Today's Birthdays 2/24

[do_re_milla]

Posted: 2/24/09 at 11:21pm

Arrigo Boito 2/24/1842 - 6/10/1918 Italian poet, composer, and librettist - Mefistofele [1 of my fav arias that Callas recorded comes fr this opera: "L'Altra Notte In Fondo Al Mare". It's a killer, & La Prima Donna Assoluta Del Mondo NAILED it!

Victor Moore 02/24/1876 - Jul 23, 1962 wonderful character actor, performer - origs: Forty-five Minutes from Broadway; Oh, Kay!; Funny Face; She Lived Next to the Firehouse (Wm. Frawley, Lotti Linthicum); Of Thee I Sing; Anything Goes; Leave It To Me!; Louisiana Purchase; Keep 'em Laughing (HILDEGARD, Wm. Gaxton, Zero Mostel's Bway debut); 1957 Carousel (Barbara Cook, Howard Keel, Bambi Lin, James Mitchell, Russell Nype)

Marjorie Main 2/24/1890 - 4/10/1975 performer - film's Ma of Ma and Pa Kettle, The Egg and I, The Harvey Girls, Friendly Persuasion; The Women

Zachary Scott 02/24/1914 - Oct 3, 1965 gorgeous! husband of Ruth Ford (1952 - 1965) his death, Elaine Anderson (1934 - 1949) divorced, performer - 1941 Ah, Wilderness! (Harry Carey); The Damask Cheek; This Rock; Those Endearing Young Charms; Requiem for a Nun; A Rainy Day in Newark; film's Flamingo Road, The Young One, The Southerner, Appointment in Honduras

Abe Vigoda 02/24/1921 performer - The Man in the Glass Booth; Inquest (James Whitmore); Tough To Get Help; 1986 Arsenic and Old Lace; tv's Barney Miller; Fish, The Godfather, Joe Versus the Volcano, Fist of Honor

Steven Hill 02/24/1922 performer, Founding member of Lee Strasberg's Actor's Studio, husband of Selma Stern (1951 - present) - origs: A Flag Is Born; Mr. Roberts; Sundown Beach (Joan Copeland's Bway debut, Julie Harris, Martin Balsam); The Country Girl; A Far Country; tv's Law & Order [I still miss him & Jerry on L&O]

Michel Legrand 02/24/1932 Composer, Orchestrator, Performer; - Zizi (Zizi Jeanmaire [Costume Design by Yves Saint-Laurent]); Of Love Remembered (George Gaynes, Ingrid Thulin); Andy Williams with Michel Legrand; AMOUR (music & orchestrations by Michel Legrand) I LOVED this show!; film's Academy Award-Winning composer for Best Original Score: Yentl [1983]; Brian’s Song, Ice Station Zebra; and children, he's coming to BIRDLAND in March! I'll be there!

Renata Scotto 2/24/1934 opera soprano: made operatic debut at age 18; best known for performances as Violetta in La Traviata, Cio-Cio-San in Madama Butterfly, Mimi [and the occasional Musetta] in La Bohème, Lucia in Lucia di Lammermoor, Lady Macbeth in Macbeth and Francesca in Francesca da Rimini; opera director

James Farentino 02/24/1938 performer, husband of Debrah Farentino (1985 - 198 , Stella Farentino (1994 - present), Elizabeth Ashley (1962 - ?) divorced, Michele Lee (1967 - 1982) divorced - orig The Night of the Iguana (Patrick O'Neal); 1973 A Streetcar Named Desire (Rosemary Harris, Philip Bosco); 1975 Death of a Salesman; tv's & film's Dynasty, Cool Million, The Story of a Woman, Ensign Pulver, The Final Countdown

Barry Bostwick 02/24/1946 performer - 1969 Cock-A-Doodle Dandy; 1969 Hamlet; 1971 Soon; orig Grease; 1991 Nick & Nora; tv's & film's Spy Hard, Weekend at Bernie’s 2, War & Remembrance, A Woman of Substance, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Foul Play, Dads; Spin City

Edward James Olmos 02/24/1947 Husband of Lorraine Bracco (1994 - 2002) divorced, performer - Zoot Suit; tv's & film's Emmy Award-Winning Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series: Miami Vice [1985]; Stand and Deliver, Blade Runner; West Wing

Rupert Holmes 02/24/1947 Writer, Composer, Lyricist, Arranger, Orchestrator; graduated from the Manhattan School of Music - [In 1986, Rupert Holmes made history, having been the only person on the Great White Way to receive Tony awards for book, music AND lyrics of the same play:] The Mystery of Edwin Drood [PLEASE REVIVE THIS SHOW]; Accomplice; Solitary Confinement (Stacey Keach); Say Goodnight, Gracie; Curtains; [what's happening with Marty & Remember WENN?]; tv's & film's 1976 A Star Is Born; Remember WENN; Where the Truth Lies

Curt Karibalis 02/24/1947 performer - Goodbye Fidel (Jane Alexander, Kathy Bates [debut], Concetta Tomei); 1973 Holiday; 1973 Chemain de Fer; 1973 The Visit (John McMartin, Rachel Roberts, David Dukes, Thomas A. Stewart); 1972 Don Juan

Billy Zane 02/24/1966 performer - Chicago [replacement]; tv's & film's Titanic; Sole Survivor; Back to the Future 1 & 2; Dead Calm; The Phantom [I liked this film]; Charmed; Was originally cast as Johnny Castle in Dirty Dancing (1987). During a dance rehearsal, Emile Ardolino realized that Zane could not dance, so they gave the part to Patrick Swayze.

SHOWS THAT OPENED ON THIS DATE:

1934 Sidney Howard's adaptation of Sinclair Lewis' novel Dodsworth will run at the Shubert for 131 performances. Walter Huston stars with Fay Bainter and Nan Sunderland.

1955 Ninotchka slips into Silk Stockings at the Imperial Theatre. The transformation into a musical is the handiwork of Cole Porter, George S. Kaufman, Leueen MacGrath Kaufman and Abe Burrows. Hildegarde Neff and Don Ameche star. Cy Feuer stages the 478 performance run.

1970 Harvey with James Stewart, Helen Hayes & Peggy Pope

1985 - Yul Brynner reprised his role in The King and I -- setting a box office record for weekly receipts. The show took in $520,920.

1999 Director Michael Greif's production of Paul Scott Goodman's Bright Lights, Big City opens Off-Broadway at the New York Theatre Workshop, where director Greif's Rent debuted in 1996. The musical is based on the Jay McInerney novel about a writer who hedonistically plows through New York City high life in 1984. A pre-Full Monty Patrick Wilson makes his New York debut as the lead.

ON THIS DAY IN:

1990 - Crooner Johnnie Ray died in Los Angeles of liver failure at age 63. Ray was known at various times in his career as the ‘Prince of Wails’ and the ‘Howling Success’ because of his highly emotional singing and apparent ability to cry at will. His biggest hit was his double-sided 1951 million-seller: Cry and The Little White Cloud that Cried.

1998 Comedian Henny Youngman died at age 91.

(sources: IBDB, IMDB, NYT's ON THIS DAY, 440.com’s Those Were The Days, Playbill.com)

Milla