Liza Minnelli "GEORGE ABBOTT: A CELEBRATION" Broadway Tribute 1976 Press Photo

Description

This is a rare glossy 8" X 10" inch press photograph of LIZA MINNELLI performing at the
one-night, Broadway Tribute "GEORGE ABBOTT ... A CELEBRATION", held at the Sam S. Shubert Theatre in New York City on May 2nd, 1976 ..... After completing his studies at Harvard University, GEORGE ABBOTT (1887-1995) made his first appearance as an actor on Broadway in "The Misleading Lady" in 1913. While acting in several plays in New York City, he began to write, with this first successful play being 1925's "The Fall Guy". He moved on to work in Hollywood as a writer and director, while continuing with his theatre work. During his amazing career, he was associated with 119 Broadway productions as a performer, author, director or producer. His most notable directorial efforts were "Jumbo", "On Your Toes", "The Boys from Syracuse", "Pal Joey" (all Rodgers and Hart shows), "On the Town" (with Comden and Green, Leonard Bernstein), "High Button Shoes", "Where's Charley?", "Call Me Madam", "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn", "Wonderful Town", "The Pajama Game" (in which Bob Fosse got his break as a choreographer), "Damn Yankees", "Fiorello!", "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" (Stephen Sondheim's first musical as both composer and lyricist), "Flora the Red Menace" (Kander and Ebb's first musical together, and Liza Minnelli's Broadway debut at age 19). In addition to his other activities, Abbott acquired a reputation as an astute (and ruthless)
show doctor
: when a show was having difficulties in tryouts or previews, he would be called in to supervise changes. In 1965 the 54th St. Theatre (previously the Adelphi Theatre) was named the George Abbott Theatre in his honor. The theatre was demolished in 1970. Abbott died of a stroke in Miami Beach, Florida at the age of 107. He remains one of the most admired men in the history of Broadway ...... The special tribute to George Abbott included performances and appearances by (in alphabetical order) RICHARD ADLER, CHRISTINE ANDREAS, DESI ARNAZ, ELIZABETH ASHLEY, ALEXANDRA BORRIE, DAVID JAMES CARROLL, TIM CASSIDY, BETTY COMDEN, DONALD CORREIA, HOWARD DaSILVA, FRED EBB, ED EVANKO, JOEY FAYE, ARLENE FRANCIS, MARTIN GABEL, JACK GILFORD, BEN GRAUER, ADOLPH GREEN, JUNE HAVOC, WILL HOLT, DEL HORSTMAN, GEORGE S. IRVING, ANNE JACKSON, JOHN KANDER, MARIA KARNILOVA, GARSON KANIN, SAM LEVENE, SHIRLEY MacLAINE, LIZA MINNELLI, SONO OSATO, MAUREEN O'SULLIVAN, JULIAN PATRICK, EDDIE PHILLIPS, BARRY PRESTON, HAROLD PRINCE, JEROME ROBBINS, DONALD SADDLER, ALAN SANDERSON, STANLEY SIMMONDS, ROY SMITH, TIM SMITH, JEAN STAPLETON, MAUREEN STAPLETON, JULE STYNE, DAVID THOME, ELI WALLACH and WALTER WILLISON ..... CREDITS: Conceived and Produced by ANNA SOSENKO for the FRIENDS OF THE THEATRE AND MUSIC COLLECTION of the MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK; Staged by DONALD SADDLER; Musical Direction by COLIN ROMOFF
..... DETAILS: This rare press photo measures 10 1/8" X 8" inches and includes a clipped newspaper caption on the backside (second scanned image) ..... CONDITION: With the exception of light edge wear, this rare photo is in excellent condition and will make a wonderful addition to the collection of any musical theatre aficionado or historian. This item will be carefully packaged in a protective sleeve and backed by stiff cardboard.