Broadway Turns The Tables (65-68)

Which book writer for Runnin Wild couldn’t understand George White’s dislike for “The CHarleston?”

Flournoy Miller

Why did George WHite claim to dislike The CHarleston?

He wanted to premiere the dance in one of his own revues (featuring white performers)

What was the name of the revues White wanted to premiere The Charleston on?

the”George White Scandals”

Broadway was primed and ready for an array of what type of tunes?

new Jazz-styled tunes

White producers relied on which group to produce jazz numbers in their shows?

Black Musicians

As the 1920’s progressed how did White producers relationship to jazz change?

They became more fluent with jazz characteristics

What was the greatest musical-comedy triumph of the 1920s?

No No Nanette

Most Broadway shows’ plots are based on what?

property

What are common property sources for Broadway shows?

previous story, novel, play, or movie

WHat was the property for Shuffle Along?

An old Miller and Lyles’s vaudeville skit

What was the property for No, No, Nanette?

A novel “Oh James!” (1914) and a play “My Lady Friends (1919)

Who wrote “Oh James!”?

May Edgington

Who adapted “Oh James!” to a play?

Frank Mandel and Emil Nyitray

WHo was the producer of No, No, Nanette?

Harry Frazee

What baseball team did Harry Frazee own?

Boston Red Sox

What led Frazee to not be interested in Youman’s interest in working on No, No, Nanette?

He wasn’t impressed with Youman’s previous Broadway work

What caused Frazee to change his mind and allow You man to compose the music for No, No, Nanette?

YOuman’s mother donated $9k or $10k to the show

What did Youman’s mother ask in exchange for her donation to the show?

Half of Youman’s future royalties

Which playwright from the 1919 play “My Lady Friends” was a writer for the book of “No, No, Nanette?”

Frank Mendel

Which Broadway veteran was hired to partner with Frank Mendel to write the book for “No, No Nanette?”

Otto Harbach

What other role did Harbach initially play in bringing “No, No, Nanette” to fruition?

He began to write lyrics for the songs

Why was a second lyricist brought on to create “No, No Nanette?”

The second lyricist had a good working relationship with YoumansW

Who was the 2nd lyricist for “No, No, Nanette?”

IRving Caesar

How did critics react at the first 2 stops of the tryout tour of “No, No Nanette?”

Lukewarm reactions

After the first 2 stops of the tryout tour what changed regarding the production of the show?

Frazee took over as director and told YOumans and Caesar to make new songs

What song did Youmans and Caesar decide to use for “No, No Nanette?”

“Tea For Two”

How did “Tea for Two” get created?

Caesar was napping when Youmans woke him up because he wrote a great tune and needed words. Caesar wrote dummy lyrics to satisfy an impatient Youmans but Youmans decided the dummy lyrics were perfect.

What are dummy lyrics?

A nonsense poem with the rhyme scehem and poetic rhythm to fit the tune

What aspect of “Tea for Two’s” lyrics helped the song soar among listeners?

The idiotic simplicity of the lyrics

What aspects of the 1920s were captured in “Tea for Two?”

The optimism and light-heartedness

Which 2 songs were added to the struggling show?

“Tea for Two,” and “I want to be Happy”

By the time “No, No, Nanette” reached which city was it clear that Frazee had a hit on his hands?

Chicago

How long did “No, No, Nanette” remain in Chicago?

Nearly a year

The first recording of “Tea for Two” featured what type of orchestra?

A purely jazz orchestra

What number on the Billboard charts did the first “Tea for Two” recording reach in January 1925?

#5

How long did the first recording of Tea for Two remain at #5 on the Billboard charts in January 1925?

5 weeks

Which version of Tea for Two reached #1 on Billboard charts In January 1925? How long did it remain #1?

Marrion Harris’s vocal version; 11 weeks

Which version of Tea for Two is used as the listening example?

Marrion Harris’s vocal version

In September 1925 what was Critics reaction to “No, No, Nanette?”

They were tired of it

Which newspaper opened its review on “No, No, Nanette” ‘pointedly?’

The New York Daily News

Which cities/countries did The New York Daily’s review on “No, No, Nanette” claim saw the musical comedy?

Boston, Philly, Chicago, London, Guatemala, Medicine Bend and the Canary Islands.

The writer for the Daily News estimated he was hearing the music for “No, No, Nanette” for the ________ time?

1,876,934

Was the New York reviewer’s weary attitude universal?

no

The jazz flavor of “No, No, Nanette” was what to the British audiences?

Novel

How did a British critic describe the music from “No, No, Nanette?”

“saxophone players (in the limelight) worked with the energy of a savage religious festival, and when there was an change that you might mislay the melody it was emphasized by brass with mutes. A little of a muted trombone or trumpet is good for certain effects, but a whole melody played as if the instruments were melodious steam saws cuts into my brain and produces a mild nerve storm. The music of “No, No, Nanette” and the frenzied dancing on the stage are the epitome of modern jazzomania.”

Which historian describes “No, No, Nanette” as the quintessential American 1920s musical on the world’s stages?

Kurt Ganzl

Why was Youman’s Broadway career so short?

HE suffered from increasing health issues stemming tuberculosis

How many years after being in the business did Youmans retire?

13 years

What was Youman’s greatest hit?

“Tea for Two”

What was “Tea for Two” known as in the Soviet Union?

“Tahiti Trot”

The Tahiti Trot was woven into a 1926 operatta by who?

Boris Fomin

In what year did Dmitri Shostakovich make an orchestral arrangement from memory of Tea for Two?

1927

Why did Shostakovich make an orchestral arrangement in 40 minutes?

He wagered his teacher who didn’t believe he could do it in under an hour

Wgi was Dmitri Shostakovich’s teacher whom he wagered?

Nikolai Malko

What was Malko’s opinion of Tea for Two?

He championed it, recalling that Jazz music was regarded negatively in Russia and although he didn’t agree with such philosophy, and he cited Tea for Two as an example of music that was not bad.

Which admirer of Tea for Two used their name in describing its harmonies?

Maurice Ravel

Art Tatum was known for playing which instrument?

Piano

Whose 1939 recording of the tune was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame?

Art Tatum

When was the 1939 recording of Tea for Two inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame?

1986

Tatum’s version reached which number on the Billboard charts?

#18

Who released a version of Tea for Two in 1952?

Thelonious Monk

What was Thelonious Monk’s 1952 version of Tea for Two retitled as?

Skippy

What style did Monk employ in “Skippy?”

Bepop style of jazz

Whose rendition of Tea for Two was a highlight in a 1958 Jazz Festival?

Anita O’ Day

At which 1952 jazz festival was a rendition of Tea for Two played?

Newport Jazz Festival