musical theater Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

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 ...

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.South Side High School.

Personal appearances

Blaine was a touring singer with dance bands starting in 1937. At one point in the 1940s, she was the top-billed act at New York's Copacabana nightclub. In his book, ''Dean and Me: (A Love Story)'', Jerry Lewis wrote about appearing at the club when Blaine was on the same bill: "We ewis_and_Dean_Martin,_as_the_double_act_Martin_and_Lewis.html" ;"title="Dean_Martin.html" ;"title="ewis and Dean Martin">ewis and Dean Martin, as the double act Martin and Lewis">Dean_Martin.html" ;"title="ewis and Dean Martin">ewis and Dean Martin, as the double act Martin and Lewis] weren't even the top-billed act. That honor went to a Broadway singing star named Vivian Blaine, who'd conquered Manhattan, gone out to Hollywood to make movies for 20th Century Fox, then returned to the Big Apple in triumph. Vivian was a lovely and very talented actress and singer ..."

Film

In 1942, Blaine's agent and soon-to-be husband Manny Franks signed her to a contract with

Twentieth Century-Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

, and she moved to Hollywood, sharing top billing with Laurel and Hardy in '' Jitterbugs'' (1943) and starring in ''

Greenwich Village Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...

'' (1944), ''

Something for the Boys ''Something for the Boys'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter and a book by Herbert Fields and Dorothy Fields. Produced by Mike Todd, the show opened on Broadway in 1943 and starred Ethel Merman in her fifth Cole Porter musical. P ...

'' (1944), ''

Nob Hill Nob Hill is a neighborhood of San Francisco, California, United States that is known for its numerous luxury hotels and historic mansions. Nob Hill has historically served as a center of San Francisco's upper class. Nob Hill is among the highes ...

'' (1945), and ''

State Fair A state fair is an annual competitive and recreational gathering of a U.S. state's population, usually held in late summer or early fall. It is a larger version of a county fair, often including only exhibits or competitors that have won in th ...

'' (1945).

Stage

Viviane Blaine and Sam Levene in the Original Broadway Production of Guys and Dolls

Following her Fox years, Blaine returned to the stage, making her Broadway debut as Miss Adelaide in the

Frank Loesser Frank Henry Loesser (; June 29, 1910 – July 28, 1969) was an American songwriter who wrote the music and lyrics for the Broadway musicals ''Guys and Dolls'' and ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'', among others. He won a Tony ...

musical ''

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 ...

'' in 1950. Her character Miss Adelaide has been engaged to inveterate gambler Nathan Detroit played by

Sam Levene Sam Levene (born Scholem Lewin; August 28, 1905 – December 28, 1980) was a Russian Empire-born American Broadway, film, radio, and television actor and director. In a career spanning over five decades, he appeared in over 50 comedy and dr ...

for 14 years, a condition which, according to her song " Adelaide's Lament", has given her a psychosomatic cold as well as chronic heartbreak. After the show's 1,200-performance Broadway run, Blaine and Levene reprised their roles as Miss Adelaide and Nathan Detroit in the first UK production of ''Guys and Dolls'', which opened at London's West End Coliseum a few days before the 1953 Coronation; the two stars performed their roles 553 times, including a Royal Command Variety Performance for Queen Elizabeth on November 9, 1953. Blaine as Miss Adelaide, Levene as Nathan Detroit and Robert Alda as Sky Masterson also performed twice daily in a reduced version of ''

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 ...

'' when the first Las Vegas production opened a six-month run at the Royal Nevada, September 7, 1955, the first time a Broadway musical was performed on the strip. Vivian Blaine recreated her role as Miss Adelaide in the film version in 1955. Blaine also appeared on Broadway in ''

A Hatful of Rain ''A Hatful of Rain'' is a 1957 American drama film about a young married man with a secret morphine addiction, based on a 1955 Broadway play of the same name.Say, Darling ''Say, Darling'' is a three-act comic play by Abe Burrows and Richard and Marian Bissell about the creation of a Broadway musical. Although the play featured nine original songs with lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Jule Sty ...

'', '' Enter Laughing'', '' Company'', and '' Zorba'', as well as participating in the touring companies of musicals such as ''

Gypsy The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...

''.

Television

Blaine was a special guest during the This is Your Life tribute episode to Laurel and Hardy, seen over NBC-TV on December 1, 1954. Blaine had worked with the duo in the film Jitterbugs and had fond memories of the experience. As Blaine reached age 50, her television career took off, with guest appearances on shows like ''

Fantasy Island ''Fantasy Island'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by Gene Levitt. It aired on ABC from 1977 to 1984. The series starred Ricardo Montalbán as the mysterious Mr. Roarke and Hervé Villechaize as his assistant, Tattoo. ...

'', '' Murder, She Wrote'' and ''

The Love Boat ''The Love Boat'' is an American romantic comedy/drama television series that aired on ABC from 1977 to 1986; in addition, four three-hour specials aired in 1986, 1987, and 1990. The series was set on the luxury passenger cruise ship MS ''Pa ...

'', and a recurring role in the cult hit '' Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman''. On the 25th annual

Tony Awards 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 c ...

in 1971, she appeared as a guest performer and sang " Adelaide's Lament" from ''

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 ...

''. Blaine always commented that working with manager Rob Cipriano reminded her of working with her first husband Manny Franks.

Personal life

Blaine's first marriage, to Franks, lasted from 1945 to 1956. She then married

Milton Rackmil Milton R. Rackmil (1906-1992) was the co-founder of Decca Records and head of Universal Pictures and Vice-Charman of MCA Inc. Early life and education Rackmil was born to a Jewish family on the Lower East Side of New York City and grew up in Bro ...

, president of

Universal Studios Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Americ ...

and Decca Records, in 1959, and recorded several albums prior to their 1961 divorce. In 1973, she married Stuart Clark. In 1983, Blaine became the first celebrity to make public service announcements for AIDS-related causes. She made numerous appearances in support of the then-fledgling AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA) and in 1983 recorded her cabaret act for AEI Records, which donated its royalties to the new group; this included the last recordings of her songs from ''

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 ...

''. Her prior albums for

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it i ...

have all subsequently been reissued on CD. According to Blaine, she was a registered Democrat and a lifelong practicing

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

.

Death

Blaine died of congestive heart failure on December 9, 1995, aged 74.

Filmography

Film

Television

Stage work

*'' One Touch of Venus'' (1948) *'' Bloomer Girl'' (1949) *''Light Up the Sky'' (1949) *''

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 ...

'' (1950–53) *'' Panama Hattie'' (1955) *''

A Hatful of Rain ''A Hatful of Rain'' is a 1957 American drama film about a young married man with a secret morphine addiction, based on a 1955 Broadway play of the same name.Rain Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water ...

'' (1957) *''

Say, Darling ''Say, Darling'' is a three-act comic play by Abe Burrows and Richard and Marian Bissell about the creation of a Broadway musical. Although the play featured nine original songs with lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Jule Sty ...

'' (1958) *''

Gypsy The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...

'' (1960) *'' A Streetcar Named Desire'' (1961) *'' Born Yesterday'' (1961) *''Gypsy'' (1962) *'' Enter Laughing'' (1963) *'' Mr. President'' (1964) *''Guys and Dolls'' (1964-1966) *'' Never Too Late'' (1965) *'' Cactus Flower'' (1966–67) *''

Damn Yankees ''Damn Yankees'' is a 1955 musical comedy with a book by George Abbott and Douglass Wallop, music and lyrics by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. The story is a modern retelling of the Faust legend set during the 1950s in Washington, D.C., dur ...

'' (1967) *''

Any Wednesday ''Any Wednesday'' is a 1966 American Technicolor romantic comedy film starring Jane Fonda, Jason Robards, and Dean Jones. It was directed by Robert Ellis Miller from a screenplay by producer Julius J. Epstein based on the Broadway play of the ...

'' (1968) *'' Don't Drink the Water'' (1968–69) *''

Take Me Along ''Take Me Along'' is a 1959 musical based on the 1933 Eugene O'Neill play '' Ah, Wilderness'', with music and lyrics by Bob Merrill and book by Joseph Stein and Robert Russell.Mandelbaum, Ke"Ken Mandelbaum's Musicals On Disc: Remembering Bob Me ...

'' (1968) *''

The Marriage-Go-Round ''The Marriage-Go-Round'' is a 1958 play written by Leslie Stevens. The 1961 film adaptation of the same name, written and produced by Stevens, stars Susan Hayward, James Mason and Julie Newmar, who reprised her role from the play. The play wa ...

'' (1970) *'' Zorba'' (1970–71) *'' Company'' (1971–73) *''Light Up the Sky'' (1971) *''

The Glass Menagerie ''The Glass Menagerie'' is a memory play by Tennessee Williams that premiered in 1944 and catapulted Williams from obscurity to fame. The play has strong autobiographical elements, featuring characters based on its author, his Histrionic persona ...

'' (1972) *''

Follies ''Follies'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by James Goldman. The plot takes place in a crumbling Broadway theater, now scheduled for demolition, previously home to a musical revue (based on the ''Ziegfeld Fol ...

'' (1973) *''

I Do! I Do! ''I Do! I Do!'' is a musical with a book and lyrics by Tom Jones and music by Harvey Schmidt which is based on the Jan de Hartog play ''The Fourposter''. The two-character story spans 50 years, from 1895 to 1945, as it focuses on the ups and down ...

'' (1973) *'' Twigs'' (1973–74) *'' Hello, Dolly!'' (1974) *''The Best of Everybody'' (1975) *''Brothers and Sisters'' (1975) *''Light Up the Sky'' (1975) *''Almost on a Runway'' (1976) *''

How the Other Half Loves ''How the Other Half Loves'' is a 1969 play in two acts by British playwright Alan Ayckbourn. It is a farce following the consequences of an adulterous affair between a married man and his boss’s wife and their attempts to cover their track ...

'' (1977) *'' Last of the Red Hot Lovers'' (1977–79) *'' The Boy Friend'' (1979) *''

The Prisoner of Second Avenue ''The Prisoner of Second Avenue'' is a 1975 American black comedy film directed and produced by Melvin Frank and starring Jack Lemmon and Anne Bancroft. The film was adapted from the 1971 play by Neil Simon. Plot The story revolves around the es ...

'' (1979) *'' Zorba'' (1984) (replacement for

Lila Kedrova Yelizaveta Nikolaevna Kedrova (Russian: Елизавета Николаевна Кедрова; 9 October 1909 – 16 February 2000), known as Lila Kedrova, was a Russian-born French actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actre ...

) *''Hello, Dolly!'' (1985)

References

External links

* * * * *
Vivian Blaine Papers at the New York Public Library
*
Vivian Blaine papers, 1916-1995
held by the Billy Rose Theatre Division,

New York Public Library for the Performing Arts The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center, at 40 Lincoln Center Plaza, is located in Manhattan, New York City, at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts on the Upper West Side, between the Metro ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blaine, Vivian 1921 births 1995 deaths Actresses from Newark, New Jersey American film actresses American musical theatre actresses American stage actresses American television actresses Apex Records artists Donaldson Award winners Musicians from Newark, New Jersey Malcolm X Shabazz High School alumni 20th Century Studios contract players 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers American Roman Catholics California Democrats New York (state) Democrats New Jersey Democrats

Early years

Personal appearances

Film

Stage

Television

Personal life

Death

Filmography

Film

Television

Stage work

References

Further reading

External links