What do you think?
Rate this book
Broadway Anecdotes
In this marvellously entertaining collection of stories, Peter Hay takes us along that sparkling thoroughfare known as the Great White Way. Called the Street of the Midnight Sun by "Diamond Jim" Brady and immortalized by Walter Winchell and Damon Runyon as the Hardened Artery or Main
Stem--Broadway is the embodiment of the history of live entertainment in America, and Peter Hay has captured it in all its dazzling diversity.
Everything that Broadway is known for is the "legitimate" theatre, its stars and famous shows, the musicals, producers, hangouts, nightclubs, columnists, agents, vaudeville and burlesque, off-Broadway and the road. From the first time Americans took to the stage in the colonies in the
1660s to the tragic decline of the acting career of Edwin Booth (brother of John Wilkes), and from the trouble with nude dancing in Oh Calcutta! to the dry wit of Tallulah Bankhead's comment to Tennessee Williams on the film version of Orpheus Descending ("Darling, they've absolutely ruined your
perfectly dreadful play"), Broadway Anecdotes throws a unique, theatrical spotlight on American history. We learn how Marilyn Monroe managed to remain anonymous on New York City streets simply by changing her walk, how Mae West whiled away her time in jail on an obscenity conviction, and that even
the incomparable Katharine Hepburn suffered setbacks early in her career (Dorothy Parker wrote of one of her "Miss Hepburn played the gamut from A to B.")
A delightful collection of verbal snapshots of this vibrant world, Broadway Anecdotes is packed with the legends and lore, the humor and philosophy of a place where understudies still stand by with dreams of overnight stardom, shows still close before they open, and people keep singing in the
rain. Anyone who has ever been touched by the magic of Broadway will treasure it.
Stem--Broadway is the embodiment of the history of live entertainment in America, and Peter Hay has captured it in all its dazzling diversity.
Everything that Broadway is known for is the "legitimate" theatre, its stars and famous shows, the musicals, producers, hangouts, nightclubs, columnists, agents, vaudeville and burlesque, off-Broadway and the road. From the first time Americans took to the stage in the colonies in the
1660s to the tragic decline of the acting career of Edwin Booth (brother of John Wilkes), and from the trouble with nude dancing in Oh Calcutta! to the dry wit of Tallulah Bankhead's comment to Tennessee Williams on the film version of Orpheus Descending ("Darling, they've absolutely ruined your
perfectly dreadful play"), Broadway Anecdotes throws a unique, theatrical spotlight on American history. We learn how Marilyn Monroe managed to remain anonymous on New York City streets simply by changing her walk, how Mae West whiled away her time in jail on an obscenity conviction, and that even
the incomparable Katharine Hepburn suffered setbacks early in her career (Dorothy Parker wrote of one of her "Miss Hepburn played the gamut from A to B.")
A delightful collection of verbal snapshots of this vibrant world, Broadway Anecdotes is packed with the legends and lore, the humor and philosophy of a place where understudies still stand by with dreams of overnight stardom, shows still close before they open, and people keep singing in the
rain. Anyone who has ever been touched by the magic of Broadway will treasure it.
406 pages, Hardcover
First published October 5, 1989
1 person is currently reading
23 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 19, 2020
A great read for any fan of Broadway, theatre or history! Full of humorous tales, touching moments, biting wit and theatrical lore, Peter Hay's compilation is exquisite!
August 18, 2024
A hit and miss book of stories from Broadway some more interesting than others?
Want to Read
April 17, 2008A recent present from my father.
March 13, 2012
Some gems, herein.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews