Losey (1909–84) was an American director, well known for his screen versions of three Pinter plays, including
The Servant
(1963). In 1979, he released a film of Mozart’s
Don Giovanni
, which Lerner alludes to in this letter.

    
25
Perhaps
Annie
(1977) was especially in Lerner’s mind because he was collaborating with its composer, Charles Strouse, at that point. The film version of the show was released in 1982.

    
26
Robert Lantz (1914–2007) was a major talent agent, with clients including Leonard Bernstein and Bette Davis.

    
27
Carol Lawson, “Broadway,”
New York Times
, May 1, 1981, C2
.

    
28
“Lerner Weds Actress He Directed as Eliza,”
New York Times
, August 19, 1981, C17.

    
29
Mel Gussow, “The Stage: ‘My Fair Lady’ Returns,”
New York Times
, August 19, 1981, C17
.

    
30
Herbert Ross (1927–2001) was a producer, director, and choreographer. In his early days as a performer, he appeared in musicals such as
Something for the Boys
(1943). On film, he choreographed
Funny Girl
(1968) and directed
Goodbye Mr. Chips
(1969) and
Funny Lady
(1975). He choreographed Lerner’s
On a Clear Day
(1965) on the stage.

    
31
Twyla Tharp (1941–) has choreographed for many of the world’s great ballet companies. Her Broadway work includes
When We Were Very Young
(1980),
Catherine Wheel
(1981),
Singin’ in the Rain
(1985), and
Movin’ Out
(2001).

    
32
Actor James Coburn (1928–2002) enjoyed a 45-year career that included almost 70 movies.

    
33
Clint Eastwood (1930–) is a multi-award-winning director, producer and actor whose dozens of movies include the film version of Lerner’s
Paint Your Wagon
(1969).

    
34
Burt Reynolds (1936–) is an actor and director. His many screen appearances include
Smokey and the Bandit
(1977) and
Boogie Nights
(1997).

    
35
Carol Lawson, “Broadway,”
New York Times
, February 19, 1982, C2.

    
36
Script and documentation in Liz Robertson’s private archive.

    
37
Vera Lynn (1917–) is a singer and actress, perhaps best known for entertaining British troops during the Second World War. She was called “The Forces’ Sweetheart.”

    
38
Harry Secombe (1921–2001) was an actor and singer, known for appearing on the BBC radio series
The Goon Show
and in musicals such as
Pickwick
(London, 1963; Broadway, 1965).

    
39
Lerner is referring to Richard Harris, who had taken over from Burton in the anniversary revival of
Camelot
.

    
40
Wagner
(1983) is an epic film about the life of Wagner, in which Burton played the great German composer.

    
41
Len Cariou (1939–) is a Canadian actor, well known for creating the role of Todd in Sondheim’s
Sweeney Todd
(1979) on Broadway. His other Broadway credits include
Applause
(1970),
A Little Night Music
(1973), and
Teddy & Alice
(1987).

    
42
Carol Lawson, “Broadway,”
New York Times
, September 3, 1982, C2
.

    
43
Lawson, “Broadway,” C2.

    
44
Lawson, “Broadway,” C2.

    
45
Leslie Bennetts, “Alan Jay Lerner Brews a Political Love Story,”
New York Times
, May 8, 1983, H1
.

    
46
Letter from Lerner to Roger Schlesinger, November 25, 1983. Copy in Liz Robertson’s private archives.

    
47
David Aukin (1942–) is a producer. He was artistic director of the Hampstead Theatre and the Leicester Haymarket Theatre, executive director of the Royal National Theatre, and head of film at Channel 4.

    
48
Hugh Wooldridge is a director and producer, whose credits include international productions of
Jesus Christ Superstar
and
The Rocky Horror Show
, as well as the annual
Night of 1000 Voices
at London’s Royal Albert Hall.

    
49
Armand Gerrard is a producer and general manager, with numerous credits including a UK tour of
Calamity Jane
(1996).

    
50
Richard Condon (1937–91) was an impresario and theater manager. He took charge of the Theatre Royal, Norwich, from 1972.

    
51
Julia McKenzie (1941–) is a television and stage actress. She has a strong association with the musicals of Stephen Sondheim, and is also television’s
Miss Marple
.

    
52
Jane Lapotaire (1944–) is a British stage and screen actress. She was well known in this period for creating the title role in
Piaf
(1978) for the Royal Shakespeare Company; for its move to Broadway in 1981, she won a Tony Award.

    
53
Gemma Craven (1950–) is an Irish actress who appeared in the movie musical
The Slipper and the Rose
(1976) and the BBC drama
Pennies from Heaven
(1978). Her stage credits include
They’re Playing our Song
(London, 1980), for which she won an Olivier Award.

    
54
Dear Anyone
(1983) was a flop West End musical.

    
55
Chita Rivera (1933–) is an actress and singer, whose credits include creating the role of Anita in
West Side Story
(1957). She was celebrated at the Kennedy Center Honors in 2002.

    
56
In Kander and Ebb’s
The Rink
on Broadway.

    
57
Bernice Massi (1933–) appeared in numerous Broadway musicals, including
No Strings
(1962) and
What Makes Sammy Run?
(1964).

    
58
Millicent Martin (1934–) is an English actress and singer. Her credits include
The Boy Friend
(1954) on Broadway,
Expresso Bongo
(1958) in London, and
That Was the Week That Was
(1962) on BBC TV.

    
59
Mary Tyler Moore (1936–) is an American actress, known for
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
(1970). She starred in the short-lived Broadway musical
Breakfast at Tiffany’s
(1966) and the movie
Thoroughly Modern Millie
(1967).

    
60
Jill Clayburgh (1944–2010) was an American actress. She was Academy Award–nominated for the movies
An Unmarried Woman
(1978) and
Starting Over
(1979), and appeared in
The Rothschilds
(1970) and
Pippin
(1972) on Broadway.

    
61
Actor Denis Quilley (1927–2003) appeared in numerous musicals in London, ranging from
The Boys from Syracuse
(1963) to
Anything Goes
(2003).

    
62
Diana Rigg (1938–) is a prolific actress, with credits ranging from Emma Peel in TV’s
The Avengers
to the James Bond film
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
(1969). Her work in musicals includes the movie of
A Little Night Music
(1977), the American flop
Colette
(1982), and the original London production of
Follies
(1987).

    
63
Allan Carr (1937–99) was a hugely successful producer, with credits including the film
Grease
(as co-producer, 1978) and the Broadway musical
La Cage aux Folles
(1983).

    
64
Jerome Minskoff (1915–94) was a theater owner and producer, whose projects included
Irene
(1973) and
King of Hearts
(1978).

    
65
Gerard Kenny (1947–) is an American songwriter, with hits including “New York, New York (So Good They Named It Twice),” “I Made It through the Rain,” “Fantasy,” and “I Could Be So Good for You.”

    
66
Gandhi
(1982) is an epic biopic about Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. It won eight Academy Awards on its release and was a huge financial success.

    
67
Tom Courtenay (1933–) is a stage and screen actor, who was at one point married to Cheryl Kennedy (of the 1981 revival of
My Fair Lady
). He is known for his screen appearances in
Billy Liar
(1963) and
Doctor Zhivago
(1965).

    
68
Dame Edith Evans (1888–1976) was one of the greatest actresses of the twentieth century, encompassing over 150 roles in more than 60 years.

    
69
“Spring Will Be a Little Late This Year” is a song by Frank Loesser.

    
70
William Powell (1892–1984) was a major star at MGM, best known for his appearances in the
Thin Man
films.

    
71
Carole Lombard (1908–42) was a popular actress in Hollywood screwball comedies of the 1930s. She was killed in a plane crash at the age of 33.

    
72
Barry Manilow (1943–) is a singer and songwriter. His hit songs include “Mandy” and “Could It Be Magic.” He has also composed two musicals,
Copacabana
(1985, TV; 1994, UK stage) and
Harmony
(1997).

    
73
Robert Lantz (1914–2007) was an agent to numerous major stars, including Bette Davis and Leonard Bernstein.

    
74
Raquel Welch (1940–) is an American movie star, with films including
Bedazzled
(1967) and
Myra Breckinridge
(1970).

    
75
Alan Bates (1934–2003) was a popular British actor who appeared in a range of films, including
Whistle Down the Wind
(1961),
Zorba the Greek
(1964), and
Women in Love
(1969).

    
76
Malcom McDowell (1943–) is an English actor, nominated for a Golden Globe for his appearance in
A Clockwork Orange
(1971).

    
77
Charles Dance (1946–) is an English actor who has appeared in a range of projects including
The Jewel in the Crown
(1984),
Alien 3
(1993), and
Rebecca
(1997).

    
78
A Patriot for Me
(1965) is a controversial play by John Osborne. Bates had recently starred in a revival.

    
79
Meryl Streep (1949–) is one of the most revered actresses of her generation. She has been nominated for a record 18 Academy Awards, of which she has won three, and 28 Golden Globe Awards, of which she has won eight (also a record).

    
80
Barry Harman (1952–) is a writer and producer. He wrote the book and lyrics for the musicals
Olympus on My Mind
(1986) and
Romance/Romance
(1987).

    
81
A reference to
La Cage aux Folles
.

    
82
Benjamin Welles, another of Lerner’s lifelong friends.

    
83
Foster Brooks (1912–2001) was an actor and comedian, known for playing an amusingly drunken character in many of his performances.

    
84
Alyson Reid (1958–) appeared as Cassie in the movie version of
A Chorus Line
(1985), as well as stage productions including Lerner’s
Dance a Little Closer
.

    
85
Margherita Stafford (1927–2008) was a leading agent of various major opera singers, whom she managed with her partner David Law under the Stafford Law firm.

    
86
Arthur Schnitzler (1862–1931) was a controversial Austrian author. One of his plays,
Reigen
, depicts characters before and after the sexual act, and it was turned into a French-language film,
La Ronde
, in 1950.

    
87
Mike Wooller (1927–96) worked in various branches of production and management in television and became a founding member of Goldcrest Films and Television in 1981.

    
88
Conductor Julius Rudel (1921–) was on Stafford’s artists’ roster and she had suggested him as a suitable candidate for conducting the musical numbers for Lerner’s television series.

    
89
Sian Phillips (1933–) is a Welsh actress, known equally for her many classical roles and her appearances in films such as
Becket
(1964) and
Goodbye, Mr. Chips
(1969).

    
90
Enid Nemy, “Broadway,”
New York Times
, March 22, 1985, C2.