Frank Loesser News

Masterworks Broadway continues to explore the rich history of its unequaled Broadway and Off-Broadway catalogue with the release of three highly requested classic cast recordings previously unavailable in the CD era - Regina, Song of Norway and Make A Wish.

The John W. Engeman Theater at Northport is delighted to present its 2010 - 2011 Season! SINGLE TICKET PRICE: $60 OR PURCHASE SEASON TICKETS (5 Shows) for as low as $250 and SAVE!

Today, we are taking a look and a listen to some splendid performances of material written by Frank Loesser, the Broadway composer/lyricist best-known for his musicals GUYS & DOLLS and HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING as well as Hollywood songs like 'Baby, It's Cold Outside' (which won an Oscar) and 'Heart and Soul'. He won 2 Tony Awards for Best Musical and HOW TO SUCCEED won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama - or, as Loesser candidly called it, 'the Putz-ular Prize' - and his work is some of the jazziest and jauntiest ever to grace the boards. With some help from Michael Feinstein, Bette Davis, Bob Hope, Doris Day and Loesser himself we have some fantastic fireworks of melody and merriment to enjoy this July 4th weekend thanks in no small part to Frank!

Producers Jed Bernstein and Adam Zotovich announced today that Tony Award-winners James Earl Jones and Vanessa Redgrave will return to the New York stage this Fall to star opposite one another in the Broadway Premiere of Alfred Uhry‘s Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Driving Miss Daisy. Directed by David Esbjornson (The Goat, Or Who Is Sylvia?), Driving Miss Daisy will begin performances on October 7, 2010, at the John Golden Theatre (252 West 45th Street), with an official opening on Monday, October 25, 2010.

Today, in honor of centennial of Frank Loesser, we are taking an exclusive First Listen to the Masterworks Broadway release of HEART & SOUL: Celebrating The Unforgettable Songs Of Frank Loesser and taking a look at some memorable clips and cast albums and soundtracks from his illustrious career in Hollywood and on Broadway. Though in the sweaty summer haze it's hard to warm too much to "Baby, It's Cold Outside", nothing could be hotter than "Havana" from GUYS & DOLLS and the more we look at Loesser, it becomes quite crystal clear that sometimes less is truly much, much more…

One of America's greatest songwriters will be honored on his 100th birthday with the broadcast of the documentary, 'Heart & Soul: The Life and Music of Frank Loesser.' The film will air on Turner Classic Movies at 10:15pm EDT on June 29, 2010, the centennial of Loesser's birth.

Tuesday, June 29 will mark the 100th birthday of composer and lyricist Frank Loesser. Over the course of his career, Loesser wrote over 700 songs and five Broadway musicals and contributed music and lyrics to dozens of Hollywood films.

Masterworks Broadway celebrates the 100th anniversary of composer/lyricist Frank Loesser's birth on June 29 with an all-new collection of his greatest songs entitled Heart & Soul: Celebrating the Unforgettable Songs of Frank Loesser. Available digitally and as a disc-on-demand from Arkivmusic.com, the collection brings together classic pop recordings of many of Loesser's most enduring hits from Hollywood and Broadway. The recording will be available on June 29, the exact anniversary of Loesser's birth.

Jo Loesser, Frank Loesser's widow, recently sat down to talk on the Leonard Lopate Show about the legendary composer and lyricist among other things.

According to an article written for the San Francisco Examiner, TCM will celebrate the 100th anniversary of Frank Loesser's birth with a marathon of his films. The marathon will begin with his 1967 'How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying,' starring original Broadway star Robert Morese (8 p.m. EDT).

An all-new collection entitled 'Heart & Soul: Celebrating the Unforgettale Songs of Frank Loesser' will be released on June 29, which is the 100th anniversary of Loesser's birth.

Today, we are taking a listen to five of the greatest and most deservedly classic-status cast albums of all time, with all five selections also being Tony-winning Best Musicals recently remastered, repackaged and re-released by Masterworks Broadway in time for Tony Award season which this week is finally coming to a close. In salute of Broadway now - and as it was fifty years ago when the first of these scores premiered - we take stock of what we have got, for better or worse. Surely, the strength of these shows' scores speak and sing out loud for themselves: 42nd Street, 1776, HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING, MAME and CITY OF ANGELS. From Herman to Coleman to Loesser and beyond we go, with a glance to the future and the all-to-recent past...

It's that time of the year again for the recognition of some amazing up and coming talent on the theatre scene, specifically, the 20th Annual Kleban Awards. The Kleban Foundation is pleased to announce that the 20th Annual Kleban Prize for the most promising musical theater lyricist has gone to Peter Mills and the award for the most promising musical theater librettist has gone to Barry Wyner. The 2010 awards will be presented on June 21, 2010, in a private ceremony (by invitation only) at ASCAP.

Today, we are taking a First Listen to the forthcoming collection of opening numbers from the many spectacular Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefits packaged together and titled in an expectedly suggestive and sexy manner - BROADWAY BARES OPENINGS. A cavalcade of dazzling casts, these tantalizing and titillating themes are led by the likes of Jane Krakowski, Sara Gettelfinger, Debbie Gravitte, Julia Murney, Shoshana Bean, Mary Birdsong, Heidi Blickenstaff, Tituss Burgess, Leslie Kritzer, Anika Larsen, Andrew Lippa, Euan Morton, Mo Rocca, Christopher Sieber, and Lillias White! Even with bottoms on display, this cast is tops!

Called the 'the greatest cabaret star of her generation' by the International Herald Tribune, star of screen, stage, concert and recording star Andrea Marcovicci will be making a special return at Chicago's premier venue for music, Davenport's, 1383 N. Milwaukee Avenue, Chicago.

Last night, June 7, The American Theatre Wing brought together the best of Broadway for their Annual Spring Gala at Cipriani 42nd Street. Celebrating the centennial of Tony Award-winning composer Frank Loesser, Heart and Soul: The Legacy of Frank Loesser featured performances by Harry Connick, Jr., Megan Mullally, Kelli O'Hara and more.

June 29, 2010 will mark the 100th anniversary of composer and lyricist Frank Loesser's birth. Loesser wrote over 700 songs and five Broadway musicals and contributed music and lyrics to dozens of Hollywood films, and was awarded an Oscar, a Grammy, two Tony awards and a Pulitzer Prize along the way.

The American Theatre Wing will bring together the best of Broadway for their Annual Spring Gala, to be held on Monday, June 7, 2010 at Cipriani 42nd Street (110 East 42nd Street). Celebrating the centennial of Tony Award-winning composer Frank Loesser, Heart and Soul: The Legacy of Frank Loesser will feature performances by Harry Connick, Jr., Megan Mullally and Kelli O'Hara.

The American Theatre Wing will bring together the best of Broadway for their Annual Spring Gala, to be held on Monday, June 7, 2010 at Cipriani 42nd Street (110 East 42nd Street). Celebrating the centennial of Tony Award-winning composer Frank Loesser, Heart and Soul: The Legacy of Frank Loesser will feature performances by Harry Connick, Jr., Megan Mullally and Kelli O'Hara.

Composer/pianist/singer/actor/bandleader Hoagy Carmichael wrote four of the most-recorded American songs of all time: 'Stardust,' 'Georgia on My Mind,' 'The Nearness of You,' and 'Heart and Soul.'