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That Wildcat Gal


Brock

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On a semi-related note, we have lots of photos of Valerie Harper in this show, but are there any of Hal Linden?

 

 

I'm pretty sure Hal Linden was a replacement in the show taking over for Charles Braswell. Braswell (who later originated the role of Beauregard in Mame on Broadway) played the role of Matt, one of the oil crewmen, and served as Andes' understudy. He must have left the show at some point and Linden took over in both capacities. I know Hal never went on in Keith Andes' place. I would think that pretty much all the publicity photos were taken from early in the run of the show or before it even opened, so a shot of Linden on stage is probably rare. 

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Joey wrote: "Wonder how you can justify cutting the title song of the same-named musical, regardless of the star/reason/rationale??? "

 

 

to which I add: AND keep it in the overture as the lead-off song?

I forgot where I found this but it has some very good information in.

 

6785.jpeg

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I'd love to know where this is from because this paragraph seems to be preceded by more info.

A pretty fair representation with a couple pieces of minor misinformation.    The show did capacity (or near to it) business its entire run, not just the first few weeks.  I don't think Lucy was "missing performances" in the accepted sense.  There was the 2 week vacation in February.  There may have been another, but as far as I know anyway, they were planned in advance.  Lucy knew that the audience came  to see HER in Wildcat and not "Wildcat".  I don't know for a fact but I think that even with the fainting incidents she was back on stage the next night, except for the last one.  Wildcat did its best business that last month.  I think people were (accurately) predicting that she would not be able to stay with the show.

I agree that instead of cutting the Wildcat song completely that the townspeople could have sung it to her, with a few lyric modifications.   I think "Janie" is the more mysterious cut of the two because a) her character needed at least ONE plaintive ballad and this one defined her greed, tempering it with a sympathetic motivation (though I suppose it was conveyed in dialogue after that )and 2) The song doesn't seem to be taxing her vocal chords at all.  In fact, "Janie" is probably Lucy's best Wildcat singing, a hint of vibrato here and there and a playful grace note in "and often enou-ough".  She's spot on with the notes except for the last "get" which is half-sung (although not right on the note) and half shouted.

Broadway history revisionists seem to want to label Wildcat a flop. It was anything but.  I think the attitude, that has gotten snarkier as the years go by, is fueled by the backlash of her "stealing " the Mame movie from Angela.  They tend to lump Wildcat and Mame together as examples of Lucy's failed attempts at musicals.  It's probable that the MameIsWildcat/WildcatIsMame crowd has never heard the cast album because her voice is totally different.  It's hard to believe that a mere 12 years separated the two roles.  To put that in perspective, if Mame was being filmed today in 2015, Wildcat would have left the boards in 2003.  Lucy's personal notices were almost all in the positive-to-rave range.

 

With all the focus on "Oil" in recent years, maybe it's time to update Wildcat for Broadway, this time setting it in the Middle East. The lead could wear a burka the whole time so no one would know when the understudy was on!

She could sing her "What Takes My Fancy" duet with another old coot with a rifle, a character based on Dick Cheney.

"Ah Ah Ah  install an air force base.

Ah Ah Ah shoot someone in the face

Ah Ah Ah Ah name someone who's nice

Ah Ah Ah Ah Condoleesa Rice...

I likes to work at halliburton

One things for certain, we don't do bids.

Transparency laws, we are skirtin'

Pay Halliburton, or charge it to your kids..."

I forgot where I found this but it has some very good information in.

 

6785.jpeg

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