Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (play)
Gentleman Prefer Blondes is a 1926 play by Anita Loos and John Emerson, based upon Loos' 1925 international best-selling novel of the same name.
History
[edit]
In 1925 Loos published the novel, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes: The Intimate Diary of a Professional Lady, a comic novel. By the end of the year, there was discussion that the novel would be made into a play.[1][2] The play was produced by Edgar Selwyn.[3] The play premiered in Detroit on April 28, 1926 at the Shubert-Detroit.[4] It opened in Chicago on May 2, 1926 at the Selwyn Theatre, and was received positively by the Chicago Tribune.[5] The play opened on Broadway at the Selwyn Theatre,[6] on Tuesday, September 26, 1926, closing at Times Square Theatre.[7]
Cast
[edit]Broadway opening night cast:[8])
- Katherine Brook as Miss Chapman
- Grace Burgess as Lulu
- Grace Cornell as Ann Spoffard
- Roy Gorham as William Gwynn
- Grace Hampton as Lady Beekman
- William T. Hays as Old Spoffard
- Edna Hibbard as Dorothy Shaw
- Bruce Huntley as H. Gilbertson Montrose
- G.P. Huntley as Sir Francis Beekman
- Mrs. Jacques Martin as Mrs. Spoffard
- Frank Morgan as Henry Spoffard
- Edwina Prue as Dickie
- Vivian Purcell as Connie
- Ruth Raymonde as Gloria Atwell
- Georges Romain as Robert Broussard
- Adrian Rosely as Louis Broussard
- Arthur S. Ross as Gus Eisman
- Harold Thomas as Harry
- June Walker as Lorelei Lee
- Daniel Wolf as Leon
Reception
[edit]The Daily News gave the play a positive review, although they felt it didn't perform as well as they expected.[9]
References
[edit]- ^ "Theatre Notes". Daily News. December 26, 1925. p. 18. Retrieved June 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Theatrical Notes". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. November 17, 1925. p. 18. Retrieved June 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Theatre Notes". Daily News. November 27, 1925. p. 40. Retrieved June 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes' Gets World Premiere Next Week". Detroit Free Press. April 11, 1926.
- ^ "Theater: "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes". Chicago Tribune. May 3, 1926. p. 27. Retrieved June 27, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "This Week's Openings". Daily News. September 26, 1926. pp. D15. Retrieved June 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes: About This Production". Internet Broadway Database. Archived from the original on April 5, 2023. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
- ^ "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes: Opening Night Cast". Internet Broadway Database. Archived from the original on June 26, 2023. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
- ^ "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes; "Woman Disputed War Drama". Daily News. September 29, 1926. p. 32. Retrieved June 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
External links
[edit]- "Without Offense to the Moralists". Chicago Tribune. May 7, 1926. p. 8. Retrieved June 28, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- "June Walker Tells Why Gentlemen Prefer Blondes". Brooklyn Daily Times. October 31, 1926. pp. 1B. Retrieved June 28, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- "Decorative Evening Types Glisten at Play Premiere". The Buffalo News. October 11, 1926. p. 27. Retrieved June 28, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.