Sondheim of the Day - West Side Story

Way back in 2009, I posted a tribute to the long-forgotten model-turned-society-hostess Ruth Ford, who hosted a famous theatrical [="gay"] salon at her home in the Dakota Building in New York:

...she hosted parties attended by such luminaries as Tennessee Williams, Edward Albee, Terrence McNally and Truman Capote - just imagine a single room that could possibly hold all those queens together!

But most exciting of all, it was in Ruth Ford's apartment that a young Stephen Sondheim was first introduced to Arthur Laurents and, later, to Leonard Bernstein. Together, these three remarkable men came up with one of the best musicals of all time - West Side Story! And it was all down to Miss Ford...

One of the most extolled successes in musical theatre history, this updated version of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet was made even more popular when Mr Laurents and producer Robert Wise turned it into a blockbuster movie in 1961 - which went on to win 10 Academy Awards; the most ever for a musical film. [Its influence stretches even to the modern era, as Steven Spielberg's just (groan) remade it; I shan't be rushing to see that.]

For young Stephen Sondheim, this was a spectacular debut indeed!

Without further ado, on with the show. It's a familiar and well-trodden plot - but with a plethora of tight-trousered gorgeous (and indelibly camp) boys, pretending to be members of macho street gangs, cavorting in Technicolor, what's not to like..?

West Side Story - Prologue [Russ Tamblyn and the Jets vs George Shakiris and the Sharks]

Of course, its score is timeless (with typically Bernstein staccato notes balanced by Mr Sondheim's clever and complex lyrics), and birthed a number of classics...

Chita Rivera, Rita Moreno and Bette Midler - America

Pet Shop Boys - Somewhere

Lin-Manuel Miranda and Raul Esparza - A Boy Like That/I Have a Love

[NB it was this version, from Lenny Bernstein's studio production of the score (see below) that spawned a famous French & Saunders skit]

Joyce DiDonato - I Feel Pretty

Kiri Te Te Kanawa and Jose Carreras [conductor Leonard Bernstein] - Tonight

Julian Ovenden - Maria [BBC Proms 2015]

It's no wonder, really, that West Side Story is still consistently voted among the best musicals of all time.

RIP, Stephen Joshua Sondheim (22nd March 1930 – 26th November 2021)

[One of a series of tributes I will be posting to Mr Sondheim this week. Yesterday's "Sondheim of the Day" was Company.]

A committee should be organised to honour me

And so, farewell, a superstar. Responsible for myriad songs beloved of us theatrical types light-in-our-loafers, including I Could Have Danced All Night, Getting To Know You, I Feel Pretty, Wouldn't It Be Loverly, Hello Young Lovers and Somewhere, she, remarkably, only ever appeared on screen in one movie - The Sound of Music. As a nun.

The lady is (or rather was as news of her death was announced today), of course, the magnificent Marni Nixon - the behind-the-scenes vocal artiste who dubbed for Deborah Kerr in The King and I, for Natalie Wood (much to her consternation when she found out) in West Side Story and for Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady.

Facts:

• Miss Nixon (unsurprisingly) was operatically trained, and made her solo debut singing “Carmina Burana” at the Hollywood Bowl in 1947; she returned to classical recordings in the 1980s, winning a Grammy.
• Her talent for variety led her to be on stage as a frequent guest and side-kick for Liberace and Victor Borge, as well as many stage and television roles.
• Although she fought for the credit, her name did not appear on the original multi-million selling soundtrack for West Side Story so she did not get the portion of the royalties she would have otherwise; apparently Leonard Bernstein eventually gave up 0.25 percent of his own earnings from the soundtrack to her.
• In addition to all the famous "leading ladies" above, she also dubbed Marilyn Monroe's high notes in Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.
• Her son was the late, great singer-songwriter Andrew Gold.

Here's a fine example of Marni's talents, on that camp classic I Feel Pretty:

I Feel Pretty [from West Side Story]

RIP Marni Nixon (born Margaret Nixon McEathron, 22nd February 1930 – 24th July 2016)

Smoke on your pipe and put that in!

Congratulations are evidently due to the ever-resilient Cher, who, at the venerable age of 69 is not only one of the "faces" of Marc Jacobs' autumn/winter 2015 collection, but also features on the cover of the latest edition of "fashionista bible" Love magazine.

On this Tacky Music Monday - to put us in a happy frame of mind as we face another week back on the treadmill of work - here is Miss Sarkisian herself in the company of another of our regulars, Charo. They're in America!

Cher and Charo - America

Have a good week, peeps...

You lovely island

In honour of the 81st birthday today of the fantabulosa Rita Moreno (one of the few performers to have won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony), rather than once more revisit my favourite screen appearance of hers The Ritz, nor indeed my other fave West Side Story, here instead is a classic number from the latter - as performed by the inimitable and never-to-be-repeated combination of Miss Moreno, Miss Rivera and Miss Midler!

Chita Rivera, Rita Moreno and Bette Midler - America

Shame it's such duff quality. America, however, has never quite recovered from this performance...

Rita Moreno (born Rosita Dolores Alverio, 11th December 1931)

Island of tropical breezes

Happy 60th birthday to... Puerto Rico!

On 25th July 1952, the island went from being a territory to a "self-governing US commonwealth". Any excuse, really, to play this classic from West Side Story...

Westside Story - America

A referendum on independence for Puerto Rico will be held on 6th November 2012.

La la la la la!

Puerto Rico

Let me entertain you

RIP another hero...

From the BBC:

Arthur Laurents, writer of such classic stage musicals as West Side Story and Gypsy, has died in New York aged 93.

The director and screenwriter died at his Manhattan home from complications of pneumonia, his agent said.

Born in Brooklyn, the attorney's son began in radio and wrote military training films during World War II.

His screen credits include the Alfred Hitchcock film Rope, Barbra Streisand romance The Way We Were and 1977 ballet drama The Turning Point.

Laurents won a Tony award in 1968 as author of the book for the musical Hallelujah, Baby!, and another, in 1984, for directing La Cage aux Folles.

He remains best known for writing the books for West Side Story and Gypsy, hit Broadway shows that were later turned into movies.

Over at Dolores Delargo Towers Museum of Camp today, there is more on Mr Laurents - read my blog.

As a little tribute to a great man, here are not one, not two, but three of Broadway's greats performing Let Me Entertain You from Gypsy!

Ann Reinking, Donna McKechnie and Chita Rivera - Let Me Entertain You (from Broadway Sings: The Music of Jule Styne, 1987)

Read the BBC article

A most influential salonniere

“My life has been too exciting, too wonderful, to let anything else, and that includes acting, come first.”

Sometimes you read about someone who has died, aged 98, and you think - "who the hell was she, and why does she deserve an obituary in the New York Times, for heaven's sake?".

However when I read about the death of the actress and Balmain model Ruth Ford, I suddenly realised why this lady was quite so significant. For, following her fantastically unsuccessful film career, Miss Ford (who had been married to Dr Mabuse actor Peter van Eyck, and later Mildred Pierce star Zachary Scott) created what would appear to be one of the campest theatrical "salons" in New York.

In the unlikely setting of her apartment in the (in)famous Dakota Building, she hosted parties attended by such luminaries as Tennessee Williams, Edward Albee, Terrence McNally and Truman Capote - just imagine a single room that could possibly hold all those queens together!

But most exciting of all, it was in Ruth Ford's apartment that a young Stephen Sondheim was first introduced to Arthur Laurents and, later, to Leonard Bernstein. Together, these three remarkable men came up with one of the best musicals of all time - West Side Story! And it was all down to Miss Ford...

West Side Story - I Feel Pretty

West Side Story - Tonight

Ruth Ford obituary

I like to be in Americaaaa

Ah, Rita Moreno! The queen of Puerto Rican sirens was 76 years old yesterday.

born Rosita Dolores Alverío, Rita has had a long career in movies, starting out as a child actor. But it was her role as Anita in West Side Story that brought her the fame and fortune she deserves.

Notably the first (and only Puerto Rican) actress ever to have won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony Award, she manages to maintain a magnetic screen presence whether she is dancing, singing or playing a comedy part such as Googie Gomez in The Ritz.

Or indeed as a guest on the Muppet Show...

Rita Moreno and Animal - The Muppet Show

Rita Moreno on Wikipedia

For us, stars will stop where they are

Tonight, tonight
Won't be just any night
Tonight there will be no morning star.
Tonight, tonight
I'll see my love tonight,
And for us, stars will stop
Where they are.

Today
The minutes seem like hours,
The hours go so slowly,
And still the sky is light…
Oh moon, grow bright,
And make this endless day endless night!



On this day in 1981, Natalie Wood drowned in a mysterious accident. The actress, husband Robert Wagner and actor Christopher Walken were aboard their yacht off California that November night. Natalie's body was found floating off shore the next day.

For years, speculation was rife in the tabloids about exactly what happened. By all accounts, there was a lot of drinking and arguing that night, and it was evident the Wood-Wagner marriage was a rocky affair. The Los Angeles Coroner decided that Wood had died accidentally, "possibly attempting to board the dinghy and had fallen into the water, striking her face." Still, the rumours continued: Was it murder? We will never really know.

Natalie Wood was one of the most beautiful actresses in Hollywood, yet very temperamental. She was a child star in the 1940s, but her rise to fame really began when she starred alongside James Dean in Rebel Without A Cause in 1955.

But it was surely for her role as the innocent Maria in West Side Story that Natalie Wood really became an icon - despite her singing voice being dubbed by the ubiquitous Marni Nixon. One of the greatest musicals ever, the film brought her the type of fame already enjoyed by the likes of Elizabeth Taylor, and affairs with Elvis Presley, Dennis Hopper, Warren Beatty and Michael Caine.

Her long acting career never really hit those dizzy heights again, but she and Robert Wagner remained a favourite celebrity couple until her sad death. To celebrate this wonderful woman, here's a clip from her finest screen appearance.

Tonight from West Side Story

Natalie Wood on IMDB

West Side Story website

Jets are hot!

A photo taken from the new revival of West Side Story in Paris - all in the interests of news, you understand, nothing to do with gratuitous shots of gorgeous tight buns...