Evening star., 1943-11-07
The Architect
OF the Melody
OF a Sellout
NEW YORK

NEW YORK.
Tickets for that fabulously sue
cessful musical show Oklahoma =
are so scarce that officers Of ships at
sea signal to the boys on New York
bound vessels to reserve seats for
them next summer. And It's said
that ticket agents, before consider
ing your request, start figuring your
life expectancy.
This is the sort Of success that
"Oklahoma' has become. And no
one is more responsible than the man
who wrote the music. He's Richard
Rodgers. the melodious half of the
famous team of Rodgers and Hart.
Oklahoma" Is the first musical
that Rodgers has written without his
argumentative partner Lorenz Hart,
They have been collaborating for "a
years, since Rodgers, then is, met
Hart, who was %. Hart, only S feet
tall is small, tumultous, impulsive.
amiable. Because Rodgers is taller
and quleter, an impression has been
built up that he is the exact opposite
living formally with family and re-
tainers.
No Time for Temperament.
You know how those things are"
Rodgers was saying to me the other
day in his new Rockefeller Center
office. The writer's had TO get some
contrast. Hart threw a few wild
parties so I got the reputation of
being stuffy"
Actually, Rodgers is trim, CRAVING.
a soft-spoken fellow who has no
time for temperament. One of the
best liked men in show business, he
also Is at home among Long Island
and Connecticut socialites.
Il should have been a singing
waiter at Mikes. 1t would have
made better story" he once said.
Instead he was the son of doctor
and merry, musical woman who
liked to play and sing for her chill
dren the songs from The Merry
Widow When Richard was 4, he
was able to pick out melodies by ear
on the piano.
Rodgers first musical comedy was
written for the Columbia varsity
Show of 1920. Soon afterward he
quit Columbia to spend five years
plugging to get on Broadway. Then
he had a venture with the Theater
Guild when he and Hart wrote
sentimental Me- and Manhattan
for the "Garrick Gaieties."
Thousand and One Tunes.
Since then Rodgers and Hart have
written more than 1000 songs to-
gether. According to Rodgers, they
never have had disagreement over
policy or credit or money or any of
the things that cause partners to
part. Along Broadway it's said that
no one ever fused words and music
together more effectively.
They have become masters of sur
prise and delight. The drama music
OF Il Married an Angel "On Your
Toes" the March of the Clowns" in
Jumbo" are charming beyond the
accepted standards of traditional
musicals.
Their biggest flop was Betsy" for
Zlegfeld. They could never work
with him. He butted In all the time.
though he knew very little about
music.
Over 100000 sheet music copies of
songs from "Oklahoma" have been
sold, which Is more than the l5-
year total for Show Boat"-and
without record plugs, too. Right
now People Will Say We're in Love"
is selling at the rate of 5000 daily.
This makes Rodgers, who not onlv
wrote the music but published it, so
elated that he feels he could iump
out OF his office window and float
right of into space-if he had the
time.
New Vista Open.
But-while every one else is talk
ing about "Oklahoma" RODGERS is
talking about "A Connecticut Yam
kee," which opened in Philadelphia
last week. This marks Rodgers
first time as producer. And hes
making his debut with some definite
ideas about how things should be
done.
First there is the little matter of
selling "A Connecticut Yankee, .
which has been done before. Rodgers
feels it is an expensive mistake to
call such a production a revival -
So the first thing he did was to ad-
wise all drama editors that this is
a new musical adaptation"
That sounds like a long way
round revival but was determined
not to have the show fail by having
(See ARCHITECT, Page C-90