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A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum
''A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart. Inspired by the farces of the ancient Roman playwright Plautus (254–184 BC), specifically ''Pseudolus'', ''Miles Gloriosus'', and ''Mostellaria'', the musical tells the bawdy story of a slave named Pseudolus and his attempts to win his freedom by helping his young master woo the girl next door. The plot displays many classic elements of farce, including puns, the slamming of doors, cases of mistaken identity (frequently involving characters disguising themselves as one another), and satirical comments on social class. The title derives from a line often used by vaudeville comedians to begin a story: "A funny thing happened on the way to the theater". The musical's original 1962 Broadway run won several Tony Awards, including Best Musical and Best Author (Musical). ''A Funny Thing'' has enjoyed several Broadway and West End ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Playbill
''Playbill'' is an American monthly magazine for theatergoers. Although there is a subscription issue available for home delivery, most copies of ''Playbill'' are printed for particular productions and distributed at the door as the show's program. ''Playbill'' was first printed in 1884 for a single theater on 21st Street in New York City. The magazine is now used at nearly every Broadway theatre, as well as many Off-Broadway productions. Outside New York City, ''Playbill'' is used at theaters throughout the United States. As of September 2012, its circulation was 4,073,680. History What is known today as ''Playbill'' started in 1884, when Frank Vance Strauss founded the New York Theatre Program Corporation specializing in printing theater programs. Strauss reimagined the concept of a theater program, making advertisements a standard feature and thus transforming what was then a leaflet into a fully designed magazine. The new format proved popular with theatergoers, who s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pseudolus
''Pseudolus'' is a play by the ancient Roman playwright Titus Maccius Plautus. It is one of the earliest examples of Roman literature. ''Pseudolus'' was first shown in 191 B.C. during the Megalesian Festival, which was a celebration for the Greek Goddess Cybele. The temple for worship of Cybele in Rome was completed during the same year in time for the festival. ''Pseudolus'' was written in Plautus's old age (he was probably over 60 at the time): Cicero mentions it in his book on Old Age as an example of a work written by older men. It proved to be very popular and was frequently revived. Cicero records that in his day the famous actor Roscius frequently took the part of Ballio. M. M. Willcock calls this play "Plautus' masterpiece". He adds: "For the special qualities of Plautus – vigour, wit, invention, the charm of low class humanity – this play is supreme." Characters Simo - An Athenian gentleman Calidorus - Simo's son Pseudolus - Simo's chief slave Callipho - a ne ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Milton Berle
Milton Berle (born Mendel Berlinger; ; July 12, 1908 – March 27, 2002) was an American actor and comedian. His career as an entertainer spanned over 80 years, first in silent films and on stage as a child actor, then in radio, movies and television. As the host of NBC's ''Texaco Star Theatre'' (1948–1953), he was the first major American television star and was known to millions of viewers as "Uncle Miltie" and "Mr. Television" during the first Golden Age of Television. He was honored with two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his work in both radio and TV. Early life Milton Berle was born into a Jewish family in a five-story walkup at 68 W. 118th Street in the Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan. His given name was Mendel Berlinger, but he chose Milton Berle as his professional name when he was 16. His father, Moses Berlinger (1872–1938), was a paint and varnish salesman. His mother, Sarah (Sadie) Glantz Berlinger (1877–1954), changed her name to Sandra Berle when ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Phil Silvers Show
''The Phil Silvers Show'', originally titled ''You'll Never Get Rich'', is a sitcom which ran on CBS from 1955 to 1959. A pilot titled "Audition Show" was made in 1955, but it was never broadcast. 143 other episodes were broadcast – all half-an-hour long except for a 1959 one-hour live special. The series starred Phil Silvers as Master Sergeant Ernest G. Bilko of the United States Army. The series was created by Nat Hiken and won three consecutive Emmy Awards for Best Comedy Series. The show is sometimes titled ''Sergeant Bilko'' or simply ''Bilko'' in reruns, and it is very often referred to by these names, both on-screen and by viewers. The show's success transformed Silvers from a journeyman comedian into a star and writer-producer Hiken from a highly regarded behind-the-scenes comedy writer into a publicly recognized creator. Production By 1955, the American television business was already moving westward to Los Angeles, but Nat Hiken insisted on filming the series in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Phil Silvers
Phil Silvers (born Phillip Silver; May 11, 1911 – November 1, 1985) was an American entertainer and comedic actor, known as "The King of Chutzpah". His career as a professional entertainer spanned nearly sixty years. Silvers achieved major popularity when he starred in ''The Phil Silvers Show'', a 1950s sitcom set on a United States Army, U.S. Army post in which he played Master Sergeant Ernest (Ernie) Bilko. He also starred in the films ''It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World'' (1963) and ''A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (film), A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum'' (1966). He was a winner of two Primetime Emmy Awards for his work on ''The Phil Silvers Show'' and two Tony Awards for his performances in ''Top Banana (musical), Top Banana'' and ''A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum''. He also wrote the original lyrics to the jazz standard Nancy (with the Laughing Face). Early life Born Philip Silver in Brooklyn, New York (state), New York, in the w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Majestic Theatre (Broadway)
The Majestic Theatre is a Broadway theater at 245 West 44th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1927, the theater was designed by Herbert J. Krapp in a Spanish style and was built for real-estate developer Irwin S. Chanin. It has 1,681 seats across two levels and is operated by The Shubert Organization. Both the facade and interior are New York City landmarks. The facade is designed in a Spanish style with golden brick, terracotta, and stone and is divided into two sections. The western portion of the facade contains the theater's entrance, with fire-escape galleries and a terracotta pediment above. The eastern portion is the stage house and is topped by archways. The auditorium contains Adam style detailing, steep stadium seating in the orchestra level, a large balcony, and an expansive plaster dome. Due to the slope of the seats, the rear of the orchestra is one story above ground. An interior leads to a large staircase, which c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mark Hellinger Theatre
The Mark Hellinger Theatre (formerly the 51st Street Theatre and the Hollywood Theatre) is a church building at 237 West 51st Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, which formerly served as a cinema and a Broadway theater. Opened in 1930, the Hellinger Theatre is named after journalist Mark Hellinger and was developed by Warner Bros. as a movie palace. It was designed by Thomas W. Lamb with a modern facade and a Baroque interior. It has 1,605 seats across two levels and has been a house of worship for the Times Square Church since 1989. Both the exterior and interior of the theater are New York City landmarks. The facade on 51st Street is designed in a modern 1930s style and is constructed with golden and brown bricks. The stage house to the west and the auditorium at the center are designed as one unit, with a cornice above the auditorium. The eastern section, containing the building's current main entrance, includes statues flanking the doors, as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Neil Simon Theatre
The Neil Simon Theatre, originally the Alvin Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 250 West 52nd Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1927, the theater was designed by Herbert J. Krapp and was built for Alex A. Aarons and Vinton Freedley. The original name was an amalgamation of Aarons's and Freedley's first names; the theater was renamed for playwright Neil Simon in 1983. The Neil Simon has 1,467 seats across two levels and is operated by the Nederlander Organization. Both the facade and the auditorium interior are New York City landmarks. The facade is divided into two sections: the six-story stage house to the west and the five-story auditorium to the east. The ground floor is clad with terracotta blocks and contains an entrance with a marquee. The upper stories of both sections are made of brick and terracotta; the auditorium facade has arched windows, niches, and a central pediment, while the stage house has a more plain design. Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zero Mostel
Samuel Joel "Zero" Mostel (February 28, 1915 – September 8, 1977) was an American actor, comedian, and singer. He is best known for his portrayal of comic characters such as Tevye on stage in ''Fiddler on the Roof'', Pseudolus on stage and on screen in ''A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum'', and Max Bialystock in the original film version of Mel Brooks' '' The Producers'' (1967). Mostel was a student of Don Richardson, and he used an acting technique based on muscle memory. He was blacklisted during the 1950s; his testimony before the House Un-American Activities Committee was well publicized. Mostel later starred in the Hollywood Blacklist drama film ''The Front'' (1976) alongside Woody Allen, for which Mostel was nominated for the British Academy Film Award for Best Supporting Actor. Mostel was an Obie Award and three-time Tony Award winner. He is also a member of the American Theater Hall of Fame, inducted posthumously in 1979. Early life Mostel was born in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in Midtown Manhattan. The awards are given for Broadway productions and performances. One is also given for regional theatre. Several discretionary non-competitive awards are given as well, including a Special Tony Award, the Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre, and the Isabelle Stevenson Award. The awards were founded by theatre producer and director Brock Pemberton and are named after Antoinette "Tony" Perry, an actress, producer and theatre director who was co-founder and secretary of the American Theatre Wing. The trophy consists of a spinnable medallion, with faces portraying an adaptation of the comedy and tragedy masks, mounted on a black base with a pewter swivel. The rules for the Tony Awards are set forth in the off ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vaudeville
Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition or light poetry, interspersed with songs or ballets. It became popular in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s, but the idea of vaudeville's theatre changed radically from its French antecedent. In some ways analogous to music hall from Victorian Britain, a typical North American vaudeville performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill. Types of acts have included popular and classical musicians, singers, dancers, comedians, trained animals, magicians, ventriloquists, strongmen, female and male impersonators, acrobats, clowns, illustrated songs, jugglers, one-act plays or scenes from plays, athletes, lecturing celebrities, minstrels, and movies. A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mistaken Identity
Mistaken identity is a defense in criminal law which claims the actual innocence of the criminal defendant, and attempts to undermine evidence of guilt by asserting that any eyewitness to the crime incorrectly thought that they saw the defendant, when in fact the person seen by the witness was someone else. The defendant may question both the memory of the witness (suggesting, for example, that the identification is the result of a false memory), and the perception of the witness (suggesting, for example, that the witness had poor eyesight, or that the crime occurred in a poorly lit place). Because the prosecution in a criminal case must prove the guilt of the accused beyond a reasonable doubt, the defendant must convince the jury that there is reasonable doubt about whether the witness actually saw what they claim to have seen, or recalls having seen. Although scientific studies have shown that mistaken identity is a common phenomenon, jurors give very strong credence to eyewit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
