104-579: Carol Elaine Channing (January 31, 1921 – January 15, 2019) was an American actress, comedian, singer and dancer who starred in Broadway and film musicals. Each of her characters typically possessed a fervent expressiveness and an easily identifiable voice. Channing originated the lead roles in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes in 1949 and Hello, Dolly! in 1964, winning the Tony Award for Best Actress in
208-506: A Christian Science practitioner, editor, and teacher. A city editor at The Seattle Star , he took a job at The San Francisco Chronicle ; the family moved to California when Carol Channing was two years old. Carol Channing was raised in the Christian Science church. During a 1994 interview, Channing revealed that she first wanted to perform on stage as a singer when she was in the fourth grade. She recalled being emotionally drawn to
312-472: A 7:00 p.m. or 8:00 p.m. "curtain". The afternoon " matinée " performances are at 2:00 p.m. on Wednesdays and Saturdays and at 3:00 p.m. on Sundays. This makes for an eight-performance week. On this schedule, most shows do not play on Monday and the shows and theatres are said to be "dark" on that day. The actors and the crew in these shows tend to regard Sunday evening through Monday evening as their weekend. The Tony award presentation ceremony
416-568: A Macy's bakery. Channing was introduced to the stage while helping her mother deliver newspapers to the backstage of theatres. Her first job on stage in New York City was in Marc Blitzstein 's No for an Answer, starting January 1941, at the Mecca Temple (later New York City Center ). She was 19. She moved to Broadway for Let's Face It! , where she was an understudy for Eve Arden , who
520-460: A Musical for the latter. She revived both roles several times throughout her career, playing Dolly on Broadway for the final time in 1995. She was nominated for her first Tony Award in 1956 for The Vamp , followed by a nomination in 1961 for Show Girl . She received her fourth Tony Award nomination for the musical Lorelei in 1974. As a film actress, she won the Golden Globe Award and
624-771: A Theater Advisory Council, which included Papp. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City , Broadway theaters closed on March 12, 2020, shuttering 16 shows that were playing or were in the process of opening. The Broadway League shutdown was extended first to April, then to May, then June, then September 2020 and January 2021, and later to June 1, 2021. Then-governor Andrew Cuomo announced that most sectors of New York would have their restrictions lifted on May 19, 2021, but he stated that Broadway theatres would not be able to immediately resume performances on this date due to logistical reasons. In May 2021, Cuomo announced that Broadway theaters would be allowed to reopen on September 14, and
728-932: A benefit for the school. They also promoted arts education in California schools through their Dr. Carol Channing and Harry Kullijian Foundation . They resided in both Modesto, California, and Rancho Mirage, California. They would also spent some of their time in Palm Springs . Harry Kullijian died on December 26, 2011, the eve of his 92nd birthday. Channing had unique dietary habits. In 1978, she said she had not eaten restaurant food in 15 years and preferred only organic food . When invited to restaurants, she brought several sealed containers with her own food, such as zucchini or chopped celery, and simply asked for an empty plate and glass. For dessert, she ate seeds. By 1995, Channing had resumed eating food served by restaurants. However, she did not drink alcoholic beverages of any kind. Channing
832-449: A booming economy and abundant creative talent kept Broadway hopping. To this day, the shows of the 1950s form the core of the musical theatre repertory." Kenrick notes that "the late 1960s marked a time of cultural upheaval. All those changes would prove painful for many, including those behind the scenes, as well as those in the audience." Of the 1970s, Kenrick writes: "Just when it seemed that traditional book musicals were back in style,
936-663: A cast. There are still, however, performers who are primarily stage actors, spending most of their time "on the boards", and appearing in screen roles only secondarily. As Patrick Healy of The New York Times noted: Broadway once had many homegrown stars who committed to working on a show for a year, as Nathan Lane has for The Addams Family . In 2010, some theater heavyweights like Mr. Lane were not even nominated; instead, several Tony Awards were given for productions that were always intended to be short-timers on Broadway, given that many of their film-star performers had to move on to other commitments. According to Mark Shenton, "One of
1040-434: A challenge to the stage. At first, films were silent and presented only limited competition. By the end of the 1920s, films like The Jazz Singer were presented with synchronized sound, and critics wondered if cinema would replace live theatre altogether. While live vaudeville could not compete with these inexpensive films that featured vaudeville stars and major comedians of the day, other theatres survived. The musicals of
1144-526: A company of twelve actors from Britain to the colonies with his brother Lewis as their manager. They established a theatre in Williamsburg, Virginia , and opened with The Merchant of Venice and The Anatomist . The company moved to New York in 1753, performing ballad operas and ballad-farces like Damon and Phillida . During the Revolutionary War , theatre was suspended in New York City. But after
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#17328699363531248-552: A discount of 20 to 50%. The TKTS booths are located in Times Square , in Lower Manhattan , and at Lincoln Center . This service is run by Theatre Development Fund . Many Broadway theatres also offer special student rates, same-day "rush" or "lottery" tickets, or standing-room tickets to help ensure that their theatres are as full—and their grosses as high—as possible. According to The Broadway League , total Broadway attendance
1352-896: A few exceptions, compared with London runs, until World War I . A few very successful British musicals continued to achieve great success in New York, including Florodora in 1900–01. In the early years of the twentieth century, translations of popular late-nineteenth century continental operettas were joined by the "Princess Theatre" shows of the 1910s, by writers such as P. G. Wodehouse , Guy Bolton , and Harry B. Smith . Victor Herbert , whose work included some intimate musical plays with modern settings as well as his string of famous operettas ( The Fortune Teller (1898), Babes in Toyland (1903), Mlle. Modiste (1905), The Red Mill (1906), and Naughty Marietta (1910)). Beginning with The Red Mill , Broadway shows installed electric signs outside
1456-527: A larger theatre. Other productions are first developed through workshops and then out-of-town tryouts before transferring to Broadway. Merrily We Roll Along famously skipped an out-of-town tryout and attempted to do an in-town tryout—actually preview performances —on Broadway before its official opening, with disastrous results. After, or even during, successful runs in Broadway theatres, producers often remount their productions with new casts and crew for
1560-508: A medley of Jeepers Creepers, and sang her signature song, Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend, as a duet with Miss Piggy. In 1985, she played the role of the White Queen in the television special Alice in Wonderland . In 1986, Channing appeared on Sesame Street and sang a parody of the song " Hello, Dolly! " called "Hello, Sammy!", a love song being sung by Carol to a character known as Sammy
1664-521: A more experimental, challenging, and intimate performance than is possible in the larger Broadway theatres. Some Broadway shows, however, such as the musicals Hair , Little Shop of Horrors , Spring Awakening , Next to Normal , Rent , Avenue Q , In the Heights , Fun Home , A Chorus Line , Dear Evan Hansen , and Hamilton , began their runs Off-Broadway and later transferred to Broadway, seeking to replicate their intimate experience in
1768-539: A negative COVID-19 test (PCR within 72 hours or antigen within six hours of the performance start time). Beginning November 8, those ages 5–11 also had the option to provide proof of at least one vaccination shot. Effective December 14, in accordance with NYC's vaccination mandate, guests ages 5–11 were required to have at least one vaccination shot until January 29, 2022, where they had to be fully vaccinated. The vaccine mandate lasted until April 30, and attendees were also required to wear face masks until July 1. During
1872-1128: A new age of American playwright with the emergence of Eugene O'Neill , whose plays Beyond the Horizon , Anna Christie , The Hairy Ape , Strange Interlude , and Mourning Becomes Electra proved that there was an audience for serious drama on Broadway, and O'Neill's success paved the way for major dramatists like Elmer Rice , Maxwell Anderson , Robert E. Sherwood , Clifford Odets , Tennessee Williams , and Arthur Miller , as well as writers of comedy like George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart . Classical revivals also proved popular with Broadway theatre-goers, notably John Barrymore in Hamlet and Richard III , John Gielgud in Hamlet , The Importance of Being Earnest and Much Ado About Nothing , Walter Hampden and José Ferrer in Cyrano de Bergerac , Paul Robeson and Ferrer in Othello , Maurice Evans in Richard II and
1976-584: A nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress , and was awarded a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture . Channing said she was especially grateful to Andrews for helping her develop her character: "She will forever be my angel," she says. Due to her success on Broadway in Hello Dolly! and her co-starring role in Thoroughly Modern Millie , Channing attracted
2080-448: A problem to Broadway showmen. She looks like an overgrown kewpie . She sings like a moon-mad hillbilly. Her dancing is crazily comic. And behind her saucer eyes is a kind of gentle sweetness that pleads for affection. Life magazine cover story, 1955 Five years later, Channing had a featured role in Lend an Ear (1948), for which she received her Theatre World Award and launched her as
2184-500: A rate acceptable to the producers, they may continue to run in the expectation that, eventually, they will pay back their initial costs and become profitable. In some borderline situations, producers may ask that royalties be temporarily reduced or waived, or even that performers—with the permission of their unions—take reduced salaries, to prevent a show from closing. Theatre owners, who are not generally profit participants in most productions, may waive or reduce rents, or even lend money to
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#17328699363532288-431: A run of 253 performances. The first theatre piece that conforms to the modern conception of a musical, adding dance and original music that helped to tell the story, is considered to be The Black Crook , which premiered in New York on September 12, 1866. The production was five-and-a-half hours long, but despite its length, it ran for a record-breaking 474 performances. The same year, The Black Domino/Between You, Me and
2392-481: A show to keep it running. Some Broadway shows are produced by non-commercial organizations as part of a regular subscription season— Lincoln Center Theatre , Roundabout Theatre Company , Manhattan Theatre Club , and Second Stage Theater are the four non-profit theatre companies that currently have permanent Broadway venues. Some other productions are produced on Broadway with "limited engagement runs" for several reasons, including financial issues, prior engagements of
2496-455: A small part in the revue, The New Yorker noted her performance: "You'll be hearing more from a comedienne named Carol Channing." The inspiration she received from that brief notice made her decide to quit school. However, it was four years before she found another acting job. During that period, she performed at small functions or benefits, including some in the Catskill resorts. She also worked in
2600-455: A star performer. She credited illustrator Al Hirschfeld for helping make her a star when he put her image in his widely published illustrations. She said that his drawing of her as a flapper was what helped her get the lead in her next play, the Jule Styne and Anita Loos musical Gentlemen Prefer Blondes . From that role, as Lorelei Lee, she gained recognition, with her signature song from
2704-614: A term that can also apply to non-commercial, avant-garde , or productions held outside of traditional theater venues. The Theater District is an internationally prominent tourist attraction in New York City . According to The Broadway League , shows on Broadway sold approximately US$ 1.54 billion worth of tickets in both the 2022-2023 and the 2023–2024 seasons. Both seasons featured theater attendance of approximately 12.3 million each. Most Broadway shows are musicals . Historian Martin Shefter argues that "Broadway musicals, culminating in
2808-565: A venue for plays under the name Burton's Theatre. The Astor Opera House opened in 1847. A riot broke out in 1849 when the lower-class patrons of the Bowery Theatre objected to what they perceived as snobbery by the upper-class audiences at Astor Place: "After the Astor Place Riot of 1849, entertainment in New York City was divided along class lines: opera was chiefly for the upper-middle and upper classes, minstrel shows and melodramas for
2912-474: Is that human curio, the born female comic. The show had first opened on Broadway on January 16, 1964, and by the time the show closed in late December 1970, it had become the longest-running musical in Broadway history, with nearly 3,000 performances. Besides Channing, six other stars played the title role during those seven years: Ginger Rogers , Martha Raye , Betty Grable , Pearl Bailey , Phyllis Diller and Ethel Merman . Al Hirschfeld's illustration of her
3016-567: Is usually held on a Sunday evening in June to fit this schedule. In recent years, some shows have moved their Tuesday show time an hour earlier to 7:00 pm. The rationale for this move was that since fewer tourists take in shows midweek, Tuesday attendance depends more on local patrons. The earlier curtain makes it possible for suburban patrons to get home by a reasonable hour after the show. Some shows, especially those produced by Disney , change their performance schedules fairly frequently depending on
3120-597: The American Theatre Wing , a service organization. While the League and the theatrical unions are sometimes at loggerheads during those periods when new contracts are being negotiated, they also cooperate on many projects and events designed to promote professional theatre in New York. Of the four non-profit theatre companies with Broadway theatres, all four ( Lincoln Center Theater , Manhattan Theatre Club , Roundabout Theatre Company , and Second Stage Theatre ) belong to
3224-567: The League of Resident Theatres and have contracts with the theatrical unions which are negotiated separately from the other Broadway theatre and producers. ( Disney also negotiates apart from the League, as did Livent before it closed down its operations.) The majority of Broadway theatres are owned or managed by three organizations: the Shubert Organization , a for-profit arm of the non-profit Shubert Foundation, which owns seventeen theatres;
Carol Channing - Misplaced Pages Continue
3328-493: The Nederlander Organization , which controls nine theatres; and ATG Entertainment , which owns seven Broadway houses. Both musicals and straight plays on Broadway often rely on casting well-known performers in leading roles to draw larger audiences or bring in new audience members to the theatre. Actors from film and television are frequently cast for the revivals of Broadway shows or are used to replace actors leaving
3432-468: The Roaring Twenties , borrowing from vaudeville, music hall , and other light entertainment, tended to ignore plot in favor of emphasizing star actors and actresses, big dance routines, and popular songs. Florenz Ziegfeld produced annual spectacular song-and-dance revues on Broadway featuring extravagant sets and elaborate costumes, but there was little to tie the various numbers together. Typical of
3536-511: The Super Bowl halftime show . The old-fashioned plot of Hello, Dolly , when first described, might seem uninspired, says columnist Dick Kleiner : But then you sit in the audience and Carol Channing comes out, turns on her huge eyes and monumental smile—and you sit there with a silly grin on your face for 2 1/2 hours, bathed in the benevolent spell of a great comedienne...It is hard to imagine her doing anything else but making people smile. She
3640-669: The Theater District and Lincoln Center along Broadway , in Midtown Manhattan , New York City . Broadway and London 's West End together represent the highest commercial level of live theater in the English-speaking world . While the Broadway thoroughfare is eponymous with the district, it is closely identified with Times Square . Only three theaters are located on Broadway itself: Broadway Theatre , Palace Theatre , and Winter Garden Theatre . The rest are located on
3744-409: The 1920s were lighthearted productions such as Sally ; Lady Be Good ; Sunny ; No, No, Nanette ; Harlem ; Oh, Kay! ; and Funny Face . Their books may have been forgettable, but they produced enduring standards from George Gershwin , Cole Porter , Jerome Kern , Vincent Youmans , and Rodgers and Hart , among others, and Noël Coward , Sigmund Romberg , and Rudolf Friml continued in
3848-536: The Broadway national tour, which travels to theatres in major cities across the country. Sometimes when a show closes on Broadway, the entire production, with most if not all of the original cast intact, is relaunched as a touring company, hence the name "Broadway national tour". Some shows may even have several touring companies out at a time, whether the show is still running in New York or not, with many companies "sitting down" in other major cities for their own extended runs. For Broadway national tours of top-tier cities,
3952-603: The Broadway orchestra is governed by an agreement with the musicians' union (Local 802, American Federation of Musicians) and The Broadway League. For example, the agreement specifies the minimum size of the orchestra at the Minskoff Theatre to be eighteen, while at the Music Box Theatre it is nine. Most Broadway shows are commercial productions intended to make a profit for the producers and investors ("backers" or "angels"), and therefore have open-ended runs (duration that
4056-704: The COVID-19 shutdown, the Shubert Organization, the Nederlander Organization, and Jujamcyn had pledged to increase racial and cultural diversity in their theaters, including naming at least one theater for a Black theatrical personality. The August Wilson Theatre , owned by Jujamcyn, had been renamed after Black playwright August Wilson in 2005. The Shuberts announced in March 2022 that the Cort Theatre , which
4160-564: The Cakewalk (1898), and the highly successful In Dahomey (1902). Hundreds of musical comedies were staged on Broadway in the 1890s and early 1900s made up of songs written in New York's Tin Pan Alley involving composers such as Gus Edwards , John Walter Bratton , and George M. Cohan ( Little Johnny Jones (1904), 45 Minutes From Broadway (1906), and George Washington Jr. (1906)). Still, New York runs continued to be relatively short, with
4264-550: The Crusaders' Oratorical Contest and a free trip to Hawaii with her mother in June 1937. When she was 17, Channing left home to attend Bennington College in Vermont, and her mother told her for the first time that her father had Black ancestry. Her mother felt that the time was right to tell Carol this since she was going off to college; she did not want Carol to be surprised if she ever had a Black baby. Channing wrote: I know it's true
Carol Channing - Misplaced Pages Continue
4368-451: The Erlanger syndicate. During this time, the play Lightnin' by Winchell Smith and Frank Bacon became the first Broadway show to reach 700 performances. From then, it would go on to become the first show to reach 1,000 performances. Lightnin' was the longest-running Broadway show until being overtaken in performance totals by Abie's Irish Rose in 1925. The motion picture mounted
4472-712: The January 15, 2019 performance of the national tour of the revival of Hello, Dolly! in San Diego to Channing following her death. Channing's ashes were scattered between the Curran Theatre and the Geary Theater in San Francisco . Broadway theatre Broadway theatre , or Broadway , is a theatre genre that consists of the theatrical performances presented in 41 professional theaters , each with 500 or more seats, in
4576-454: The League confirmed that performances would begin to resume in the fall season. Springsteen on Broadway became the first full-length show to resume performances, opening on June 26, 2021, to 1,721 vaccinated patrons at the St. James Theatre . Pass Over then had its first preview on August 4, and opened on August 22, 2021, becoming the first new play to open. Hadestown and Waitress were
4680-592: The Opera at the Majestic Theatre became the longest-running Broadway musical, with 7,486 performances, overtaking Cats . The Phantom of the Opera closed on Broadway on April 16, 2023, soon after celebrating its 35th anniversary, after a total of 13,981 performances. Attending a Broadway show is a common tourist activity in New York. The TKTS booths sell same-day tickets (and in certain cases, next-day matinee tickets) for many Broadway and Off-Broadway shows at
4784-531: The Post was the first show to call itself a "musical comedy". Tony Pastor opened the first vaudeville theatre one block east of Union Square in 1881, where Lillian Russell performed. Comedians Edward Harrigan and Tony Hart produced and starred in musicals on Broadway between 1878 ( The Mulligan Guard Picnic ) and 1890, with book and lyrics by Harrigan and music by his father-in-law David Braham . These musical comedies featured characters and situations taken from
4888-773: The Snake (as voiced by Muppets creator Jim Henson ). Carol, in this parody segment, serenades Sammy telling him just how much she loves and adores him while Sammy coils himself around Carol's arms. Carol's song includes lyrics such as: "So..turn on your charm, Sammy/Coil yourself around my arm, Sammy/Sammy the Snake, I'll stake a claim on you". Songwriter Jule Styne , who wrote the score for Gentlemen Prefer Blondes , invited her on his television special in 1987 where she performed another one of her signature songs, "Little Girl from Little Rock". In 1993, she poked fun at herself in an episode of The Nanny . The episode "Smoke Gets in Your Lies" shows
4992-464: The Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical. She recalled that playwright Thornton Wilder so loved the musical, which was based on his play, The Matchmaker , that he came once a week. He also planned to rewrite his 1942 play The Skin of Our Teeth , with Channing playing the parts of both Mrs. Antrobus and Sabina but died before he could finish it. Approval of her performance in the 1960s meant she
5096-558: The United States. She performed songs from Hello, Dolly during a special television show in London in 1979. Channing also appeared in a number of films, including The First Traveling Saleslady (1956), in which she gave future star Clint Eastwood his first onscreen kiss; the cult film Skidoo ; and Thoroughly Modern Millie (starring Julie Andrews , Mary Tyler Moore , John Gavin , and Beatrice Lillie ). For Millie she received
5200-436: The attention of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz , who were interested in starring her in a sitcom. Directed and produced by Arnaz and written by Bob Carroll Jr. and Madelyn Davis (who co-wrote I Love Lucy and The Lucy Show ), The Carol Channing Show starred Channing as Carol Hunnicut, a small-town girl trying and failing to make it in New York City show business. Character actors Richard Deacon and Jane Dulo were in
5304-488: The authors and also in numerous unlicensed productions). They were imitated in New York by American productions such as Reginald Dekoven 's Robin Hood (1891) and John Philip Sousa 's El Capitan (1896), along with operas, ballets, and other British and European hits. Charles H. Hoyt 's A Trip to Chinatown (1891) became Broadway's long-run champion when it surpassed Adonis and its 603 total performances in 1893, holding
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#17328699363535408-435: The beginning of the nineteenth century, the area that now comprises the Theater District was owned by a handful of families and comprised a few farms. In 1836, Mayor Cornelius Lawrence opened 42nd Street and invited Manhattanites to "enjoy the pure clean air." Close to 60 years later, theatrical entrepreneur Oscar Hammerstein I built the iconic Victoria Theater on West 42nd Street. Broadway's first "long-run" musical
5512-476: The biggest changes to the commercial theatrical landscape—on both sides of the Atlantic—over the past decade or so is that sightings of big star names turning out to do plays has [sic] gone up; but the runs they are prepared to commit to has gone down. Time was that a producer would require a minimum commitment from his star of six months, and perhaps a year; now, the 13-week run is the norm." The minimum size of
5616-537: The bill was not passed. The Save the Theatres campaign then turned their efforts to supporting the establishment of the Theater District as a registered historic district . In December 1983, Save the Theatres prepared "The Broadway Theater District, a Preservation Development and Management Plan", and demanded that each theater in the district receive landmark designation. Mayor Ed Koch ultimately reacted by creating
5720-422: The decade ended with critics and audiences giving mixed signals." Ken Bloom observed that "The 1960s and 1970s saw a worsening of the area [Times Square] and a drop in the number of legitimate shows produced on Broadway." By way of comparison, in the 1950 to 1951 season (May to May) 94 productions opened on Broadway; in the 1969 to 1970 season (June to May) there were 59 productions (fifteen were revivals). In
5824-656: The effort. At Papp's behest, in July 1982, a bill was introduced in the 97th Congress , entitled "H.R.6885, A bill to designate the Broadway/Times Square Theatre District in the City of New York as a national historic site". The legislation would have provided certain U.S. government resources and assistance to help the city preserve the district. Faced with strong opposition and lobbying by Mayor Ed Koch's Administration and corporate Manhattan development interests,
5928-526: The entire Broadway production is transplanted almost entirely intact and may run for many months (or years) at each stop. For example, the first U.S. tour of The Phantom of the Opera required 26 53-foot-long (16.1 m) semi-trailers to transport all its sets, equipment, and costumes, and it took almost 10 days to properly unload all those trucks and install everything into a theater. Marc Blitzstein Too Many Requests If you report this error to
6032-492: The entry of the divorce decree" from Carson, Channing married her manager and publicist Charles Lowe. In 1960, Carson's parental rights to the couple's son were severed due to his abandonment, and his and Channing's son took his stepfather's surname. As the judge stated, "The differences in environment and miles would result in a gross injustice in itself to the child, who at this very tender stage does not even know what his real father looks like. He probably doesn't even realize that
6136-456: The everyday life of New York's lower classes and represented a significant step forward from vaudeville and burlesque, towards a more literate form. They starred high-quality professional singers ( Lillian Russell , Vivienne Segal , and Fay Templeton ), instead of the amateurs, often sex workers, who had starred in earlier musical forms. As transportation improved, poverty in New York diminished, and street lighting made for safer travel at night,
6240-463: The first musicals to resume performances on September 2, 2021. The 74th Tony Awards were also postponed; the Tony nominations were announced on October 15, 2020, and took place on September 26, 2021. On July 30, 2021, it was announced that all Broadway theaters required attendees to provide proof of full COVID-19 vaccination . The rule applied to guests ages 12+. Those under age 12 were required to provide
6344-461: The late 1950s. Burns also appeared in her TV special, An Evening with Carol Channing , in 1966. In 1961, Channing became one of the few performers nominated for a Tony Award for work in a revue (rather than a traditional book musical); she was nominated for Best Actress in a Musical for the short-lived revue Show Girl . Channing came to national prominence as the star of Jerry Herman 's Hello, Dolly! (1964). Her performance as Dolly Levi won
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#17328699363536448-544: The middle-class, variety shows in concert saloons for men of the working class and the slumming middle-class." The plays of William Shakespeare were frequently performed on the Broadway stage during the period, most notably by American actor Edwin Booth who was internationally known for his performance as Hamlet . Booth played the role for a famous 100 consecutive performances at the Winter Garden Theatre in 1865 (with
6552-444: The moment I sing and dance. I'm proud as can be of [my Black ancestry]. It's one of the great strains in show business. I'm so grateful. My father was a very dignified man and as white as I am. Channing publicly revealed her African-American ancestry in 2002. Channing majored in drama and dance at Bennington. She would entertain every Friday night. During her junior year, she began trying out for acting parts on Broadway. After playing
6656-420: The next sixteen years. However, smaller vaudeville and variety houses proliferated, and Off-Broadway was well established by the end of the nineteenth century. A Trip to Coontown (1898) was the first musical comedy entirely produced and performed by African Americans in a Broadway theatre (inspired largely by the routines of the minstrel shows ), followed by the ragtime -tinged Clorindy: The Origin of
6760-552: The number of potential patrons for the growing number of theatres increased enormously. Plays could run longer and still draw in the audiences, leading to better profits and improved production values. As in England, during the latter half of the century, the theatre began to be cleaned up, with less prostitution hindering the attendance of the theatre by women. Gilbert and Sullivan 's family-friendly comic opera hits, beginning with H.M.S. Pinafore in 1878, were imported to New York (by
6864-623: The numbered cross streets, extending from the Nederlander Theatre one block south of Times Square on West 41st Street, north along either side of Broadway to 53rd Street , and Vivian Beaumont Theater , at Lincoln Center on West 65th Street. While exceptions exist, the term "Broadway theatre" is used predominantly to describe venues with seating capacities of at least 500 people. Smaller theaters in New York City are referred to as off-Broadway , regardless of location, while very small venues with fewer than 100 seats are called off-off-Broadway ,
6968-556: The performers, or temporary availability of a theatre between the end of one production and the beginning of another. However, some shows with planned limited engagement runs may, after critical acclaim or box office success, extend their engagements or convert to open-ended runs. This was the case with 2007's August: Osage County , 2009's God of Carnage , 2012's Newsies , and 2022's Take Me Out . Historically, musicals on Broadway tend to have longer runs than "straight" (i.e., non-musical) plays. On January 9, 2006, The Phantom of
7072-464: The plays of George Bernard Shaw , and Katharine Cornell in such plays as Romeo and Juliet , Antony and Cleopatra , and Candida . In 1930, Theatre Guild 's production of Roar, China! was Broadway's first play with a majority Asian cast. As World War II approached, a dozen Broadway dramas addressed the rise of Nazism in Europe and the issue of American non-intervention. The most successful
7176-532: The pot if you're sick. You learn marvelous new-sounding words every minute." Channing and Naidish lived near his grandparents in Brighton Beach in the borough of Brooklyn in New York City. She remembered his grandfather Sam Cohen introducing her to some of his neighborhood friends, who were amazed that she enjoyed hearing their funny stories. "They were delighted that I almost ate them up alive," she wrote, "because they were so funny, especially since such appreciation
7280-680: The present husband of Mrs. Channing is not his father." Channing Lowe publishes his cartoons as Chan Lowe. Channing filed for divorce from Lowe in 1998, but her estranged husband died before the divorce was finalized. After Lowe's death and until shortly before her fourth marriage, Channing's companion was Roger Denny, an interior designer. In 2003, while recording the audiobook of her autobiography Just Lucky, I Guess , at VideoActive Productions, NYC, produced and directed by Steve Garrin, Channing rekindled her romance with her junior high school sweetheart, Harry Kullijian, and they married on May 10, 2003. They later performed at their old junior high school in
7384-514: The producer auditioning for a new musical, and Channing, playing herself, is trying out. Just after the producer announces he wants a stage presence that is instantly recognizable to the entire country, Channing begins with her signature " Hello, Dolly! ", but he stops her with a resounding "Next!". In January 2003, Channing recorded the audiobook of her best-selling autobiography Just Lucky, I Guess: A Memoir of Sorts , directed and produced by Steve Garrin at VideoActive Productions in New York City. It
7488-423: The production plays), meaning that the length of their presentation is not set beforehand, but depends on critical response, word of mouth, and the effectiveness of the show's advertising, all of which determine ticket sales. Investing in a commercial production carries a varied degree of financial risk. Shows need not make a profit immediately; should they make their "nut" (weekly operating expenses), or lose money at
7592-528: The production, " Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend ," among the most widely known. In January 1950, Time magazine ran a cover story about her becoming a new star on Broadway, followed by cover stories in Life magazine in 1955 and 1964. In 1956, Channing married her manager and publicist Charles Lowe. During the 1950s, he produced the Burns and Allen comedy show, which starred George Burns and Gracie Allen . When Allen
7696-640: The productions of Rodgers and Hammerstein , became enormously influential forms of American popular culture " and contributed to making New York City the cultural capital of the world . New York City's first significant theatre was established in the mid-18th century, around 1750, when actor-managers Walter Murray and Thomas Kean established a resident theatre company at the Theatre on Nassau Street in Lower Manhattan , which held about 280 people. They presented William Shakespeare 's plays and ballad operas such as The Beggar's Opera . In 1752, William Hallam sent
7800-531: The run ending just a few months before Booth's brother John Wilkes Booth assassinated Abraham Lincoln ), and would later revive the role at his own Booth's Theatre (which was managed for a time by his brother Junius Brutus Booth Jr. ). Other renowned Shakespeareans who appeared in New York in this era were Henry Irving , Tommaso Salvini , Fanny Davenport , and Charles Fechter . Theatre in New York moved from Downtown gradually to Midtown Manhattan , beginning around 1850, seeking less expensive real estate. At
7904-467: The season. This is done in order to maximize access to their target audience. Most Broadway producers and theatre owners are members of The Broadway League (formerly "The League of American Theatres and Producers"), a trade organization that promotes Broadway theatre as a whole, negotiates contracts with the various theatrical unions and agreements with the guilds, and co-administers the Tony Awards with
8008-456: The stage after seeing Ethel Waters perform. Channing has said that in the fourth grade she ran for and was elected class secretary: "I stood up in class and campaigned by kidding the teachers. The other kids laughed. I loved the feeling — it was a very good feeling; it still is." She read the class minutes every Friday, often impersonating the children who were discussed. Her election to class secretary continued through grammar and high school: "It
8112-461: The stage for 657 performances. Chinatown itself was surpassed by the musical Irene (1919) in 1921 as the longest-running Broadway musical, and even earlier, in March 1920, by Lightnin' (1918) as the longest-running Broadway show. In 1896, theatre owners Marc Klaw and A. L. Erlanger formed the Theatrical Syndicate , which controlled almost every legitimate theatre in the U.S. for
8216-648: The street running in front of the Music Hall was renamed Channing Square Drive in her honor. Also in the cast were Peter Palmer , Brandon Maggart , Dody Goodman , and Lee Roy Reams . For nearly a year, the stage musical then toured 11 cities across the country. Lorelei had earned a hefty profit by the time it opened on Broadway at the Palace Theatre on January 27, 1974, and ran for a total of 320 performances. Channing also appeared in two New York City revivals of Hello, Dolly! , and toured with it extensively throughout
8320-510: The supporting cast. The pilot was filmed in front of a live audience (with a laugh track added) at Desilu in 1966 but did not sell as a series. During her film career, Channing also made some guest appearances on television sitcoms and talk shows, including What's My Line? where she appeared in 11 episodes from 1962 to 1966. Channing did voice-over work in cartoons, most notably as Grandmama in an animated version of The Addams Family from 1992 to 1995. During most of her career, Channing
8424-522: The theatres. Since colored bulbs burned out too quickly, white lights were used, and Broadway was nicknamed "The Great White Way". In August 1919, the Actors' Equity Association demanded a standard contract for all professional productions. After a strike shut down all the theatres, the producers were forced to agree. By the 1920s, the Shubert Brothers had risen to take over the majority of the theatres from
8528-474: The theatrical producer and director who established The Public Theater , led the "Save the Theatres" campaign. It was a not-for-profit group supported by the Actors Equity union to save the theater buildings in the neighborhood from demolition by monied Manhattan development interests. Papp provided resources, recruited a publicist and celebrated actors, and provided audio, lighting, and technical crews for
8632-461: The time, the average age of theatergoers was 40.4; nearly two-thirds of the audience were women; and 29% identified as a racial minority. The classification of theatres is governed by language in Actors' Equity Association contracts. To be eligible for a Tony, a production must be in a house with 500 seats or more and in the Theater District, which are the criteria that define Broadway theatre. Off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway shows often provide
8736-558: The twenties, there were 70–80 theaters, but by 1969, there were 36 left. During this time, many Broadway productions struggled due to low attendance rates, which resulted in perceived mediocrity among such plays. For this reason, the Theatre Development Fund was created with the purpose of assisting productions with high cultural value that likely would struggle without subsidization, by offering tickets to those plays to consumers at reduced prices. In early 1982, Joe Papp ,
8840-560: The vein of Victor Herbert. Live theatre has survived the invention of cinema. Leaving these comparatively frivolous entertainments behind and taking the drama a step forward, Show Boat premiered on December 27, 1927, at the Ziegfeld Theatre . It represented a complete integration of book and score, with dramatic themes, as told through the music, dialogue, setting, and movement, woven together more seamlessly than in previous musicals. It ran for 572 performances. The 1920s also spawned
8944-685: The war's end, theatre resumed in 1798, when the 2,000-seat Park Theatre was built on Chatham Street on present-day Park Row . A second major theatre, Bowery Theatre , opened in 1826, followed by others. By the 1840s, P.T. Barnum was operating an entertainment complex in Lower Manhattan. In 1829, at Broadway and Prince Street, Niblo's Garden opened and soon became one of New York's premier nightspots. The 3,000-seat theatre presented all sorts of musical and non-musical entertainments. In 1844, Palmo's Opera House opened and presented opera for only four seasons before bankruptcy led to its rebranding as
9048-555: Was Lillian Hellman 's Watch on the Rhine , which opened in April 1941. After the lean years of the Great Depression , Broadway theatre had entered a golden age with the blockbuster hit Oklahoma! , in 1943, which ran for 2,212 performances. According to John Kenrick 's writings on Broadway musicals, "Every season saw new stage musicals send songs to the top of the charts. Public demand,
9152-563: Was 13 years older than Channing. Much later, in 1966, Arden was hired for the title role in Hello Dolly! in a road company when Channing left to star in the film Thoroughly Modern Millie . Channing won the Sarah Siddons Award for her work in Chicago's theatres in 1966 (Eve Arden won the next year). Finding roles that suit the strange and wonderful charms of Carol Channing has always been
9256-539: Was 14.77 million in 2018–2019, compared to 13.79 million in 2017–2018. The average age of the Broadway audience in the 2017–18 theater season was 40, the lowest it had been in nearly two decades. By 2018, about 20% of Broadway tickets were sold to international visitors, although many visitors reported not being able to use their tickets. In 2022–2023, the first full season since the COVID-19 pandemic, Broadway theaters sold 12.3 million tickets, of which 35% were to local residents and 17% to international visitors. At
9360-469: Was 20. He was a writer who in 1944 wrote Watch Out for Willie Carter , but during the nearly five years of their marriage, earned little income: "There was no money for food, clothing or housing." Still, Channing adored his émigré Jewish family, stating in her memoir, "There is nothing so safe and secure as an immigrant, foreign-language-speaking family all around you. It was a dream come true for me. They look after you, you look after them. They make chick'n in
9464-585: Was a 50-performance hit called The Elves in 1857. In 1870, the heart of Broadway was in Union Square , and by the end of the century, many theatres were near Madison Square . Theatres arrived in the Times Square area in the early 1900s, and the Broadway theatres consolidated there after a large number were built around the square in the 1920s and 1930s. New York runs continued to lag far behind those in London, but Laura Keene 's "musical burletta" The Seven Sisters (1860) shattered previous New York records with
9568-525: Was a Christian Scientist and a survivor of ovarian cancer. Channing died from natural causes on January 15, 2019, at her home in Rancho Mirage, California , at the age of 97, 16 days before her 98th birthday. On January 16, 2019, the lights on Broadway were dimmed in her honor. A crowd congregated outside the St. James Theatre , as it had also been the anniversary of the opening of the original Broadway production of Hello, Dolly! . Betty Buckley dedicated
9672-553: Was also printed on the cover of magazines, including Horizon . She later appeared in the movie biography about his life, The Line King , in 1996. Channing reprised her role of Lorelei Lee when the musical Lorelei , directed by Robert Moore and choreographed by Ernest O. Flatt, premiered in 1973 at the Oklahoma City (6000 seat) Civic Center Music Hall and broke all box office records after six days' worth of performances sold out within 24 hours. To commemorate this record event,
9776-539: Was asked to perform in various skits or appear as a guest on regular shows. In the 1960s, she was on The Andy Williams Show . In 1974, she participated in the television special Free to Be... You and Me , based on Marlo Thomas' best-selling album of 1972, in which Channing also appeared. Free... won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Children's Special and The Peabody Award . In 1980, she guest starred on The Muppet Show where she participated in several skits, performed
9880-479: Was born in Seattle, Washington, on January 31, 1921, the only child of Adelaide (née Glaser; 1886–1984) and George Channing (1888–1957). Adelaide Channing was of German Jewish ancestry. George Channing, born George Christian Stucker, changed his surname for religious reasons before Carol's birth. His birth certificate described him as "colored"; his mother was Black, and his father was German-American. George Channing became
9984-664: Was coming from what we all thought then was a shiksa (me)." She learned to speak fluent Yiddish from "Grandpa Cohen", a skill that helped her understand the boardwalk conversations that went on around her in town. Channing's second husband, Alexander F. Carson , known as Axe, or "The Murderous Ax", played center for the Ottawa Rough Riders Canadian football team and was also a private detective. They married in 1950 and divorced in September 1956. They had one son, Channing Carson. In September 1956, "immediately following
10088-422: Was during the recording sessions that she received a phone call from her childhood sweetheart Harry Kullijian that rekindled their romance and led to their marriage a few months later. In January 2008, the documentary Carol Channing: Larger Than Life (which chronicles Channing's life and career) was released. Channing was married four times. Her first husband was Theodore Naidish, whom she married in 1941 when she
10192-404: Was forced to discontinue performing due to heart ailments, she saw that Burns needed a partner to play against on stage since he was best as a straight man. She remembered that Channing, like she, had one of the most distinctive and recognizable voices in show business, and Lowe asked Channing if she would perform with Burns. She accepted immediately, and Channing worked on and off with Burns through
10296-694: Was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 1981 and received a Lifetime Achievement Tony Award in 1995. She continued to perform and make appearances well into her 90s, singing songs from her repertoire and sharing stories with fans, cabaret-style. She was one of the "legends" interviewed in the award-winning documentary, Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There . She released her autobiography, Just Lucky I Guess , in 2002, and Larger Than Life --a documentary film about her life and career--was released in 2012. Channing
10400-598: Was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as Muzzy in Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967). Her other film appearances include The First Traveling Saleslady (1956) and Skidoo (1968). On television, she appeared as an entertainer on variety shows. She performed The White Queen in the TV production of Alice in Wonderland (1985), and she had the first of many TV specials in 1966, titled An Evening with Carol Channing . Channing
10504-592: Was often invited to major events, including those at the White House , where she might sing. Channing was a registered Democrat and was invited to the Democratic convention in 1964 in Atlantic City, New Jersey where she sang "Hello, Lyndon" for Lyndon B. Johnson 's campaign. She was a favorite of Lady Bird Johnson , who once gave her a huge bouquet after a show. In 1967, she also became the first celebrity to perform at
10608-401: Was printed on the front page of the "Sunday Theatre" section of The New York Times . She felt that this image captured the essence of her character, having posited in writing, "How did the great Hirschfeld know precisely what I was thinking? ... To be Hirschfelded is an eerie experience. You better not have anything to hide, because he'll expose it like a neon sign" ... The illustration
10712-639: Was under renovation at the time, would be renamed after actor James Earl Jones . In June 2022, the Nederlanders announced that the Brooks Atkinson Theatre would be renamed after Lena Horne , The James Earl Jones Theatre was rededicated in September 2022, while the Lena Horne Theatre was rededicated that November. Although there are some exceptions, shows with open-ended runs generally have evening performances Tuesday through Saturday, with
10816-543: Was very good training—like stock." She also considered the fact that she was able to see plays while very young to have been an important inspiration: I was lucky enough to grow up in San Francisco and it was the best theater town that Sol Hurok knew and he brought everybody from all over the world and we schoolchildren got to see them with just 50-cent tickets. Channing attended Aptos Junior High School and Lowell High School in San Francisco, graduating in 1938. She won
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