CATHERINE JACOBY is the indomitable Fanny Brice, as she interrupts choreographer Miriam Nelsons dance rehearsal for The Ziegfeld Follies to audition her new song Rose of Washington Square for the Great Ziegfeld himself, in this scene from ZIEGFELD: The Man and His Women. The daughter of comedy writer Coleman Jacoby was familiar with the role, having recently played the famed diva-comedienne in Donn Ardens spectacular, multi-million dollar Hallelujah, Hollywood at the original MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas. Ms. Jacoby subsequently changed her name to Loria Parker and moved to New York where her affinity for stars of the 1920s continued to attract attention and acclaim. In his 1987 review for the nightclub revue Thanks For The Memory: The Songs of Ralph Ranger [including 20s icons Libby Holman and Mae West] The New York Times critic John S. Wilson wrote: The versatile Miss Parker projects the despair of a torch singer of the 20s, evokes Mae West without exaggerating a natural caricature and makes the most o f a Shirley Temple song as it might have been sung by Fanny Brice. [And note the cameo by actress/choreographer Miriam Nelson, who choreographed the film, as Ziegfeld's choreographer.]
ZIEGFELD: The Man and His Women was a giant undertaking for television. The multi-million dollar three-hour move, which had its US television premiere on May 21, 1978, as part of NBC TVs Sunday night Big Event series, is the longest musical ever filmed for television. [The original 150-minute version was subsequently seen on Showtime, and an edited 100-minute version, retaining most of the musical sequences, has been aired in recent years on The Encore Channel].
Headlining as Florenz Ziegfeld was Paul Shenar who began his career on Broadway [Tartuffe, Six Characters In Search of An Author, and Variety Critics-nominee for Tiny Alice and The Three Sisters ], a founding member, actor, director and teacher with William Balls famed American Conservatory Theatre for more than 10 years, who had gained acclaim as Orson Welles, in the TV movie The20Night That Panicked America. Starring as "His Women" were Samantha Eggar [Oscar nominee, Golden Globe/Cannes Film Festival winner for The Collector] as the staunch and lovely Billie Burke; Barbara Parkins, who became a 60s icon from her starring roles as Betty Harrington Anderson in Peyton Place [1964] on television and Ann Wells in the cult classic film Valley of the Dolls [1965], as the fragile, heart-breaking Anna Held [Parkins has often said that the role is her favorite, because it gave her the opportunity to showcase her singing and dancing talents, as well as her acting]; Broadways Pamela Peadon [Celebration, On The Town, Irene, Rodgers & Hart], who was currently receiving acclaim as Cassie in the Los Angeles production of A Chorus Line, as beloved 20s icon Marilyn Miller; Valerie Perrine [Oscar and Golden Globe nominee, Cannes Film Festival/New York Film Critics Award winner for Lenny] as the artistically challenged Lillian Lorraine, who became a Ziegfeld star despite her lack of talent. Broadway, film, and TV notables who guest starred as Ziegfeld stars also includes Inga Swenson [Broadway: New Faces of 56, The First Gentleman (Theatre World Award/Variety Critics Poll Award), 110 In The Shade( Tony Award nomination/London Theatre Critics Award), Baker Street (Tony-nomination)] as Nora Bayes, whose films include Advise & Consent, The Miracle Worker, The Betsy, television appearances include Richard Rodgers Androcles And The Lion, best known to TV fans as housekeeper Gretchen Kraus on Benson; Broadways Ron Husmann [Tony nominee and Theatre World Award winner for Tenderloin, All American, Lovely Ladies, Kind Gentlemen, Irene], as Bayes husband and on stage partner, Jack Norworth, made his feature debut in Love Has Many Faces, his vast TV appearances include The Hallmark Hall of Fame [The Music of Richard Rodgers, 1961, et cetera], The Gershwin Years, Days of Our Lives [Tony Merritt], opposite Bernadette Peters in Once Upon a Mattress [1972]; Broadways Walter Willison [Tony Award nominee and Theatre World Award winner for Richard Rodgers Two By Two, Norman, Is That You?, Pippin, Mass, Wild and Wonderful, Grand Hotel] who had recently starred as Dr. Calvin Campbell in the hit NBC Saturday morning series McDuff, The Talking Dog when cast as Frank Carter, the famed Ziegfeld star who introduced Irving Berlins classic A Pretty Girl is Like a Melody. Conceived by Oscar-nominated Executive Producer Mike J. Frankovich, Produced and Directed by Emmy-winner Buzz Kulik, written by Emmy Award-winning Joanna Lee, the Production was supervised by Ziegfelds daughter, Patricia Ziegfeld Stephenson. ZIEGFELD received a Golden Globe nomination as Best Motion Picture Made for Television, eight Emmy Award nominations, and won two 1978 Emmy Awards.
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Ziegfeld Follies (1946) - Original Openingby lostvocals325,720 views
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