''John Murray Anderson's Almanac'' is a musical

revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatre, theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketch comedy, sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural pre ...

, featuring the music of the songwriting team of

Richard Adler Richard Adler (August 3, 1921 – June 21, 2012) was an American lyricist, writer, composer and producer of several Broadway shows. He is best known for his work with Jerry Ross (composer), Jerry Ross on the musicals ''The Pajama Game'' (1954) a ...

and Jerry Ross, as well as other composers. It was conceived by

John Murray Anderson John Murray Anderson (September 20, 1886 – January 30, 1954) was a Canadian theatre director and theatre producer, producer, songwriter, actor, screenwriter, dancer and lighting designer, who made his career in the United States, primarily in ...

. An earlier version of the show had been produced in 1929 with the title '' Murray Anderson's Almanac''. The earlier production included Henry Sullivan for composing the music and

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...

as part of the script writing team. Sullivan would go on to write music for the 1953 production mentioned here. The full title for the show was John Murray Anderson's Almanac: A Musical Harlequinade.

Productions

's Almanac'' began with a tryout at the Shubert Theatre in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

from November 5, 1953 to December 5, 1953. The production opened on Broadway on December 10, 1953, at the Imperial Theatre, New York City, and closed on June 26, 1954, after 229 performances. The revue was conceived and staged by

, with sketches directed by

Cyril Ritchard Cyril Joseph Trimnell-Ritchard (1 December 1898 – 18 December 1977), known professionally as Cyril Ritchard, was an Australian stage, screen and television actor, and director. He is best remembered today for his performance as Captain Hook i ...

and dances and musical numbers staged by Donald Saddler.

Scenic design Scenic design, also known as stage design or set design, is the creation of scenery for theatrical productions including Play (theatre), plays and Musical theatre, musicals. The term can also be applied to film and television productions, wher ...

was by Raoul Pene Du Bois. The revue starred

Harry Belafonte Harry Belafonte ( ; born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927 – April 25, 2023) was an American singer, actor, and civil rights activist who popularized calypso music with international audiences in the 1950s and 1960s. Belafonte ...

, Hermione Gingold,

Polly Bergen Polly Bergen (born Nellie Paulina Burgin; July 14, 1930 – September 20, 2014) was an American actress, singer, television host, writer, and entrepreneur. She won an Emmy Award in 1958 for her performance as Helen Morgan (singer), Helen ...

Orson Bean Orson Bean (born Dallas Frederick Burrows; July 22, 1928 – February 7, 2020) was an American film, television, and stage actor and comedian. He was a game show and talk show host and a "mainstay of Los Angeles’ small theater scene." He ...

, Carleton Carpenter, Tina Louise, Monique van Vooren, and Billy DeWolfe.

and Jerry Ross provided the majority of the songs for the show. They later wrote songs for ''

The Pajama Game ''The Pajama Game'' is a musical based on the 1953 novel '' 7½ Cents'' by Richard Bissell. The book is by George Abbott and Richard Bissell; the music and lyrics are by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. Dances were staged by Bob Fosse in his chor ...

'' and ''

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., d ...

'' over the course of the next two years (1954-1955). ''John Murray Anderson's Almanac'' was the first Broadway show for each of them. The producers of the show were Michael Grace (who was also one of the lyricists as well), Stanley Gilky, and Harry Rigby. The sketches were written by Jean Kerr, Sumner Lock-Elliot, Arthur Macrae, Herbert Farjeon, and Billy K. Wells.

Lauri Wylie Lauri Wylie (25 May 1880 – 28 June 1951), originally Maurice Laurence Samuelson Metzenberg, was a British actor and author. He is primarily remembered as the author of the play " Dinner for One", the 1963 screen adaptation of which went on to b ...

's " Dinner for One" was posthumously included; Wylie had died in 1951. The show was a modernized version of '' Murray Anderson's Almanac'' (1929). The 1929 version was directed by Harry Ruskin, William Hollbrook, and

of this 1953 version. Henry Sullivan composed music for both shows. A few years before the 1953 show, John Murray Anderson and Henry Sullivan composed the music for the off-camera scenes in the film '' The Greatest Show on Earth'' (1952).

Songs

;Act 1 *Prologue:

Harlequinade ''Harlequinade'' is an English comic theatrical genre, defined by the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' as "that part of a pantomime in which the harlequin and clown play the principal parts". It developed in England between the 17th and mid-19th ce ...

– Pierrette Ensemble, Jimmy Albright, Lee Becker, Hank Brunjes, Carleton Carpenter, Ronald Cecill, Dean Crane, Nanci Crompton, Imelda De Martin, Dorothy Dushock, James Jewell, Gerard Leavitt, Celia Lipton, Greb Lober, Ralph McWilliams, Harry Mimmo, Ilona Murai, Margot Myers, Gwen Neilson, Gloria Smith *Queen for a Day *My Cousin Who? – Billy DeWolfe, Jimmy Albright, Ronald Cecill, Dean Crane, Celia Lipton, Ralph McWilliams, Illona Murai, Gwen Neilson, Kenneth Urmston, Toni Wheelis *You're So Much a Part of Me – Carleton Carpenter, Elaine Dunn *I Dare to Dream –

*The Cello – Hermione Gingold *

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Fau ...

–

, Millard Thomas (Guitarist) *The Nightingale and the Rose – Jimmy Albright, Hank Brunjes, Ronald Cecill, James Jewell, Gerard Leavitt, Celia Lipton, Greb Lober, Tina Louise, Ralph McWilliams, Margot Myers, Gwen Neilson, George Reeder, Siri, Gloria Smith, Monique Van Vooren *My Love is a Wanderer * Kay Medford 1963

The Pan Alley (Mammy Songs, Rhythm Songs, Torch Songs, Patriotic Songs)– Lee Becker, Carleton Carpenter, Ronald Cecill, Dean Crane, Imelda De Martin, Dorothy Dushock, Jay Harnick, Larry Kert, Bob Kole, Gerard Leavitt, Greb Lober, Ralph McWilliams, Illona Murai, Margot Myers, George Reeder, Gloria Smith, Kenneth Urmston *Hope you Come Back –

, Billy DeWolfe, Hermione Gingold, Nanci Crompton, Elaine Dunn,

Kay Medford Margaret Kathleen Regan (September 14, 1919 – April 10, 1980), better known as Kay Medford, was an American actress. For her performance as Rose Brice in the musical ''Funny Girl (musical), Funny Girl'' and the Funny Girl (film), film adaptati ...

;Act 2 *

If Every Month Were June – Celia Lipton *Which Witch – Hermione Gingold (song by Charles Zwar) *La Loge – Polly Bergen, Jay Harnick *Acorn in the Meadow – Harry Belafonte *When Am I Going to Meet your Mother? – Carleton Carpenter, Elaine Dunn, singer/dancer * Dinner for One – Billy DeWolfe, Hermione Gingold *Hold 'em Joe – Harry Belafonte, Colleen Hutchins, Illona Murai, George Reeder, Gloria Smith, and Monique Van Vooren (dancers) (song by Harry Thomas) *La Pistachio – Billy DeWolfe, Kay Medford

Musical works

Critical response

Brooks Atkinson Justin Brooks Atkinson (November 28, 1894 – January 14, 1984) was an American theater critic. He worked for ''The New York Times'' from 1922 to 1960. In his obituary, the ''Times'' called him "the theater's most influential reviewer of his ...

reviewing for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' called it a "bright and brilliant show", and had special praise for Hermione Gingold, who "gives herself artistic airs that are hilarious", and Harry Belafonte's "Mark Twain" performance, "expository style as a singer and actor makes it the 'Almanac's' high point in theatrical artistry." However, Atkinson wrote that the "Almanac is more distinguished for its humor. Jean Kerr...has written a gruesome jest about horror literature, 'My Cousin Who?'"

Awards

Note: Hermione Gingold would go on to make a cameo in the film Around the World in 80 Days (1956).

References

External links

*{{ibdb title, id=2422 1953 musicals Broadway musicals Revues Musicals by Richard Adler Tony Award–winning musicals