Our Broadway, babe, Randie Levine-Miller Is on the nostalgia track with her current finds. She’s got the full Broadway show, “Crazy For You”, which is a delightful gem; as well as a tribute to Cole Porter, which aired on “The Toast of the Town”, the precursor to the Ed Sullivan show; as well as Legendary songwriters performing their work at an ASCAP event; and a concert previewing the upcoming Broadway season of 2001.

From Broadway To Hollywood: The American Popular Song Society

A true entre-nous treat presented by ASCAP in 1988, when so many of the great songwriters were still with us, is a concert with an awesome group of songwriters performing their legendary hits. An evening of “and then I wrote!”, the event was hosted and introduced by Steve Allen, who opens with his hit song, “This Could Be the Start of Something”.  Some of the other songwriters performing include Alan and Marilyn Bergman, Ervin Drake, George David Weiss, Arthur Hamilton, Lieber and Stoller, Hal David and Marvin Hamlisch, who was a major highlight of the evening playing his biggest hits.

From the time I was 12 or 13, I always loved watching Marvin’s hands at the piano. But all of these songwriters are quite excellent.  At the end of the show, Richard Kiley comes on stage and pays tribute to Johnny Mercer; He ends the show paying tribute to Irving Berlin, who was then 100 with his “God Bless America”. God bless this incredible group who are all part of the great American songbook!

Crazy for You

From 1999: Tony Award-winning musical, “Crazy For You” aired on Great Performances on PBS TV. This is the delicious, upbeat, mostly singing and dancing Gershwin Broadway hit musical, which was produced at the Papermill Playhouse in New Jersey. I think this theater does the best productions and is definitely on par with Broadway. James Brennan, who directed, staged the show paying homage to the original creative Broadway team including Susan Stroman and Mike Ockrent.

This version stars Bruce Adler, who was in the original on Broadway, as was Jane Connell. Also starring James Walton.  The entire cast is absolutely brilliant. “Crazy For You” is pure old-fashioned entertainment —reminiscent of what we used to see on Broadway with great songs, singing, and dancing.  This is the kind of show where you walk out of the theater with a smile on your face!

Cole Porter Tribute

From 1952: “The Toast of the Town”, hosted by Ed Sullivan on CBS-TV, did a delightful tribute to Cole Porter who Ed called “A Giant of Musical Theater”. This was part one of a two-part tribute. This dazzling show features Dolores Gray, William Paxton (who was in 4 Cole Porter shows), Lisa Kirk, Mimi Benzell and Brian Sullivan, all singing showstoppers by Porter.

The show aired live and its ever-present sponsor was Lincoln-Mercury which Ed plugs on the show. This was the forerunner to the “Ed Sullivan Show”.  It’s in black and white, but the sound is quite good. Truly a trip down memory lane —as we’re talking 72 years ago!

Broadway On Broadway

 Live from Times Square, September 9, 2001, aired on WNBC-TV. It was one of the most entertaining concerts —It was a gift to the city and was free. It attracted tens of thousands to the Theatre district. Many major stars of the new season seem to be there that day. Brooke Shields is its excellent host. Some of the shows represented include: “Chicago,” “Kiss Me Kate,” “The Full Monty,” “Urinetown,” “The Producers,” “Rocky Horror Show,” and “42nd Street.”

Some of the showstopper stars include  Bebe Neuwirth, Brad Oscar, Judy Kaye, Karen Mason, Rebecca Luker, and Mary Testa. The show was actually produced by many of the people that bring us the Tony Awards, year after year. This is a very joyful video — a very upbeat concert.  Two days later, the world changed forever!!