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 enlarge | Author: Charles Strouse
Publisher: Sterling Publishing
Category: Book
List Price: $19.95
Buy New: $9.85
You Save: $10.10 (51%)
New (34) Used (15) from $9.85
Avg. Customer Rating:  7 reviews
Sales Rank: 124148
Format: Illustrated
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 336
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.3
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.7 x 1.3
ISBN: 1402758898
Dewey Decimal Number: 782.14092
EAN: 9781402758898
ASIN: 1402758898
Publication Date: July 1, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Condition: BRAND NEW BOOK, NEXT DAY SHIPPING, PADDED ENVELOPES, NOT A REMAINDER
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| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 6-7 of 7 | | « PREV | | |
Fascinating, impossible to put down July 9, 2008
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
Well written, funny as hell, and eminently readable "Put On a Happy Face" is as entertaining as any of Charles Strouse's best shows. In this book, whose title is taken from one of his many standards, Strouse takes us on a journey through the Broadway musical theater of the last fifty years. Along the way we meet the legends with whom he has worked (and with whom he has occasionally battled): David Merrick, Mel Brooks, Lauren Bacall, Dick Van Dyke, Gower Champion, Joshua Logan, Mike Nichols, Arthur Laurents, Alan Jay Lerner. He demonstrates how tough it is to write a musical and how much tougher it is to get it produced, only to have the critics break your heart. But he also shows the exhilaration and thrills when the show is a smash hit, like Bye Bye Birdie, Applause, or Annie.He clears up the confusion regarding his (and Lee Adams') contributions to Hello, Dolly!, especially laying to rest once and for all (one hopes) the rumors concerning the true authorship of "Before the Parade Passes By."
Strouse has had a fabulous career. Besides the hit shows, so many of his songs have become standards: "Tomorrow," "You've Got Possibilities," "Once Upon a Time," "Kids," "A Lot of Livin' To Do," and others. Buffs worship his score for Rags. His title song for Dance a Little Closer is gorgeous. His theme song for All in the Family --- "Those Were the Days" is one of the best known tv themes ever. If you analyze "The Telephone Hour" measure by measure, you will be astonished by the musicianship. In person, Charles Strouse is warm, gracious, and, to borrow the title of one of his songs, a "perfect gentleman." All that talent and honest personality come through in the pages of this book.
Don't miss it.
A Must For Musical Theatre Fans! July 4, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
Charles Strouse is one of the last of a generation of great tune smiths. Broadway composers who could, as Richard Rodgers said, "piss good melodies." No matter what the show, Strouse could be counted upon to come up with great singable, hummable and even memorable tunes. He didn't always have hit shows, but when he did they were shows like Bye Bye Birde and Annie. This book tells a lot about the hits and also offers some wonderful anecdotes and insights into the various flops. Strouse isn't afraid to say what is one his mind and ruffle some feathers. The sections on Golden Boy and Sammy Davis Jr. and especially the Nick and Nora chapter that tells us more than we knew about Arthur Laurents are especially tasty. Unlike many memoirs, Charles personal life is handled very well and I was not bored for a second at the part I usually like to skip: the childhood. Charles ties it all in to his career and how the music was made and where it came from. One of the best memoirs to come down the pike in a while. Highly recommended to anyone interested in theatre, music or film.
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