New Faces of 1952, also known asLeonard Sillman's New Faces of 1952, is a 1952 musicalrevue with songs and comedy skits, produced and conceived byLeonard Sillman. It was the fourth of Sillman's sevenNew Faces revues, each intended to showcase the rising stars of that time; the other years for which "New Faces of ..." revues were produced were 1934, 1936, 1943, 1956, 1962, and 1968.New Faces of 1952 was the most successful of the series, and is generally considered the best, for both the talent of the performers and the quality of the writing.[1] The show ran onBroadway for nearly a year in 1952, and helped launch the careers ofPaul Lynde,Alice Ghostley,Eartha Kitt,Robert Clary,Carol Lawrence,Ronny Graham, performer/writerMel Brooks (as Melvin Brooks), and lyricistSheldon Harnick.
Songs from the show include "Monotonous", sung byEartha Kitt in the show and identified with her throughout her career; "Guess Who I Saw Today", sung byJune Carroll in the show and subsequently recorded by numerous singers, most notablyNancy Wilson; and "Love is a Simple Thing", sung in the show by Rosemary O'Reilly, Robert Clary, Eartha Kitt, and June Carroll and later recorded by artists includingSauter-Finegan Orchestra,[2]Debbie Reynolds,Arthur Siegel,Jane Morgan,Carmen McRae andthe Muppets.[3]
New Faces of 1952 was adapted as a 1954 film, titled simplyNew Faces, which included the original cast. In 1982, the revue had anoff-Broadway revival at theEquity Library Theatre.
The revue opened on Broadway at theRoyale Theatre on May 16, 1952, and ran for 365 performances. It was produced by Leonard Sillman, directed byJohn Murray Anderson andJohn Beal with choreography by Richard Barstow. The sketches were written by Graham and Brooks. The songs were composed by, among others, Harnick, Graham,Murray Grand,Elisse Boyd, andArthur Siegel. The cast featured Graham, Kitt, Clary, Virginia Bosler, June Carroll, Virginia De Luce, Ghostley, Patricia Hammerlee, Lawrence, Lynde and Bill Milliken. De Luce and Graham won the 1952Theatre World Award. The revue marked Kitt's Broadway debut, singing a "sultry rendition" of "Monotonous", a tongue-in-cheek lament of how boring her ridiculously successful life was.[4]
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The show featured three non-musical sketches. "Of Fathers and Sons", written by Mel Brooks, was a parody of theArthur Miller dramaDeath of a Salesman[5] with characters Mae, Harry, Stanley and Policeman; a pickpocket is angry with his son for not wanting to join the family business.[6] In "Oedipus Goes South", Ronny Graham parodiesTruman Capote. Paul Lynde, wrapped in bandages, bemoans his African safari.[1] In "The Bard and the Beard" the characters – Miss Leigh, Sir Laurence, Call Boy and Maid – try to remember what play they are supposed to be in.[7]
Brooks' sketch had originally been written for another revue,Curtain Going Up, which did not make it to Broadway due to an unsuccessful tryout inPhiladelphia. Sillman and Graham had seen the show during its tryout and asked Brooks for permission to include the sketch inNew Faces of 1952 instead, which Brooks happily granted.[8]
RetitledNew Faces, the film version was directed byHarry Horner inCinemascope andEastmancolor, and released byTwentieth Century Fox on March 6, 1954. Ronny Graham, Eartha Kitt, Robert Clary, Alice Ghostley, June Carroll, Virginia De Luce, Carol Lawrence, Patricia Hammerlee, Paul Lynde, and Bill Millikin repeated their stage roles. The film was basically a reproduction of the stage revue with a thin plot added. The plot involved a producer and performer (Ronny Graham) in financial trouble on opening night. A wealthy Texan offers to help out, on the condition that his daughter be in the show.[9]
The song order was changed, and some songs were added and removed. Songs added include:
The songs omitted were:
The song "Love is a Simple Thing" omitted the final verse, which referencesCharles Addams. An extra verse was added to "Lizzie Borden". Some of the lines in "Monotonous" were replaced and updated: "Harry S. Truman plays bop for me" was changed to "Toscanini plays bop for me", and "Ike likes me" was changed to the opening notes of theDragnet theme, followed by the words "They wrote it for me".
| Leonard Sillman's New Faces Of 1952 | |
|---|---|
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| Cast recording by Original Cast | |
| Released | Late 1952 or early 1953 |
| Length | 50:06(LP) 55:20(CD 2009 re-issue) |
| Label | RCA Victor |
| Director | John Beal |
| Producer | Leonard Sillman |
Leonard Sillman's New Faces Of 1952 (Original Cast) was the official release of the cast recording of the Broadway revueNew Faces of 1952. The album was originally released on a 12"LP byRCA Victor, LOC-1008. Some material was excluded, as not all songs could fit on the record. In 1977, the album was reissued on theRCA Red Seal label, catalog number CBM1-2206.
The cast recording, like the play, was produced by Leonard Sillman. The orchestral conductor for the album and play wasAnton Coppola. Orchestral arrangements were byTed Royal.Alice Ghostley, Allen Conroy, Bill Mullikin,Carol Lawrence, Carol Nelson,Eartha Kitt, Jimmy Russell, Joseph Lautner,June Carroll, Michael Dominico, Patricia Hammerlee,Paul Lynde,Robert Clary,Ronny Graham, Rosemary O'Reilly, Virginia Bosler, and Virginia de Luce all perform on the album.[10]
In 2003,Jasmine Records reissued the cast album oncompact disc for the first time, featuring the original RCA LP track listing.[11] In 2009,Sony Music, which now owns the RCA Victor archive, released the album on CD (catalog numberArkiv RCA-04441) and digital download. This second CD reissue included the previously unreleased song "Time For Tea" performed byJune Carroll andAlice Ghostley.[12][13]
Track listings and credits adapted from the original label notes of album, unless other wise specified.[10]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Performer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Opening" |
| Ronny Grahamand Company | 2:11 |
| 2. | "Lucky Pierre" | Ronny Graham |
| 3:20 |
| 3. | "Boston Beguine" | Sheldon Harnick | Alice GhostleyIntroduced by Virginia de Luce | 4:42 |
| 4. | "Love Is A Simple Thing" |
| 5:08 | |
| 5. | "Nanty Puts Her Hair Up" |
|
| 4:42 |
| 6. | "Guess Who I Saw Today" |
| June Carroll | 2:20 |
| 7. | "Bal, petit bal" | Francis Lemarque | Eartha KittIntroduced by Robert Clary | 2:58 |
| Total length: | 25:21 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Performer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Three For The Road" a. "Introduction" b. "Raining Memories" c. "Waltzing In Venice" d. "Take Off The Mask" | Ronny Graham Ronny Graham Ronny Graham | Virginia de Luce Robert Clary
| 5:23 |
| 2. | "Penny Candy" |
| June Carrolland Company | 3:26 |
| 3. | "Don't Fall Asleep" | Ronny Graham | Rosemary O'Reilly | 2:10 |
| 4. | "I'm In Love With Miss Logan" | Unknown[14][15] | Robert Clary
| 3:57 |
| 5. | "Monotonous" |
| Eartha Kitt | 3:47 |
| 6. | "Lizzie Borden" | Michael Brown |
| 4:57 |
| 7. | "(He Takes Me Off His Income Tax)" |
| Virginia de Luce | 1:05 |
| Total length: | 24:45 | |||
Features previously unreleased song "Time For Tea".[12]
| No. | Title | Performer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Opening" | Ronny Graham | 2:11 |
| 2. | "Lucky Pierre" |
| 3:20 |
| 3. | "Guess Who I Saw Today" | June Carroll | 2:20 |
| 4. | "Love Is A Simple Thing" |
| 5:08 |
| 5. | "Boston Beguine" |
| 4:42 |
| 6. | "Nanty Puts Her Hair Up" |
| 4:42 |
| 7. | "Time For Tea" |
| 5:14 |
| 8. | "Bal, petit bal" |
| 2:58 |
| 9. | "Three For The Road" |
| 5:23 |
| 10. | "Don't Fall Asleep" | Rosemary O'Reilly | 2:10 |
| 11. | "Lizzie Borden" |
| 4:57 |
| 12. | "I'm In Love With Miss Logan" |
| 3:57 |
| 13. | "Penny Candy" | June Carroll | 3:26 |
| 14. | "Monotonous" | Eartha Kitt | 3:47 |
| 15. | "He Takes Me Off His Income Tax" | Virginia de Luce | 1:05 |
| Total length: | 55:20 | ||
TheEquity Library Theatre in New York City presented anOff-Broadway revival in 1982, directed by Joseph Patton and featuring comedic performances by Lillian Graff, Philip Wm. Mckinley, Alan Safier, and Randy Brenner in the roles originated by Ghostley, Lynde, Graham, and Clary, respectively.[17] Kitt joined the cast late in the run to re-create her original role.