BROADWAY NATION

Ep 196 The Last Waltz — In Search of Lost Broadway, part 4

This is the fourth and final episode in which Albert Evans and I go in search of the 1934 smash-hit musical The Great Waltz, one of the longest-running shows of the 1930s. The goal of this occasional series of podcasts, In Search of Lost Broadway, is to try to rediscover big hit Broadway musicals from the past, which today are almost entirely unknown to us and forgotten. This week, we explore several high-profile reincarnations of The Great Waltz in the 1960s and 70s, all of which stem from a heavily revised version, with new lyrics by the team Robert Wright and George Forrest, that was first produced by impresario Irwin Lester at his Los Angeles Civic Light Opera company in 1949 and then was revived and revised in 1953 and 1965. The highly acclaimed 1965 version was announced several times for Broadway but never materialized there. It did, however, open in London in 1970, where it became a major hit, running more than 600 performances. Then, in 1972, in the wake of the massive success of The Sound of Music film, The Great Waltz became a major motion picture starring Horst Buchholz and Mary Costa, again with new lyrics by Wright & Forrest. Finally, we discuss the Walt Disney TV-movie version of the Johann Strauss story, titled The Waltz King, which aired on The Wonderful World of Disney in 1963. If you missed the previous episodes in the series, you may want to catch up with those before listening to this one. Become A PATRON of Broadway Nation! This episode is made possible in part by the generous support of our Patron Club Members, including our newest patron, Ann Drourr. If you are a fan of Broadway Nation, I invite you to become a PATRON! For as little as $7.00 a month, you can receive exclusive access to never-before-heard, unedited versions of many of the discussions that I have with my guests — in fact, I often record nearly twice as much conversation as ends up in the edited versions. You will also have access to additional, in-depth conversations with my frequent co-host, Albert Evans, that have not been featured on the podcast. And all patrons receive special “on-air” shout-outs and acknowledgement of your vital support of this podcast. And if you are very enthusiastic about Broadway Nation, there are additional PATRON levels that come with even more benefits. If you would like to support the work of Broadway Nation and receive these exclusive member benefits, please click on this link: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://broadwaynationpodcast.supercast.tech/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Thank you in advance for your support! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ep 195: 40 Years of CHESS

Because this is a Broadway history podcast, I don’t usually comment on recently opened productions, since we can’t know yet whether they will be historically significant. The exceptions, of course, are major revivals of Broadway musicals from the past. And since I’ve been around for a while and had the opportunity to see the original 1986 London production of Chess, which ran for three years, as well as the 1988 Broadway production, which closed after only 68 performances, and a few weeks ago, the current Broadway revival of the show, I thought I might be interesting today to talk about the history of this show and share my thoughts on all three major productions. Become A PATRON of Broadway Nation! This episode is made possible in part through the generous support of our Patron Club Members such as Kelly Allen. If you are a fan of Broadway Nation, I invite you to become a PATRON! For as little as $7.00 a month, you can receive exclusive access to never-before-heard, unedited versions of many of the discussions that I have with my guests — in fact, I often record nearly twice as much conversation as ends up in the edited versions. You will also have access to additional, in-depth conversations with my frequent co-host, Albert Evans, that have not been featured on the podcast. And all patrons receive special “on-air” shout-outs and acknowledgement of your vital support of this podcast. And if you are very enthusiastic about Broadway Nation, there are additional PATRON levels that come with even more benefits. If you would like to support the work of Broadway Nation and receive these exclusive member benefits, please click on this link: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://broadwaynationpodcast.supercast.tech/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Thank you in advance for your support! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ep 194: The Great Waltz on Radio & TV

On this week’s Broadway Nation podcast, Albert Evans and I once again go “In Search of Lost Broadway,” as part of our occasional podcast series in which we try to rediscover significant hit Broadway musicals from the past that today are almost entirely unknown and forgotten. This is the third episode in which we go in search of the 1934 smash hit bio-jukebox-musical, The Great Waltz — one of the longest-running shows of the 1930s. Today, Albert and I discuss and review two adaptations of this musical that were produced one a year apart in the mid-1950s: a radio version starring Gordon MacRae on his The Railroad Hour show,  and a live television extravaganza starring Patrice Munsel, Keith Andes, and Burt Lahr. If you miss the earlier episodes in this series, you may want to go back and catch up with them before listening to this one. Become A PATRON of Broadway Nation! This episode is made possible in part through the generous support of our Patron Club Members such as Kelly Allen. If you are a fan of Broadway Nation, I invite you to become a PATRON! For as little as $7.00 a month, you can receive exclusive access to never-before-heard, unedited versions of many of the discussions that I have with my guests — in fact, I often record nearly twice as much conversation as ends up in the edited versions. You will also have access to additional, in-depth conversations with my frequent co-host, Albert Evans, that have not been featured on the podcast. And all patrons receive special “on-air” shout-outs and acknowledgement of your vital support of this podcast. And if you are very enthusiastic about Broadway Nation, there are additional PATRON levels that come with even more benefits. If you would like to support the work of Broadway Nation and receive these exclusive member benefits, please click on this link: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://broadwaynationpodcast.supercast.tech/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Thank you in advance for your support! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Irving Berlin, Bing Crosby and the Story of "White Christmas," America's Most Popular Song, part 2

This is the second of two special holiday episodes of Broadway Nation. Just like the first, this is an audio version of a Broadway Nation Live! performance that was given in December of 2019 at the Vashon Center For The Performing Arts on Vashon Island, WA. If you prefer to watch a video of this performance you can stream it on their website at: vashoncenterforthearts.org In Part One we looked at how the Jewish-Russian immigrant songwriter, Irving Berlin — in addition to being one of the prime inventors of the Broadway Musical — also created an entirely new category of popular song: “the Christmas Standard.” In this episode we explore how Berlin was aided and abetted in that endeavor by the son of Irish and German immigrants from Washington State who became one of the most popular performers of all time — Bing Crosby. Along with Judy Garland I call Bing one of Broadway’s greatest stars who never appeared on Broadway. But first, we start off with Albert Evans’ amazing in-depth analysis of the genius of Irving Berlin, and the inspiration and craft that is behind the most popular song of all time. As you will remember, the last episode ended with me introducing Albert and asking him this question: “Why? Why is White Christmas the most popular song of all time?” You won’t want to miss his answer! This live show features musical performances by Cayman Ilika, Eric Ankrim, Chris DiStefano, and Albert Evans.    Happy New Year! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Encore Episode: The Story Behind the Song, WHITE CHRISTMAS

This is a special holiday reprise of one of Broadway Nation's most popular episodes: It's an audio version of a Broadway Nation Live! performance that was presented in December of 2019 at the Vashon Center For The Performing Arts on Vashon Island just outside of Seattle, WA. Several previous episodes of Broadway Nation have explored the crucial role that the Jewish Russian immigrant songwriter, Irving Berlin, played in the invention of the Broadway Musical. This time I share the story of how he also invented an entirely new category of popular song – the Christmas standard.   This live show features musical performances by Cayman Ilika, Eric Ankrim, Chris DiStefano, and Albert Evans.  Happy Holidays! Become a PATRON of Broadway Nation! I want to thank our Broadway Nation Patron Club members, such as Larry Spinelli, whose generous support helps to make it possible for me to bring this podcast to you each week. If you would like to support the creation of Broadway Nation, here is the information about how you too can become a patron. For a just $7.00 a month you will receive exclusive access to never-before-heard, unedited versions of many of the discussions that I have with my guests — in fact I often record nearly twice as much conversation as ends up in the edited versions. You will also have access to additional in-depth conversations with my frequent co-host Albert Evans that have not been featured on the podcast.  All patrons receive special “on-air” shout-outs and acknowledgement of your vital support of this podcast. And if you are very enthusiastic about Broadway Nation, there are additional PATRON levels that come with even more benefits. If you would like to support the work of Broadway Nation and receive these exclusive member benefits, please just click on this link: ⁠https://broadwaynationpodcast.supercast.tech/⁠ Thank you in advance for your support! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices