Glen MacDonough (1870 – March 30, 1924) was an American writer, lyricist and librettist. He was the son of theater manager Thomas B. MacDonough and actress/author

Laura Don Anna Laura Fish (February 20, 1852 – February 10, 1886),Fish, Lester Warren - ''The Fish Family in England and America,'' 1948, p. 45 better known by the stage name Laura Don, was an American actress, stage manager, playwright and artist who die ...

. Glen MacDonough married Margaret Jefferson in 1896 in Buzzard's Bay, Massachusetts.

Biography

MacDonough was born in Brooklyn, New York. He is best-remembered today as the librettist of

Victor Herbert Victor August Herbert (February 1, 1859 – May 26, 1924) was an American composer, cellist and conductor of English and Irish ancestry and German training. Although Herbert enjoyed important careers as a cello soloist and conductor, he is be ...

's operetta, '' Babes in Toyland'' (1903). MacDonough started out as a feature/human interest journalist in New York City, and according to one source (''

Atlanta Constitution ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the only major daily newspaper in the Atlanta metropolitan area, metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Con ...

'', February 4, 1894), "...four years ago acDonoughwas a reporter earning 15 to 20 dollars a week...but was rapidly advanced in salary and prominence. In one year on the ''New York Advertiser'', he wrote 1,008 short stories...He

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determined to abandon journalism and turn to the drama for a livelihood..." The ''Prodigal Father'' (1892) is MacDonough's first work that received any note in reviews of the day. It was a comedy with songs, a form generally called "musical extravaganzas" at the time. His second work, ''The Algerian'' (1893), was a collaboration with prominent songwriter Reginald DeKoven. In the 1890s he devoted much time to writing farces and comedies or the book and song lyrics to a string of musical comedies. These musical comedies include ''Miss Dynamite'' (1894) and ''Delmonico's at 6'' (1895). MacDonough's name is associated with more than two dozen plays and musical works. Most of them have become obscure with the passage of time, but some—besides ''Babes in Toyland''—are worthy of mention and present certain points of historical interest. That is: He wrote the lyrics for the operetta, ''

Chris and the Wonderful Lamp ''Chris and the Wonderful Lamp'' is an operetta in four acts by John Philip Sousa with a libretto by Glen MacDonough (best remembered as the librettist for Victor Herbert's '' Babes in Toyland''). Of the nine operettas that Sousa wrote between ...

'' (1899), with music by march king

John Philip Sousa John Philip Sousa ( ; November 6, 1854 – March 6, 1932) was an American composer and conductor of the late Romantic era known primarily for American military marches. He is known as "The March King" or the "American March King", to dist ...

, a work that undergoes periodic revival even today. MacDonough was also one of the many lyricists called to help out in the first musical production of

L. Frank Baum Lyman Frank Baum (; May 15, 1856 – May 6, 1919) was an American author best known for his children's books, particularly ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' and its sequels. He wrote 14 novels in the ''Oz'' series, plus 41 other novels (not includ ...

's '' The Wizard of Oz'' (1902). Between 1896 and 1909, MacDonough collaborated with Victor Herbert on four other operettas besides ''Babes in Toyland'': ''

The Gold Bug "The Gold-Bug" is a short story by American writer Edgar Allan Poe published in 1843. The plot follows William Legrand, who was bitten by a gold-colored bug. His servant Jupiter fears that Legrand is going insane and goes to Legrand's friend, an ...

'' (1896), ''

It Happened in Nordland It or IT may refer to: * It (pronoun), in English * Information technology Arts and media Film and television * ''It'' (1927 film), a film starring Clara Bow * '' It! The Terror from Beyond Space'', a 1958 science fiction film * ''It!'' (1967 ...

'' (1905), '' Wonderland'' (1905), and ''

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'' (1908, revised in 1909 as ''

The Rose of Algeria ''The Rose of Algeria'' is a musical in two acts with music by Victor Herbert and both book and lyrics by Glen McDonough.Dietz, p. 501 The work features two songs which have become a part of the classical canon of concert repertoire, "Rose of the ...

''). MacDonough was also the American adapter of Johann Strauss' last work, ''

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'' (1901), and of

Franz Lehár Franz Lehár ( ; hu, Lehár Ferenc ; 30 April 1870 – 24 October 1948) was an Austro-Hungarian composer. He is mainly known for his operettas, of which the most successful and best known is ''The Merry Widow'' (''Die lustige Witwe''). Life ...

's ''

The Count of Luxembourg ''The Count of Luxembourg'' is an operetta in two acts with English lyrics and libretto by Basil Hood and Adrian Ross, music by Franz Lehár, based on Lehár's three-act German operetta ''Der Graf von Luxemburg'' which had premiered in Vienna in ...

'' (1912). In 1909 he wrote the book for ''

The Midnight Sons ''The Midnight Sons'' is a 1909 American musical comedy that was popular upon its release. The music was by Raymond Hubbell with a book by Glen MacDonough.(16 May 1909)The Midnight Sons by Glen MacDonough and Raymond Hubbell, Opens at the Broadwa ...

''. He was one of the nine founding members of

ASCAP The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadca ...

in 1914. Glen MacDonough wrote continuously until the year before his death in

Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut, outside of Manhattan. It is Connecticut's second-most populous city, behind Bridgeport. With a population of 135,470, Stamford passed Hartford and New Haven in population as of the 2020 ...

, on March 30, 1924. His last work was in 1923, ''Within Four Walls'', a play.

References

Sources

* Hischak, Thomas S. ''The Oxford Companion to the American Musical: Theatre, Film, and Television''. Oxford University Press. USA. * ''The Cambridge Companion to the Musical'', 2nd Edition, Publication date: May 2008. * ''The Atlanta Constitution'', January 1, 1894; February 4, 1894. * ''The Decatur Review''. October 19, 1892. * ''Cedar Rapids Evening Gazette'', December 16, 1892. * ''The Boston Daily Globe'', October 3, 1893; September 29, 1894. * ''Newark Daily Advocate'', March 3, 1995.

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:MacDonough, Glen 1860 births 1924 deaths American opera librettists Writers from Stamford, Connecticut

Biography

See also

References

Sources

External links