James Theatre, where the previous incarnation, starring Betty Grable, had closed three days before. With Emily Yancy as Irene Molloy and Winston DeWitt Hemsley as Barnaby also in the cast, it officially opened to rapturous reviews on Novemat the St. His answer to the problem – a Black version with no less than Pearl Bailey as Dolly and Cab Calloway as Horace Vandergelder, in this musicalization of Thornton Wilder’s The Matchmaker by Jerry Herman. Even though Hello, Dolly! had been hugely successful since it first opened on January 16, 1964, when receipts began to sag at the box office three years later he decided the musical needed a shot in the arm. Another wonderful talent has gone too soon.įrom the Broadway Masterwork's Website: Flamboyant Broadway producer David Merrick never was at a loss to find the right publicity stunt that would save or prolong the life of his shows.
Likely, Pearl had no smash closing on a Saturday night-but missed Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and then it was acknowledged that Merrick was looking for Dolly number six.Ĭab’s daughter Chris Calloway was also in this production. It made the columns that Merrick bought her a diamond bracelet just saying “and you’ll watch your attendance.” So, we don’t know when she formally left and Thelma/Bibi started sharing. She toured with the show after her recovery, and again in the mid-1970s.Īccording to Ernestine Jackson. The Broadway production ran for two years before Bailey’s health problems forced it to close. Calloway and that seated “center front” was Miss Channing, “a blaze of platinum hair.” Barnes also noted the “polished” and “stylish” Mr. On her entrance, the audience wouldn’t even let her begin.Īfter about a minute’s applause, she cleared her throat, grinned amiably and…murmured: ‘I’ve got a few more words to say in this show’…Bailey took the whole musical in her hands and swung it around her neck as easily as if it were a feather boa.” Mr. She had no trouble at all in stopping the show-her problem was getting it started again. In his New York Times review, Clive Barnes wrote, “For Miss Bailey, this was a Broadway triumph for the history books. That is the only recording of the score to have an overture which was written especially for that recording. Bailey was given a special Tony Award for her role and RCA Victor made a second original cast album. THERE'S PLENTY MORE WHERE THAT CAME FROMġ8.One of the peak experiences that I’ve had in theatre-going was to see Pearl Bailey in Hello, Dolly!ġ967, Bailey and Cab Calloway headlined an all-black cast version of Hello, Dolly! The touring version was so successful, producer David Merrick took it to Broadway where it played to sold-out houses and revitalized the long-running musical. She was born in Virginia, but moved here with her mother and stepfather in the early 1930s. WHAT'S HAPPENED TO THE HAIR (On The Head Of The Man I Love)ġ3. Bailey was born in 1918 and died in 1990. I AIN'T GOT NOBODY AND NOBODY CARES FOR MEĢ8.
Pearl was never about hit records - although her biggest chart success 'Takes Two To Tango' inevitably features here - but she sold a lot of long players and her singing career was perpetually an extension of her brash and frequently bawdy personality, which spills cheerfully out of the grooves of every track here.Ī long overdue tribute to a genuine entertainment legend, 'Pearls' is perhaps the definitive collection of 'Pearlie Mae' featuring, as it does, a great many tracks that are totally new to UK CD - all remastered, as always, from the finest available sources! Track ListingĢ3. Jasmine's new 2CD set brings together as many of Pearls' recordings from the 50s as we could cram in - five complete albums, in fact, that show her larger than life personality off to the full. Hers was the very definition of a prolific career, and one that brought her international fame in every area where she chose to leave her imprint.Įven though her chart success was small, Pearl's vocal talent was large and she was never without a recording contract for the whole of the 1950s and beyond.
PEARL BAILEY TV
One of the most beloved and highest profile American entertainers of the 20th Century, singer/actress/author Pearl Bailey spent over 50 years of her life on stage, in films, on TV and in record studios.
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