Tom, Dick or Harry is a

show tune A show tune is a song originally written as part of the score of a work of musical theatre or musical film, especially if the piece in question has become a standard, more or less detached in most people's minds from the original context. ...

from the

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film. Born to ...

musical, ''

Kiss Me, Kate ''Kiss Me, Kate'' is a musical written by Bella and Samuel Spewack with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The story involves the production of a musical version of William Shakespeare's ''The Taming of the Shrew'' and the conflict on and off-s ...

'', introduced on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

on December 30, 1948 by

Lisa Kirk Lisa Kirk (born Elsie Kirk, February 25, 1925 – November 11, 1990) was an American actress and singer noted for her comic talents and rich contralto (her voice was called a husky alto). Career Born in Brownsville, Pennsylvania, she was raise ...

(as Bianca);

Harold Lang Harold Lang (December 21, 1920 – July 26, 1985) was an American dancer, singer and actor. Life and career Lang began his professional career as a ballet dancer, making his professional debut with the San Francisco Ballet in 1938 and then goi ...

(as Lucentio); Edwin Clay (as Gremio); and Charles Wood (as Hortensio). In the 1953 Hollywood film version, "Tom, Dick or Harry" was performed by

Ann Miller Ann Miller (born Johnnie Lucille Collier; April 12, 1923 – January 22, 2004) was an American retired actress and former dancer. She is best remembered for her work in the Classical Hollywood cinema musicals of the 1940s and 1950s. Her early ...

(as Bianca),

Tommy Rall Thomas Edward Rall (December 27, 1929 – October 6, 2020) was an American actor, ballet dancer, tap dancer, and acrobatic dancer who was a prominent featured player in 1950s musical comedies. He later became a successful operatic tenor in the 1 ...

(as Lucentio),

Bobby Van Robert Jack Stein (December 6, 1928 – July 31, 1980), known by his legalized stage name Bobby Van, was a Musician, musical actor and dancer, best known for his career on Broadway theatre, Broadway, in films and television from the 1950s throu ...

(as Gremio) and

Bob Fosse Robert Louis Fosse (; June 23, 1927 – September 23, 1987) was an American actor, choreographer, dancer, and film and stage director. He directed and choreographed musical works on stage and screen, including the stage musicals ''The Pajam ...

(as Hortensio).

Performance and release information

In this song, during a musical performance of Shakespeare's ''

Taming of the Shrew ''The Taming of the Shrew'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1592. The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunken ...

'' (the

subplot In fiction, a subplot is a secondary strand of the plot that is a supporting side story for any story or for the main plot. Subplots may connect to main plots, in either time and place or thematic significance. Subplots often involve supporting cha ...

of ''Kate''), three suitors (Gremio, Lucentio and Hortensio) compete to win Bianca's affections (Gremio claiming wealth; Hortensio offering

social standing Social stratification refers to a society's categorization of its people into groups based on socioeconomic factors like wealth, income, race, education, ethnicity, gender, occupation, social status, or derived power (social and political). As su ...

; and Lucentio with a promise of love). Whereas other songs from ''Kiss Me, Kate'' (such as "

So in Love "So in Love" is a popular song, written by Cole Porter, from his musical ''Kiss Me, Kate'' (opening on Broadway in 1948), which was based on Shakespeare's ''The Taming of the Shrew''. It was sung in the show by Patricia Morison, reprised by Alf ...

" and "

Too Darn Hot "Too Darn Hot" is a song written by Cole Porter for his musical ''Kiss Me, Kate'' (1948). In the stage version, it is sung at the start of Act 2, and in the 1948 original Broadway production, it was sung by Lorenzo Fuller (as Paul) and Eddie Sle ...

") were released as

singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...

and achieved commercial success outside the show ("So in Love" reached the top ten on the

Hit Parade A hit parade is a ranked list of the most popular recordings at a given point in time, usually determined either by sales or airplay. The term originated in the 1930s; ''Billboard'' magazine published its first music hit parade on January 4, 1936 ...

in 1949 and has since been

covered Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

by scores of

recording artists A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wr ...

), "Tom, Dick or Harry" was written expressly to advance the ''Shrew'' subplot and is, therefore, a showtune in the truest sense of the word. This is why many studio (non-cast) recordings of ''Kiss Me, Kate'' do not include the song. Perhaps the best-known example of this is

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

's ''Kiss Me, Kate'' studio album which is part of his four album (four show) project that also includes ''

Finian's Rainbow ''Finian's Rainbow'' is a musical with a book by E. Y. Harburg and Fred Saidy, lyrics by Harburg, and music by Burton Lane, produced by Lee Sabinson. The original 1947 Broadway production ran for 725 performances, while a film version was re ...

'' (1947), '' South Pacific'' (1949) and ''

Guys and Dolls ''Guys and Dolls'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Runyon, and also bo ...

'' (1950) and which he produced in 1963 to promote his fledgling label,

Reprise Records Reprise Records is an American record label founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operates through Warner Records, one of its flagship labels. Artists currently signed to Reprise Records include Enya, Michael ...

; hence the project title, the star-studded ''

Reprise Musical Repertory Theatre ''Reprise Musical Repertory Theatre'' is a series of four 12" long playing vinyl albums recorded in Los Angeles in 1963. The four albums were sold through mail order as a box set in 1963, then released separately to retail in 1964. They were con ...

''.

Historical note

In 1990, theatre historian Miles Krueger conducted an interview with

Patricia Morison Eileen Patricia Augusta Fraser Morison (March 19, 1915 – May 20, 2018) was an American stage, television and film actress of the Golden Age of Hollywood and mezzo-soprano singer. She made her feature film debut in 1939 after several years on ...

(who originated the title role in ''Kate'') to discuss the original production as well as the six songs dropped from the show prior to the Broadway opening. When asked about one of the deleted songs, "If Ever Married I'm", Morison responded by stating: "That was for Bianca. It was replaced by 'Tom, Dick or Harry' which tells the same story".

Performance in 2000

On May 18, 2000, "Tom, Dick or Harry" was performed on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

-TV's ''

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * Day of the present, the time that is perceived directly, often called ''now'' * Current era, present * The current calendar date Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Today'' (1930 film), a 1930 A ...

'' show by 1999 Broadway revival cast members

Amy Spanger Amy Spanger (born May 21, 1971) is an American actress, singer and dancer. Early life Spanger was born in Newbury, Massachusetts. Career Spanger made her Broadway debut in 1995 in the musical ''Sunset Boulevard'', following a half-year ru ...

(as Bianca),

Michael Berresse Michael Berresse (born August 15, 1964) is an American actor, dancer, choreographer, and director. Life and career Born in Holyoke, Massachusetts, but reared primarily in Joliet, Illinois, Berresse's father was a chemical engineer and his mothe ...

(as Lucentio), Kevin Neal McCready (as Gremio) and Darren Lee (as Hortensio) as a result of the show's having garnered the greatest number of

Tony Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leagu ...

nominations (with twelve nominations) for that year. Host

Matt Lauer Matthew Todd Lauer (; born December 30, 1957) is an American former television news personality, best known for his work with NBC News. After serving as a local news personality in New York City on WNBC, his first national exposure was as the ne ...

introduced the four performers outside on

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

Rockefeller Plaza Rockefeller Center is a large complex consisting of 19 commerce, commercial buildings covering between 48th Street (Manhattan), 48th Street and 51st Street (Manhattan), 51st Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. The 14 original Art Deco ...

, interviewing Spanger and Berresse, while co-host

Katie Couric Katherine Anne Couric ( ; born January 7, 1957) is an American journalist and presenter. She is founder of Katie Couric Media, a multimedia news and production company. She also publishes a daily newsletter, ''Wake Up Call''. From 2013 to 2017, ...

remained in the studio. The Broadway revival of ''Kate'' went on to become the top winning show at the

54th Tony Awards The 54th Annual Tony Awards was held at Radio City Music Hall on June 4, 2000 and broadcast by CBS. "The First Ten" awards ceremony was telecast on PBS television. The event was hosted, for the 3rd time since 1997, by Rosie O'Donnell, with specia ...

(the only show to garner five or more Tonys).

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tom, Dick Or Harry (Song) Songs from Kiss Me, Kate Songs written by Cole Porter Songs from musicals 1948 songs Songs written for films