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PRESS RELEASE
STORY OF BROADWAY LEGEND TO AIR ON PBS
WORDS AND MUSIC BY JERRY HERMAN
PROFILES CREATOR OF "HELLO, DOLLY!,"
"MAME," AND "LA CAGE AUX FOLLES”
Premieres on WNET New York Monday, December 31 at 10:00 PM
Premieres Nationwide on PBS Tuesday, January 1 at 9:30 PM
(check local listings)
TRENTON, NEW JERSEY, December 6, 2007 — "When they passed out talent," Broadway star Carol Channing says of composer and lyricist Jerry Herman, "Jerry stood in line twice." Herman wrote the words and music for some of Broadway’s greatest musicals, including "Hello, Dolly!", "Mame" and "La Cage aux Folles." This new documentary by award-winning filmmaker Amber Edwards takes you backstage through insightful interviews, behind-the-scenes rehearsal sessions, rare photographs, and never-before-seen archival footage of original Broadway performances to create a warm, humorous, and moving portrait of a living theater legend. Words and Music by Jerry Herman premieres in the New York metro area on WNET New York, Monday, December 31 at 10:00 PM; and nationwide on PBS, Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 9:30 PM. (Check local listings.)
Five years in the making, this 90-minute special from NJN Public Television chronicles Herman’s rapid rise from witty, topical off-Broadway revues during the 1950s, to his first Broadway hits in the 1960s (Milk and Honey, followed quickly by the record-breaking Dolly and then Mame) through the less successful shows from the 1970s (Dear World, Mack & Mabel and The Grand Tour) to his triumphant return in 1983 with La Cage aux Folles, which made social and political history.
The “supporting cast” is truly a Who’s Who of Broadway: Carol Channing, Angela Lansbury, Charles Nelson Reilly, Marge Champion, Arthur Laurents, Charles Strouse, Fred Ebb, George Hearn, Phyllis Newman, Michael Feinstein, musical director Donald Pippin, singers Leslie Uggams and Jason Graae, author Francine Pascal, and historians Miles Kreuger and Ken Bloom. And theater aficionados will marvel at the collection of archival motion picture footage. There is Carol Channing and the original Broadway Hello, Dolly! company performing the title song; Angela Lansbury in the only known footage of Mame and Dear World; film of the 1955 college musical Jerry wrote at the University of Miami; Robert Preston and a bevy of showgirls from Mack & Mabel; and other material which captures these original, ephemeral theater performances that, until now, existed only in the memories of those lucky enough to have seen them on stage. Naturally, the film is filled with music, with original cast recordings and live performances, while the piano underscoring is played by Jerry Herman himself.
True to the spirit of its subject, who describes himself as “a builder,” the documentary creates a dramatic arc that honestly examines a career of hits and flops and highs and lows, culminating in Jerry’s final act as a Broadway composer/lyricist: La Cage aux Folles (1983)—which was not only a critical and commercial smash, but a political and social turning point. Never before had two men held hands in a musical, or sung a love ballad to one another. George Hearn’s star turn as Za Za, belting out what is probably the most dramatic Act One closer ever written, “I Am What I Am,” still brings audiences to their feet with its forceful call for tolerance and dignity—a surpassingly powerful statement from a composer/lyricist who declared all along that he wanted only to entertain people. It was, Hearn recalls in the film, truly “The Best of Times,” until shortly after the show opened, and cast members began dying of a mysterious plague. AIDS had entered the world, and it swept through the theater community. Half of the original La Cage chorus didn’t live to finish the run. And Jerry Herman himself was diagnosed as HIV-positive in 1985; he is one of the fortunate ones who survived to see experimental drug therapies take hold and is still, as one of his lyrics proclaims, “alive and well and thriving.”
With his ebullient, hummable songs that personify the “show tune,” Jerry Herman extended the Golden Age of Broadway almost single-handedly, as new generations keep discovering his tuneful, optimistic, and deceptively simple songs. Yet, as Michael Feinstein says, “Jerry has succeeded so well in his mission, that people don’t give him credit...because to be simple without being cliche is nearly impossible.”
DVD Screener available upon request. High resolution images and
additional information can be downloaded from this site
Running time: 86 minutes
Producer/Director/Writer/Editor: Amber Edwards
A production of NJN Public Television, copyright 2007
Funders: The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation; The New Jersey State Council on the Arts; the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation; the NJN Foundation Fund for New Production; Anne Evans Estabrook
Executive Producer: Nila Aronow
Format: Standard Definition CC STEREO; and High Definition CC Stereo.
ABOUT THE FILM
WORDS AND MUSIC BY JERRY HERMAN premiers nationally on PBS on Tuesday, January 1st, 2008 at 9:30 PM. (Check local listings.)
This new, 90-minute documentary by award-winning filmmaker Amber Edwards chronicles the life and career of one of the American Musical Theater’s iconic figures: the composer and lyricist of the legendary Broadway shows Hello, Dolly!, Mame and La Cage aux Folles, and one of the last of Broadway’s Golden Age. The film chronicles Jerry Herman’s rise from witty off-Broadway revues during the 1950s, to his first Broadway triumphs in the 1960s—Milk and Honey, followed by the record-breaking Dolly and then Mame—through the 1970s (Dear World, Mack & Mabel, The Grand Tour) to his 1983 smash hit, La Cage aux Folles, which made social and political history.
The star-studded “supporting cast” includes Carol Channing, Angela Lansbury, Charles Nelson Reilly, Marge Champion, Arthur Laurents, Michael Feinstein, Charles Strouse, Fred Ebb, George Hearn, Phyllis Newman, Musical Director Donald Pippin, Francine Pascal, Leslie Uggams, Jason Graae, and theater historians Miles Kreuger and Ken Bloom. Shot on HD, the film incorporates a remarkable collection of photographs and archival footage (much of it never seen in public) including Carol Channing doing the original Hello, Dolly! title song; Super-8 films of Angela Lansbury in Mame and Dear World; numbers from Mack & Mabel (a cult favorite among aficionados;) scenes from La Cage; and most astonishingly, film of the college musical Jerry wrote at University of Miami.
Words and Music by Jerry Herman will be released as a DVD by PBS Home Video immediately following the January 1st broadcast. Call 1-800-Shop-PBS or visit www.shoppbs.org
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Jerry Herman (1931— ) is an icon of the American musical theater, the composer and lyricist of landmark shows such as Hello, Dolly!, Mame, and La Cage aux Folles. A rightful heir to the towering figures of Broadway’s Golden Age—Rodgers and Hammerstein, Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin—Jerry (as he is known to everyone he meets) extended that era, almost single-handedly, through another generation, until the Great American Musical began its slow slide from mainstream to niche, when Broadway tunes ceased to be heard on the Hit Parade, and going to the theater became a special occasion, rather than a way of life.
Perhaps it is Jerry’s innate optimism that propelled him through this shifting landscape; consider hits like “It’s Today,” “Before the Parade Passes By,” “Open a New Window,” and of course the great anthem “The Best of Times is Now .” The musical characters he created–Dolly Levi and Mame Dennis–set a new standard for larger-than-life leading ladies. Even his lesser known shows—Milk and Honey, Mack & Mabel, Dear World, The Grand Tour—are full of first-rate songs, and some (particularly Mack & Mabel) have achieved cult status.
But partly because of his broad appeal and huge commercial success, Jerry’s work is frequently underrated by the critics, who often prize complexity over simplicity; elaborate musical architecture over hummable tunes; and dark irony over bright hopefulness. However, as many of the leading lights of Broadway are quick to point out, it’s not easy to be simple. Jerry Herman is an exacting craftsman, whose words rhyme exactly and whose melodies seem to carry the words along effortlessly. He writes for story and character, and calls himself a “musical playwright”. Yet he had little formal musical training and to this day, cannot read music and plays the piano (astonishingly well) by ear.
After a run of increasingly successful hits in the 1960s (Milk & Honey, Hello, Dolly!, and Mame,) Jerry attempted to stretch himself in the 1970s, when rock & roll, British pop operas, and intellectually challenging cynicism were coming into fashion on Broadway. Jerry’s efforts to break out of his own mold were rewarded with withering reviews and a string of ambitious flops: Dear World, Mack & Mabel, and The Grand Tour.
Then, in 1983 he returned to Broadway in triumph, with a show that was not only a critical and commercial smash, but an important social and cultural touchstone. La Cage aux Folles, with its wholesome depiction of two gay men and their family, broke taboos about portraying homosexuals on stage, and it produced what is probably Jerry’s most potent song ever: “I Am What I Am,” which not only became a gay anthem but spoke to the universal human desire for dignity and respect. It is all the more moving because shortly after La Cage opened, Jerry was diagnosed as HIV positive; but with experimental drug therapy and scientific breakthroughs in medicine, Jerry is, as one of his lyrics proclaims, “alive and well and thriving.” However, he has never again written for the Broadway stage, preferring to leave at the top of his game–a decision which has left his many fans bereft.
The documentary film Words and Music by Jerry Herman is a definitive account of one of the great talents of the 20th century, the world he lived and worked in, and the legacy of joyous music he created.
ABOUT THE FILMMAKER
Filmmaker Amber Edwards and Jerry Herman at the Kennedy Center screening, September 2007
CREDIT: Luis Gomez Words and Music by Jerry Herman is Amber Edwards’ sixth national PBS documentary. Her previous work includes: The Dancing Man--Peg Leg Bates (1992); Vladimir Feltsman in Moscow (1993); Against the Odds: The Artists of the Harlem Renaissance (1994); Quicksand & Banana Peels: A Year in the Life of Two Principals (1999); and George Segal: American Still Life (2001).
Since 1987, she has been host and producer of NJN Public Television’s long running arts and culture series State of the Arts, where she has earned 12 regional Emmy Awards for her work. Ms. Edwards also produces, writes, and narrates the Jersey Arts on the Radio series, heard on NJN Public Radio, WWFM, and WBJB public radio, and has been a regular contributor to WBGO-FM (88.3, Newark), public radio’s flagship jazz station.
In addition to the Emmys, her awards include six CINE Golden Eagles, two "Chris" statuettes from the Columbus International Film Festival, two CEN Programming awards, a Gold Plaque from WorldFest Houston, a NETA award, a Silver Plaque from the Chicago International Film Festival, the Silver Screen Award from the U.S. International Film & Video Festival, and two Silver Apples from the National Educational Media Network.
Ms. Edwards' documentaries have been screened at festivals in New York, Chicago, Paris, Dublin, Montreal, Amsterdam, St. Petersburg, Sydney, Naples (Italy), Upsala (Sweden), Durham, NC, Sarasota, FL, Mill Valley, CA, and have been broadcast in the UK, Norway, Italy, Israel, and Japan.
In addition to her film and broadcasting work, Ms. Edwards sings professionally. She has performed in the 92nd Street Y’s famous “Lyrics and Lyricists” series, and appears regularly in public and private cabaret venues in New York City and Connecticut.
Ms. Edwards grew up in Kansas City and graduated from Yale University, where she is a Fellow at Branford College.
DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT
Anybody who loves musical theater–as I do–can sing at least a dozen Jerry Herman songs. Even if you don’t know musicals at all, you probably know some Jerry Herman songs...“Hello, Dolly!” “Mame ,” “The Best of Times .” They are so much a part of the culture that we take them for granted, the same way Jerry Herman has often been taken for granted. Many of the people who know and love his shows wouldn’t recognize his name or face, aren’t sure whether he writes the words or music (he writes them both), and certainly don’t think about how much effort and craft goes into writing scores that you can hum leaving the theater.
That’s Jerry’s great gift, the ability to create optimistic, uplifting songs you feel you’ve known forever; and it’s also his curse, because, as the great writer and director Arthur Laurents says, “it’s so much safer to be cynical.” Cynicism and irony, of course, are the hallmarks of our time, and sincerity and joy are, well, old-fashioned. Jerry is very content to be old-fashioned, and thank God for it.
During the five years it took to make this film, Jerry proved himself a game and good-natured subject. He opened his files and scrapbooks, offered up the contents of his address book so I could contact a lifetime’s worth of colleagues and friends, he even played all the piano underscoring. Most important, the so-called Gentle Giant of Broadway (with what one actor called “a whim of iron”) did not meddle in the creation of what I hope will stand as the definitive account of his career.
When I finally sat down with him to show him the rough cut (a fraught moment for any filmmaker,) he had only three notes–after recovering his composure from what was clearly an emotional whammy: 1) the photo I had used was of the wrong grandmother (he kindly supplied a photo of the right one!) 2) he asked if the last shot we see of his mother could be a prettier one, and 3) he said the music for the closing credits (a soft and slow piano version of “Hello, Dolly!”, played by Jerry himself) made it seem like he was dead. “It’s your film”, he said, “but I’d want to go out big, so the audience applauds and feels thrilled.” He was exactly right, and I gratefully changed it.
While researching archival footage for Words and Music by Jerry Herman, I found an old “What’s My Line?” episode from 1964. The mystery guest, “Mr X”, is Jerry Herman, who signs in as the composer/lyricist of the current smash hit “Hello, Dolly!” The extremely handsome and shy young man who appears is questioned by Arlene Francis and Tony Randall and the other panelists, who eventually discover his identity...and Arlene Francis is mortified because she had just met–and interviewed!–him the week before. Jerry Herman has never been a household name, even though his songs are as ever-present as the air we breathe. I hope this documentary will give the mystery guest a new identity.
Amber Edwards,
Producer/Director October, 2007
BUY THE DVD
Own this documentary about Broadway legend Jerry Herman featuring
never-before-seen footage of original stage performances.
$24.99 Call 1-800 PLAY PBS or Visit PBS Online
Extra features include:
- The entire "Hello, Dolly!" number performed by Carol Channing and the original cast
- a complete production number from Jerry Herman's 1955 college musical
- Jerry Herman and Ethel Merman doing "Before the Parade Passes By"
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