Golden Rainbow
OPENING: February 4, 1968
CLOSING: January 11, 1969
Seen: April 1968
LOCATION: Shubert
I think it’s pretty obvious by this point that my dad saw a variety of shows in his youth. Some stalwart classics…and some absolute duds. Every time the subject of this blog is brought up in the Watson household, this sense of joy and pride comes over my dad’s face, followed by him reminding me that his father had a subscription service that would send him tickets on a regular basis. He wasn’t able to choose what shows he saw, but it was the most economical way to bring his family of six to the theater quite often.
The tickets for the next show in our theatre journey could have come from the aforementioned service, or my grandfather may have straight out bought the tickets, because the headliners were musical favorites Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme – the exact kind of performing duo that my grandmother loved. A show that was another long forgotten star vehicle – a show called Golden Rainbow.
Like many of the other non-classics that this blog has explored, there is not a huge amount of information available for writing the kind of entry that I would like to. Still, there is enough that I can confidently say the plot was simple – Larry (Lawrence) is a recently widowed Las Vegas gambler. When his sister in law Judy (Gorme) moves to Vegas to help care for her nephew, he is shocked when she not only isn’t the easy mark that he’s expecting her to be, but he also begins to fall for her.
The plot was rickety. I think that’s obvious from the short synopsis in the above paragraph. But the production seemed doomed from the start.
Based on Arthur Shulman’s 1957 play A Hole In The Head, Golden Rainbow was adapted for the singing duo. Changes were made to fit their public persona and make it more amenable as a musical. As writers, we are taught early in our training that less is more. After researching both Golden Rainbow and A Hole In The Head, I believe that Golden Rainbow could have benefited from this little nugget of wisdom. Apparently Shulman, who was brought in to help with the adaptation, thought so too as he abandoned the production team four months before previews were scheduled to begin. This was unfortunately due to “creative differences” with the producers.
Without Shulman, the production was left in the hands of over eager producers. They just couldn’t seem to get it right and scheduled previews, which were slated to start in early November 1967, were delayed until December 27th. Moreover the show’s opening night also kept getting pushed back. For reference – at this time period, an average preview was about two weeks. Golden Rainbow finally got its official opening on February 4, 1968.
Even with the extra time granted, it appears that it wasn’t enough. Reviewer Clive Barnes had plenty to say about the production, almost none of which was kind. To be fair, the review also reveals that Barnes had an infamous reputation before he even reviewed this show, so the seething review may have been a normal thing for him. However, a reviewer does not typically lambaste a show like that unless he really truly did not enjoy it.
I do, however, think the most telling statement pertaining to the quality of this show lies in the 1968 Tony nominations. Nine times out of ten, at least in the modern era, the Tonys will nominate the big names hired to headline the ceremony itself. But in the case of Golden Rainbow, though adapted for a very successful performing duo, the only two Tony nods received were for Scenic Design...and Scott Jacoby, a young boy with no credits to his name. Jacoby received a nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Musical, playing the role of Ally (The son of Steve Lawrence’s Larry). The two headliners were not even mentioned. I cannot imagine that this was not a slap in the face for both of them.
Special recognition must go out to a Broadway debut that was made in this show. In the ensemble and playing a small role was a young chorus girl named Carole Bishop. Later going by the name Kelly Bishop, she would go on to play Shelia in the original run of A Chorus Line. To my fellow 90’s kids out there, she also had a long run on TV’s The Gilmore Girls, playing the well-meaning but socially embroiled Emily Gilmore. Ms. Bishop is still working today and has a long, very successful career and is one of those performers that someday I hope to work with in some capacity.
Steve Lawrence is currenly 87; Eydie Gorme passed in 2013. They performed as a duo well into the 1990s and never compromised who they were as performers. I think had I been from that era, I would have had great professional respect for them. I definitely do today, but I was not of their generation and unfortunately I will always see them as a relic of some sort. Since researching this show a part of me wishes that I had been there to see it. Many of the theater pieces I have seen I did so in part because someday I want to be able to say “I was there”. This would have been one of those shows for me.. Golden Rainbow, despite it’s problems, managed to run for eleven months. Was it the dynamic duo that influenced this outcome? Or was it actually the charming musical that it set out to be? Only those who saw it (And remember it) know the answer to this question. I choose to see it as a combination of both – an entertaining piece of fluff, headlined by two talented name stars. And sometimes that’s all we really need out of a good piece of theatre.
CAST: ORIGINAL
MR. NOVOTNY: Alan Kass
ALLY: Scott Jacoby
MR. HAUSKNECHT: Howard Mann
ELOISE: Linda Jorgens
LAUNDRYMAN: Charles Karel
HENRY: Will Hussung
MR. DIAMOND: Sid Raymond
LARRY DAVIS: Steve Lawrence
MRS. MAGRUDER: Fay Sappington
LOU GARRITY: Joseph Sirola
JEROME STONE: Gene Foote
ROSEMARY GARRITY: Marilyn Cooper
GORDON: John Anania
MR. KORNGOLD: Sam Kressen
1st REPORTER: Charles Karel
2nd REPORTER: Lanier Davis
LEAD DANCER: Diana Saunders
JUDY HARRIS: Eydie Gorme
GEORGIA: Carol Conte
SAM: Frank Pietri
1st HERALD: Bernadette Brookes
2nd HERALD: Thelma Sherr
PERSIAN GIRL: Linda Jorgens
CAT-GIRL: Carole Bishop
NEBUCHADNEZZAR: John Anania
VIRGIN: Diana Saunders
HERO: Antony De Vecchi
STAGE MANAGER: Charles Karel
VICTOR: Lanier Davis
HONEY: Bernadette Brookes
GAMBLER: Michael Vita
DANCERS: Carole Bishop, Carol Conte, Susan Donovan, Antony De Vecchi, Tina Faye, Rick Garder, Alice Glenn, Linda Jorgens, Maralyn Miles, Jean Preece, Wayne Boyd, Gene Foote, Blair Hammond, Larry Merritt, Frank Pietri, Michael Shawn, Michael Vita
SHOWGIRLS: Bernadette Brookes, Rae Samuels, Thelma Sherr
STANDBY FOR STEVE LAWRENCE: Mace Barrett
STANDBY FOR EYDIE GORME: Marilyn Cooper
UNDERSTUDIES: Charles Karel (Garrity); Dewey Golkin (Ally); John Anania (Diamond, Hausknecht, Korngold); Lanier Davis (Henry); Carol Conte (Mrs. Magruder); Gene Foote (Novotny); Tina Fay (Rosemary).
Barnes, Clive. “Theater: Sammy Glick on the Loose in Las Vegas; Shubert Theater Gets ‘Golden Rainbow’, Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme Star.” New York Times, February 5, 1968. https://www.nytimes.com/1968/02/05/archives/theater-sammy-glick-on-the-loose-in-las-vegas-shubert-theater-gets.html?searchResultPosition=4
Bordman, Gerald. “American Musical Theatre: A Chronicle.” New York: Oxford University Press, Inc., 1978.
Deepdishdrama. “Steve Lawrence sings “Golden Rainbow” from the Broadway musical”. April 9, 2018. Video, 1:33. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqsiEjhbmd4
Internet Broadway Database. “Carole Bishop”. www.ibdb.com. Accessed January 2023.
Internet Broadway Database. “Golden Rainbow”. www.ibdb.com. Accessed December 2022.
Internet Movie Database. “Eydie Gorme”. www.imdb.com. Accessed December 2022.
Internet Movie Database. “Steve Lawrence”. www.imdb.com. Accessed December 2022.
Internet Movie Database. “Scott Jacoby”. www.imdb.com. Accessed December 2022.
New York Times. “Author Leaves Own Musical” July 28, 1967. https://www.nytimes.com/1967/07/28/archives/author-leaves-own-musical.html?searchResultPosition=6
New York Times. “’Golden Rainbow’ Opens Nov 8” June 2, 1967. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1967/06/02/90347837.html?pageNumber=36
Tony Awards. www.tonyawards.com. Accessed December 2022.
