So I've been asked to answer the question, "Why do I believe in love?"
The answer is simple. My mother. No, not because she set the example of eternal and blissful matrimony. Actually, her first marriage was rather miserable, but that's another article.
Seriously, the reason I believe in love is because at an early age and with great frequency, my mother subjected me to the great American musical. Yep. She was a huge fan, and since I was born in 1962, right at the height of such classics as Oklahoma!, The King And I, Camelot, and the grand champion pooh-bah of them all, The Sound Of Music, my early impressions of love and romance were all sung to the tunes of Rodgers and Hammerstein.
I was three years old when my mother dragged me to the theater and introduced me to the Von Trapp family, which means at a young age, I associated love with lots of singing and dancing and perfectly behaved children wearing little matching dresses and lederhosen their nun-turned-nanny made out of--wasn't it sheets or something?
In any event, Julie Andrews had just been kicked out of the convent, Christopher Plummer was rich, and I'd learned the lesson that if a girl could sing and dance and sew lederhosen, she'd end up with the man of her dreams. So by the age of 5, I was plunking out chords to Edelweiss on the piano and intriguingly eyeing my mother's drapes.
That was, of course, until I came across West Side Story. I saw the movie long after all the others had shaped my belief in love, and I hate to say, the movie broke the mold and shattered my ideals. With West Side Story, life became complicated. I found out love could end tragically even though the heroine sang and danced and worked as a seamstress, for criminy sakes!
I thought that Natalie Wood was the most beautiful woman in the world, which made it that much more horrific to find out that all the tried and true virtues no longer guaranteed eternal bliss. Now singing and dancing only worked as long as your lover's friends weren't Jets and your brother wasn't a Shark.
The turbulent 60's had reared its ugly head and the musical lost its innocence. Hair and Yellow Submarine and Jesus Christ Superstar shoved the love story out of the way and replaced it with Screaming Blue Meanies and deaf, dumb and blind kids who play pinball for flamboyant wizards. Shirley Jones left Oklahoma and became Danny Bonaducci's mom, and Barbara Streisand rained on my parade by shutting off the microphone for movies like Meet The Fockers.
They were gone, all gone.
But by that time my belief in love was too strong to be destroyed. It simply matured. I ultimately married a man who is tone deaf and hasn't been able to dance since Bachman Turner Overdrive broke up. But that's okay. I never was able to belt out "I Could Have Danced All Night" quite like Audrey Hepburn. (Actually, neither did Audrey. She was lip syncing to Julie Andrews.) And with two left feet, I chose to write about love, instead.
I still watch the old classics now and then. My favorite is--undoubtedly and unequivocally--The Music Man. I loved Robert Preston as the proverbial bad boy, rolling into town all trouble with a capital T. He's shameless. He's a con man. He's a shyster. But you knew he had a good heart because he never made fun of little Opie Taylor's lisp.
And, of course, it was meek but fearless Marian the librarian who caught that heart, snagged the man, and gave the town a big shiny band in the process.
Ahhhh, who needs Paris when you've got River City, Iowa?
So tell me, is there anyone out there still in love with the classic musicals of the early 60's? And if so, what's your favorite?
And I'll even add an incentive for the lurkers. One person who names their favorite musical in the comments will be selected to win a copy of my April, 2008 Harlequin Blaze, "Putting It To The Test".
So strike up the band and share!
About Lori Borrill:
Lori Borrill started writing in June of 2004 after her husband left his job to pursue his dream of owning a business. Not only did the move help ease their hectic schedules, but he became a solid example that those dreams that seem impossible can often come true.
She proved that point herself exactly two years later when Kathryn Lye called to tell her she'd sold to the Harlequin Blaze line.
Lori claims it was the eHarlequin.com community that prompted her to write her first novel. "After reading countless romances, I saw the Web address on a book and decided to check it out," she says. "At the time, I was just looking for writer's guidelines, but the moment I clicked into the Learn To Write forum, I was amazed by the volume of information available to aspiring writers. They really came across like they wanted me to try this."
Since then, she's been an active member of the eHarlequin.com community, finding all of her closest writing friends through the site. "What propelled me from novice to published author were the people I've met through the Harlequin boards," she says. "I've made some treasured friendships with talented authors who not only helped me hone the craft, but have become a system of support I can't imagine writing without."
My favorite depends on what
My favorite depends on what I'm listening to at the moment. Oooooooklahoma was big, My Fair Lady was wonderful, JCS was grrrreat, Singing in the Rain, Holiday Inn, the list goes on. Ok, the last two weren't from the 1960s. You forgot Kismet and Carousel, BTW. My mother likes Music Man, but I found it painful that the hero was a sharpster.
"Perhaps what the average member of a group is capable of doesn't limit what a given individual can accomplish." -- Boston Globe, letter to the editor
March's Member of the Month!
Who needs Paris when you've got River City, Iowa?
Arrrgh! I can't believe you asked this question! How can we keep them back on the farm after they've see Gay Paree? is the operative question! LOL
"Perhaps what the average member of a group is capable of doesn't limit what a given individual can accomplish." -- Boston Globe, letter to the editor
March's Member of the Month!
Raised on musicals
We can quote The Sound of Music line by line in this house, LOL, and LIVE for each musical that comes to town....hehehe! But I have to tell you a funny story about it. I have a friend at work whose mother, when she was a kid, would turn off the TV just after the wedding scene in the movie and shoo everyone off to bed or wherever. She was shocked to discover as an adult that there was an ENTIRE second half that she'd never seen before, and that her mom considered somehow too gritty for her to view as a child. Isn't it interesting how times have changed?
I have several faves, but I have to say that WICKED has almost replaced SOM as the musical of choice in our house. Can you tell we're a houseful of girlies, LOL?
Jayne
Community Manager
"We cannot really love anybody with whom we never laugh"—Agnes Repplier
The Sound of Music!
I love the scene in the garden where Christopher Plummer tells Julie Andrews he loves her. He is so charming. Sorry, not a big fan of the Music Man or Oklahoma. I do love The King and I. (I like the Jodie Foster non-musical version too.)
Lori- I love your comments about eHarlequin. I agree with the statement "like they wanted me to try this." The info on the site is great but it is the people that make this a warm 'community.'
"I can fix a bad page, but I can't fix a blank one." Nora Roberts
www.angelinabarbin.blogspot.com
My favorite musical...
though I love the Sound of Music, cry everytime I see West Side Story, loved Mame, would be My Fair Lady, because that's the musical we did when I was a senior in high school. I was Professor Higgins mother, and went around school for two weeks with a gray rinse in my hair. At least I knew at a young age what I'd look like at 65! Also liked Bye, Bye Birdie with Rita Moreno & Dick Van Dyke.
Lynn
Watching Musicals
Like you, Lori, I grew up watching muscials. My public television station would have a different musical every weekend and I faithfully tuned in. My favorite musical is from 1957...is that close enough to the 60's? It was Silk Stockings with Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse. Her dance when she transforms with Western clothes is just incredible. Then, if you let me go into the 1980's, I'd Choose Xanadu with Travolta and Olivia Newton John. My roommate and I actually did a ballroom showcase with our teacher to a number (Dancin') from that show. Great fun.
Crystal
100,000 Books Blog: crystalrclass
My favorite musical is Sound
My favorite musical is Sound of Music. I've watched it too many times to count. I've even seen it in play for three times(by three different groups)
ELLEN TOO
A true teacher is a person who, at the end of the school day, still likes children!
Oh, my gosh--no way could I
Oh, my gosh--no way could I choose ONE favorite musical. I'm a theater/movie junkie and a real sucker for a good sweet romance with great music and dancing, costumes and scenery thrown in.
But I do have a top list (order changes acc. to my mood, not all are 60's):
1. The Sound of Music (I even once play Maria on stage!)--it impressed me as a little girl, too--I own 2 copies of it, and will watch it whenver it comes on. Love Julie Andrews! According to my mom, she's one of her favorite actresses that I'm named after.
2. Singin' in the Rain--best, most joyous dance number ever! I believed man of the world Gene Kelly was truly in love with talented nobody Debbie Reynolds. And Donald O'Connor's "Make 'Em Laugh"? Brilliant.
3. My Fair Lady--I've always loved brainy heroes. Gorgeous costumes. A transformation story in the best sense--the hero transforms his hardened soul as much as the heroine becomes a lady (in my romantic eye, it's much better than Pygmalion, which it's based on, where she winds up with Freddie Hill!)
4. White Christmas--like It's a Wonderful Life, it's not the holiday season until I see it. Again, gorgeous eye candy with the costumes and dancing. And Bing singing White Christmas (though I liked Holiday Inn better for that) is a must for me.
5. West Side Story--the theater junkie in me loves the drama of it. And the music and dancing doesn't get any better. A happy ending would be nice, but the ultimate payoff is when Jets and Sharks alike jump in to carry Tony's dead body off the playground in a gesture of honor and respect and temporary peace.
6. The Wizard of Oz--the winged monkeys and witch's feet curling up under the house scared me big-time as a little kid, but who could resist the three musketeers whose loyalty and bravery and resourcefulness was unquestionable? And Judy Garland effortlessly singing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow"? That's movie magic.
7. Disney's Beauty and the Beast--Loved the music! My favorite storyline of all time. And one of the best onscreen cinema kisses ever, imo! Animated or not, I bought into that love story and the payoff was that kiss at the end.
8. Oklahoma. (I've done the musical 3 times, and loved it every time) Very American. Great dancing. Great music. True drama. Curley turns out to have more hero in him than he ever knew. And the good guys win in the end.
I'll stop now
.
Great topic, Lori! Looking forward to reading PUTTING IT TO THE TEST. Sounds like fun!
Julie Miller
AT YOUR COMMAND--Blaze, Jan. 08--Romantic Times Top Pick!
PROTECTIVE INSTINCTS--The Precinct: Brotherhood of the Badge mini-series--Intrigue, June 08--Romantic Times Top Pick!
www.juliemiller.org
The list goes on...
Oh, Lynn, I completely forgot about Bye Bye Birdie. I'll never forget that song.
I think that's the big thing when it comes to musicals--the music. I can forget the story line and the secondary characters, but I somehow walk away with all the music in my head.
Anyone remember Thoroughly Modern Millie? I thought Mary Tyler Moore was so pretty! And Julie Andrews singing "Poor Butterfly".
I'd completely forgotten our high school doing musicals too.
And Crystal, I'd forgotten Olivia Newton John had done some. Can you believe how big Grease still is after all these years?
Lori
PUTTING IT TO THE TEST, Harlequin Blaze, April 2008
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Junkies!
Wow, Julie, what a great summary of lots of my favorites. You know, to this day, when I'm struggling with a concept and finally the lightbulb goes on over my head, the first thought that comes to mind is, "The rain in Spain falls mainly on the plane."
"I think she's got it!!" LOL!
And how cool to be named after Julie Andrews. My mom was such a junkie, I'm shocked she didn't do the same with me, being born at the right time. And with her favorite musical being Camelot, I could have ended up being a Julie too.
Lori
PUTTING IT TO THE TEST, Harlequin Blaze, April 2008
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I forgot My Fair Lady.
Anything with Audrey Hepburn is good. She was truly a classy lady in so many ways..
"I can fix a bad page, but I can't fix a blank one." Nora Roberts
www.angelinabarbin.blogspot.com
My mother's favourite was Guys and Dolls
mine was High Society, mainly because RTE always cut in for ads when
and of course who could resist Bing and Grace on the True Love or Louis Armstrong?
they danced out the door and you came back after the ads to find them
dancing back in the door
Music
wise I actually prefer the Gilbert and Sullivan operettas with a
preference for the Pirates of Penzance - the Pirate King's song and the
"willow, tit willow, tit willow" song
Hugs
Sadhbh
May's Member of the Month
Dream Team 2008 Challenge blogs
Musical lover!
When I was growing up, way earlier than you!, I don't think I missed a musical when it played on the movie screen. Sound of Music is an absolute favorite as is Singin' In the Rain, Royal Wedding, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Brigadoon, Holiday Inn, West Side Story (love the music, still) and I could go on & on!! Marilyn Monroe in How to Marry a Millionaire was priceless. I don't think Audrey Hepburn lip-synced to Julie Andrews it was another woman that did a lot of the singing for the stars that didn't have a musical voice. Lordy, the memories are just flashing through my brain!! Love High Society! Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Jane Powell, Kathryn Grayson, Mario Lanza, Ann Miller, Vera Ellen so many talented people that cannot begin to be matched by a lot of today's performers. No wonder I love romance books, I've been a romantic forever! It was tough learning that my ex had no rythmn, couldn't dance but played an instrument!!! Life is so cruel at times!! Thank heavens for people like you that believe in love and give us our fantasies!!
Why don't they make musicals anymore? Not everything needs to be a huge big action packed blockbuster!!!! 
Don't put my name in the contest, the book is already coming to me. Thanks for a great blog.
Take care, happy reading,
Donna M, Dream Team member
One more thing!!!
I wanted to mention I was lucky enough in the early 80's to see Richard Burton on stage in Camelot in San Francisco, truly a wonderful experience. I also saw Robert Goulet in On a Clear Day, he has/had a wonderful voice but was a bit stiff on stage. The actress that played lead female role was very talented and made the play worth watching. Have no idea who it was, not a name-known actress. When we visited in Michigan, where my ex was from, we saw Guys & Dolls on stage with David Birney & Meredith Baxter, it was delightful.
Okay, I'll try to turn off all these memories now & quit posting!!
Take care, happy reading,
Donna M, Dream Team member
Kudos to DonnaM
I was wondering if anyone would catch me on that! After I'd sent this article for Dee to publish here on the blog, I thought, "That was Julie Andrews who dubbed for Audrey Hepburn, right?"
After an internet search, I discovered it wasn't. Julie Andrews played Liza Doolittle in the theater production, but the dubbing for Hepburn in the movie version was by a woman named Marni Nixon.
Rather than send Dee a correction, I figured I'd leave the faux pas and see if anyone caught me! LOL!
Great musical knowledge, Donna!
PUTTING IT TO THE TEST, Harlequin Blaze, April 2008
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Marni Nixon
In fact, she also dubbed the voices for....
Marilyn Monroe in Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend
Natalie Wood in West Side Story
Deborah Kerr in An Affair To Remember and The King And I
Among others....
PUTTING IT TO THE TEST, Harlequin Blaze, April 2008
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My absolutely favourite musical?
It's not from the '60's but it's South Pacific. It was my mom's and I loved the humour in it as well.
Another favourite was Tammy (checking it looks as though the actual title was Tammy and the Bachelor... the first one). Debbie Reynolds was wonderful as Tammy.
Singin' in the Rain... wow! Gene Kelly was probably one of my favourites.
And Seven Brides for Seven Brothers... I always had a hard time figuring out which brother I really liked... Gideon usually came in first, but I did like Frank as well.
And The Sound of Music... the gazebo scene sends shivers up and down my spine regardless of how many times I watch the movie. Talk about the ultimate in romance! *whew*
Of course my sister and I originally thought that Liesl and Rolf's romance was the best, but as I got older I really got caught up in Maria and the Captain's romance... beautiful.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
kalyko ~ Reading: One of life's little joys and a much needed reward!
Musicals
Lori,
My name is Tammy and I was named for the song in Tammy and the Bachelor, so I guess i was destined to love musicals. I was born in 1964, and I also love all the musicals you listed. (In fact I own the soundtracks and VHS tapes or DVDs for them all) Lucky for me, my parents loved musical theater too and took me to shows I'll never forget and filled our home with these songs. Some of my happiest childhood memories were seeing these musicals in St Loius with my Grandmother. Other musicals from this era I love are
Fiddler on the Roof, Hello Dolly, Caberet, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Pajama Game, Guys and Dolls, Showboat. South Pacific, The King and I Paint Your Wagon, My Fair Lady, and The Fantastiks.
But, my favorite of these all is Man of La Mancha, I saw Richard Kiley perform the lead role live and it was unforgetable how wonderful he was that night.
These are all timeless classics because of the great songs and the true emotions they conveyed.
I have a 9 year old daughter and I am instilling in her a love of musicals. Her favorites are The Sound of Music, Mary Poppins, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, Chitty, Chitty Bang Bang and Annie.
Tammy
Great picks!
Oh, all these titles are bringing back so many memories. I'd forgotten about Chitty, Chitty Bang Bang. Paint Your Wagon and Fiddler On The Roof. We saw all of those in the theater when I was a kid.
I remember my mom dressed me up as Mary Poppins for Halloween once when I was really little. She said all the neighbors raved and took pictures of me. Ahem, do you think we ended up with ONE? Grr...
I've never seen Man of La Mancha. Sounds like one I should look up.
Lori
PUTTING IT TO THE TEST, Harlequin Blaze, April 2008
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One more thing Lori
Man of La Mancha is based on the novel Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes. It tells the story of the "mad" knight, Don Quixote, as a play within a play, performed by Cervantes and his fellow prisoners as he awaits a hearing with the Spanish Inquisition. The big song is "The Impossible Dream" which makes me cry every time I hear it.
And I was just reading old e-mails and your book is on my picks for this month from e-Harlequin as my favorite theme -Best Friends-Now Lovers. Too funny as I wrote my last blog before I even read that e-mail, now I have to get your book for sure.
And do check out Man of La Mancha - the movie is okay, but seeing the play is the best.
Tammy
Tammy
Argh!
Tammy, I saw that "Best Friends Now Lovers" pick in my Harlequin newsletter. I have no idea why they did that. My characters hate each other!! I can only think that was a flub in the marketing department. But my H/h have been working together for a couple years. I don't know. Maybe that categorized them as friends!
But I hope you end up enjoying the book anyway if you should read it.
Lori
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funny musicals
the unsinkable molly brown --debbie reynolds
paint your wagon -cling eastwood, lee marvin
tammy here too
gosh i always hated my name, on acct of those movie,
in every class in school about 3-4 tammys , and a older bf one time, laughed about my name and started, tammy DOES the dr and stuff like porn,
i shudder at my name
i named all 3 of my girls 4 names each so they have someting to choose from
The Winner(s)!
Yes, there's an "S" up there. Since I had more people posting than I expected, and since I love giving stuff away, I drew 2 names from the pile to receive a free copy of my April Blaze, "Putting It To The Test". And the winners are:
Angel66 and Kalyko!
Send your snail mail address to me at Lori@LoriBorrill.com and I'll get your package in the mail.
And to everyone, thanks for coming by and talking with me about musicals. I never realized there were so many musical lovers out here and it's been a pleasure swapping favorites!
Lori
PUTTING IT TO THE TEST, Harlequin Blaze, April 2008
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my favorite musical
My favorite musical is Hello Dolly.
If we're talking Man of la Mancha, Jacques Brel's Impossible
Dream has to go down in the annals - so intense and powerful - the way he could portray emotion was incredible
And when you think he did his live concerts standing on a stage in a suit and tie
and wrote the actual songs ... (though not the English lyrics to them)
Hugs
Sadhbh
May's Member of the Month
Dream Team 2008 Challenge blogs
re: Hello Dolly
I was lucky enough to have my grandmother take me with her to New York to see Carol Channing as Dolly - she was great! I forgot about that musical!
Lynn
Aaahhhh musicals!
Love them!!!! I had roles in high school in The Sound of Music, Carousel, Bye, Bye Birdie, Guys and Dolls, and South Pacific. My absolute fav of all time is definitely Grease! I was so gonna be Sandy and find my Danny when I grew up! LOL I even have songs on my Ipod! I do love Carousel and The Sound of Music. My mom's fav is Chitty, Chitty Bang, Bang! She was so excited when it finally came out on video again! Cats is one that I've always loved for its music but have never seen in person! i would love to see it though!!! I do love Broadway tunes as well! I often break out in Oklahoma or June is Jumping Out All Over! LOL We sang those in show choir!
*Julz hums "People, who need, People........" Fades out right