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BILL CARROLL
Special to the Jewish News

F

eT71

11/24
2000

94

iffy years ago tonight — Nov. 24, 1950
— three men dressed in outlandish gam-
bler suits stepped to the front of the stage
in Broadway's 46th Street Theater and
sang a song about horse-race betting, with the
unlikely title of "Fuge for Tinhorns."
The audience roared its approval and a new musi-
cal show, Guys and Dolls — hailed by many critics as
one of the greatest musical comedies ever — was
successfully under way.
The show's composer, Frank Loesser, stopped pac-
ing back and forth at the rear of the theater and put
out his cigarette. The show's producers, Cy Feuer and
Ernie Martin, shook hands. The director, George S.
Kaufman, cracked a rare smile. The writer, Abe
Burrows, kissed his wife and unclenched her hand.
They all knew they had a hit. The show ran for
1,200 performances and grossed more than $12 mil-
lion, winning three Tony Awards. The opening was a
significant milestone in show business history and so
is today's 50th anniversary date.
For a half century, Guys and Dolls has continued
to delight audiences around the world — during a
Broadway revival five years ago, in summer stock,
community theaters, college and high school pro-
ductions and, locally, even in a staging by Nancy
Gurwin's children's theater troupe. Indeed, students
at West Bloomfield High School offered a produc-
tion just this week, on Tuesday, Nov. 21.

Frank Loesser's second wife, Jo Sullivan Loesser,
Martin were Jewish, as were Kaufman and Burrows,
pointed out, while performing with her daughter
born Abram Borofsky. Among the Jewish cast mem-
and son-in-law at a rare concert of Loesser's music in
bers were Sam Levene as Nathan Detroit, the organ-
Midland, Mich., recently, that Guys and Dolls always
izer of the "oldest established floating crap game in
is playing somewhere in the world.
New York," and Stubby Kaye as fellow gambler
Jo, whom Frank met when she had the lead in
Nicely-Nicely Johnson, who brought down the
another of his hits, The Most Happy Fella, should
house with his rendition of "Sit Down, You're
know. She has to give permission for any new Guys
Rockin' the Boat."
and Dolls production.
Guys and Dolls is based on "The Idyll of Miss
Guys and Dolls, more than any other musical pro-
Sarah Brown," a short story by Damon Runyon, the
duced in the 1950s, epitomized the new
famed author and newspaper colum-
stature of the American musical comedy
nist.
Runyon knew the show was in
The original cast of "Guys
as a form of dramatic art, with the
•the
works
but never saw it complet-
and Dolls." Sky Masterson
increased literary merits of their libret-
ed;
he
died
of throat cancer in 1946.
(Robert Alda, center) and the
tos and serious themes. The transition
Feuer
and
Martin envisioned the
other gamblers sing "Luck Be
from the fairy-tale plots of Sally and
adaptation as a show with a serious
a Lady" during their
Irene to the serious books of Oklahoma!,
theme, like South Pacific, and hired
$1,000-per-bet crap game.
Brigadoon and South Pacific had been
Jo Swerling, a Hollywood screen-
gradual; Guys and Dolls combined all of
writer, to do the book, while Loesser
the assets of the earlier hit musicals with the plot
started on the songs.
innovation and music integration of the latter ones.
But no one liked Swerling's first act and he was
Loesser, a former newspaper reporter, wrote 17
dumped. Through a binding contract, his name
songs for the show, including several that became so
remains in the credits to this day, even though not
popular they stayed on the nation's Hit Parade for
one word of his work was used in the book.
months afterward. Included in the show were "I'll
After attempts by several other writers, Burrows
Know," "A Bushel and a Peck," "My Time of Day,"
took over and succeeded in injecting humor where
"I've Never Been in Love Before," "More I Cannot
others had failed, turning the show into a comedy
Wish You," "Luck Be a Lady" and "Guys and Dolls."
that perfectly complemented Loesser's songs.
The musical has a strong Jewish influence. Loesser,
Burrows was a writer for Di jals Tavern and other
who wrote both the music and lyrics, had Jewish
popular radio programs, wrote funny skits and satiri-
roots as the son of Julia Ehrlich and Henry Loesser,
cal songs, and later became a "script doctor" for
although he himself was not observant. Feuer and
many Broadway shows.