Republic Theatre, "Abie's Irish Rose," "Dear Me" and "My Girl Friday"
setName: label: See more items in
content: Phillip Graneto Broadway Theater Collection
label: See more items in
content: Phillip Graneto Broadway Theater Collection / Series 4: Broadway Theater Programs (New York, New York)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1921-1929
container: label: Container
content: Box 2, Folder 29
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives Center, National Museum of American History
objectType: label: Type
content: Archival materials
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The show, starring Milton Wallace and Evelyn Nichols, ran for 2,327 performances from 1922 to 1927, becoming the longest-running show in Broadway history. It was a feel-good comedy about a Jewish man (Abraham, known as Abie) who falls in love with an Irish girl (Rosemary, the Rose of the title). Their fathers disapprove, but are eventually won over after they meet their grandchildren. The play was a huge success, inspiring two film adaptations, in 1928 and 1946, and a radio show that ran from 1942 to 1944. Though the public loved it, the critics did not. Robert Benchley was particularly creative in his jokes about the production, since he had to produce many to accompany his weekly theater listings. The widespread disapproval of the play was even captured by Lorenz Hart in his song "Manhattan" that included the lyric "Our future babies we'll take to Abie's Irish Rose / I hope they'll live to see it close."