''Good Times'' was a popular 1920 Broadway musical extravaganza, with music by

Raymond Hubbell John Raymond Hubbell (June 1, 1879 – December 13, 1954) was an American writer, composer and lyricist. He is best known for the popular song, " Poor Butterfly". Life and career Hubbell was born in Urbana, Ohio. He attended schools in Urba ...

and a book by

R. H. Burnside Robert Hubber Thorne Burnside (August 13, 1873 – September 14, 1952) was an American actor, director, producer, composer, and playwright. He was artistic director of the 5,200-seat New York Hippodrome from 1908 to 1923. He wrote and staged h ...

. Produced by

Charles Dillingham Charles Bancroft Dillingham (May 30, 1868 – August 30, 1934) was an American theatre manager and producer of over 200 Broadway shows. Biography Charles Bancroft Dillingham was born on May 30, 1868 in Hartford, Connecticut to Edmund Bancroft D ...

, it debuted on August 9, 1920 at the

Hippodrome The hippodrome ( el, ἱππόδρομος) was an ancient Greek stadium for horse racing and chariot racing. The name is derived from the Greek words ''hippos'' (ἵππος; "horse") and ''dromos'' (δρόμος; "course"). The term is used i ...

in New York City and ran for 456 performances, the longest run for the 1920–21 season.Bordman, Gerald & Richard Norton
American Musical Theatre: A Chronicle
p. 402 (4th ed. 2010)(28 July 1920)
"Good Times" is its name
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

''(10 August 1920)
'Good Times' reveals Hippodrome at best; Newest spectacle offers a memorable picture in jeweled towers, and good specialties
''

'' It was sixth of Dillingham's elaborate spectacles at the Hippodrome.(8 August 1920)
Hippodrome Opens To-morrow Night
'' The Sun and New York Herald'', Section 3, p. 4 The popular songs of the "musical spectacle" were ''The Valley of Dreams'', ''Colorland'', and ''The Wedding of the Dancing Doll''. Featuring among the large cast were Abdullah's Arabian troupe, Nanette Flack, The Poodles Hanneford Family (trick horsemen), Joe Jackson,Cullen, Frank et al
Vaudeville old & new, Vol. 1
pp. 558-59 (2007) Joseph Parsons and

Belle Story Belle Story (born Grace Leard, c. 1887) was an American vaudeville performer and singer, noted for her coloratura soprano style. She appeared in a number of productions at the New York Hippodrome.

.Bloom, Ken
''Routledge Guide to Broadway''
p. 122 (2007) The famed clown Marceline, a prior fixture at the Hippodrome, also returned for the show. A representative blurb on the show in a theatre listing from 1921 stated: "Well, there are elephants, and diving girls, and Joe Jackson – and everything."(14 April 1921)
"Confidential Guide"
''

Life (magazine) ''Life'' was an American magazine published weekly from 1883 to 1972, as an intermittent "special" until 1978, and as a monthly from 1978 until 2000. During its golden age from 1936 to 1972, ''Life'' was a wide-ranging weekly general-interest ma ...

'', p. 537 A rave review in The ''

New York Clipper The ''New York Clipper'', also known as ''The Clipper'', was a weekly entertainment newspaper published in New York City from 1853 to 1924. It covered many topics, including circuses, dance, music, the outdoors, sports, and theatre. It had a ...

'' stated that "the show ... is positively the greatest and most worth-while one of its kind this country has ever seen. ... In pretentiousness it has no equal. Its three acts and fifteen scenes are punched through with riotous color, scenic effects, some of which positively awe the beholder, and rollicking entertainment that has for its motif a horde of capable and versatile entertainers."(18 August 1920)
"Hippodrome show, ''Good Times'', outdoes all former efforts"
''

'', p. 28.(10 August 1920)
"Old Favorites and Newcomers In ''Good Times''; Trick Riding, High Diving and Elephants Play Their Usual Part in the Big Show at the Hippodrome"
'' New York Tribune'' A young

Cary Grant Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one o ...

, just arrived from England, made his American stage debut as a stilt-walker in this production.''Cary Grant: A Biography''
pp. 38–39 (2009)

Principal cast

As listed in

Burns Mantle Robert Burns Mantle (December 23, 1873February 9, 1948) was an American theater critic. He founded the ''Best Plays'' annual publication in 1920.Chansky, Dorothy (2011)"Burns Mantle and the American Theatregoing Public" in ''Theatre History Stu ...

's ''Best Plays of 1920–21'': *

(some sources credit her as Belle Storey)Cullen, Frank
Series XXII: Belle Story Collection
American Vaudeville Museum collection, 1850s–2007, accessed March 22, 2016 * "Happy" Jack Lambert * Arthur Geary * Joe Jackson * Ferry Corwey * Mlle. Natalie * Emma, Louise, Bertha, and Elsie Rose (The Four Roses) * Nanette Flack * The Mannefords * Joseph Parsons * Robert MacClellan * Daisy Smythe * Elizabeth Coyle * Virginia Futrelle * The Pender Troupe * Berlo SistersMantle, Burns
The Best Plays of 1920–21 and the Year Book of the Drama in America
pp. 1, 351–54, 365 (1921)

Musical numbers

As described in the ''New York Clipper'': ; Act 1 *(Down in the) Valley of Dreams – Joseph Parsons *Sunbeams – Alice and Edna Nash *Morning and Night – Sascha Piatov and Mlle. Natalie *Youth and Truth – Belle Story and Nannette Flack *Wake Up Father Time – William Williams *The Land I Love – Story and Arthur Geary with Chorus ;Act 2 *The Wedding of the Dancing Doll – Story with Chorus *You Can't Beat the Luck of the Irish – Arthur Geary and Chorus *Dance:

Harlequin Harlequin (; it, Arlecchino ; lmo, Arlechin, Bergamasque pronunciation ) is the best-known of the '' zanni'' or comic servant characters from the Italian '' commedia dell'arte'', associated with the city of Bergamo. The role is traditional ...

and Columbine – Sascha Piatov and Mlle. Natalie *Hands Up – "Happy" Lambert *(You're) Just Like a Rose – Flack and Parsons *Hello Imagination – Lambert and Chorus *I Want to Show You Colorland – Story, Geary and Chorus ;Act 3 *Sing a Serenade – Flack *Welcome Truth – Parsons *Truth Reigns Supreme – Story and Chorus

References

{{reflist, 3

External links

Good Times at Internet Broadway Database
1920 musicals Broadway musicals