Welcome to another Wildcard Wednesday! In today’s post, I’m sharing some treats in relation to Company (1970), one of my favorite musicals, and Cheers (1982-1993, NBC), one of my favorite sitcoms!
Company (1970)
Possibly my favorite Sondheim musical, Company centers around Bobby, a New York bachelor with commitment issues, and his assorted interactions with his various married friends. A true concept musical with thought-provoking characters, the original production of Company was directed by Hal Prince and starred Dean Jones, Elaine Stritch, Charles Kimbrough, Beth Howland, Donna McKechnie, and a host of other talented individuals. Today, I’m sharing some rare audio recordings of the original production! (Full recordings available for subscribed readers upon request!)
From the original Boston tryout, here’s an audio of the full cast with “Side By Side By Side/What Would We Do Without You?”, which originally occurred near the close of the second act instead of at the top, where it was eventually placed. (If you’re a regular reader of my blog, you’ll know I’m particularly fond of this number.)
Here’s an audio of the original cast about a week into their original Broadway opening. This is Dean Jones with Bobby’s “Being Alive” and the original cast with the final scene as performed on May 2nd, 1970.
Larry Kert replaced Jones as Bobby near the end of May 1970. This particular recording with Kert, also of “Being Alive” comes from early 1971. (It is guessed to be from late March.)
In May of 1971, Stritch was replaced by Jane Russell. Here’s a very rare recording of Russell with “The Ladies Who Lunch.”
By the end of the year, Russell was replaced by Vivian Blaine. Here’s a live audio of her rendition of the same number.
Cheers (1982-1993, NBC)
This sitcom, perhaps my favorite series save I Love Lucy, centers around the personnel and patronage of the friendly Boston bar where “everybody knows your name.” Early seasons followed the on-again/off-again romance of ex-pitcher Sam Malone (Ted Danson) and intellectual waitress Diane Chambers (Shelley Long), while the later years developed into even more of an ensemble sitcom — with the introduction of Kirstie Alley as the bar’s new manager. Despite a rocky beginning, this Emmy darling produced 275 episodes over its eleven season run. (They’re all on DVD and available to stream on Netflix.) But there are a few scenes that maybe you haven’t seen…
This rare 12-minute “mini-sode” was produced in 1983 during the first season by the United States Department of Treasury to promote U.S. savings bonds. Not a laugh riot, but fascinating nonetheless!
This brief scene was aired ONCE on January 30, 1983 for the Super Bowl pre-game show. (Ken Levine, the writer of this scene, and many of the best Cheers episodes, runs a wonderful blog that’s worth checking out.)
And finally, here’s a fake alternate ending to the fifth season finale in which Sam and Diane decide to go through with their wedding and actually tie-the-knot.
Come back next Wednesday for another Wildcard post! And tune in tomorrow for more Xena!
RIP, Pete Axthelm. I still remember seeing him on NBC making lots of snide comments about various games between lousy teams, including the “Bay of Pigs” between Green & Tampa Bays.
SB XVII was played when I was XVII myself and a senior in high school, but I didn’t become much of a sports fan until I was in college, so the SB was the only football game I watched each year.
Cheers premiered in the genesis of NBC’s “Must See TV” Thursday nights along with Family Ties. I remember how hacked off my sister was when I told her NBC was moving Gimme a Break to Thursday night and messing up “the best night of television on television”. It didn’t stay there long though. I actually watched Supertrain a couple times when it was on NBC. That would be something you could cover if you ever have want to have some fun and write about tv’s biggest flops.
Hi, Jon! Thanks for reading and commenting.
No plans to cover SUPERTRAIN (or any vintage TV dramas, really), but there will be plenty of flop/forgotten sitcoms both in the near and distant future!
I found this site by chance and I came across these rare recordings of “Company” that certainly is my favorite musical! I am grateful for you sharing these rarities! Thank you so much!
Did you have more of these recordings? My favorite songs are “Not getting maried today” and “You could drive a person crazy” … You have the live version?
Again, thank you!
Hi, Jônatas. Thanks for reading and commenting!
I have emailed you at your hotmail address.
So great to hear recordings of Company live, thanks for posting. Please post more recordings of Company live performances with Dean jones in 1970 if possible. It would be really interesting to hear the original cast’s interpretation of the script.
Hi, Tharan. Thanks for reading and commenting!
I have no plans to post any more from COMPANY and am unlikely to do so. If you’re interested in obtaining the Jones OBC audio in full, subscribe to this blog and I will be happy to send it your way via email.
Thanks for subscribing, Tharan!
I have emailed you at your gmail address.
Got it… Thanks so much!
Love, love, love the recordings from “Company”! Thanks so much for posting them. “Company” was my first Broadway experience, back in 1970. What a thrill.
Hi, Peggy! Thanks for reading and commenting.
Glad you enjoyed!
Great article! It’s so amazing these live audios exist from “Company”! I own the script for it and listen to the Original Cast Album frequently but have never seen it live (and probably never will as I am too picky about production value). I think it’s a great show; the vignette set-up is very unique, the script is funny, actors are great, and the Boris Aronson set with projections is innovative.
The Boston tryout audio is particularly fun to hear because of all the differences in the script/lyrics. “Have I got A Girl For You” used to be my least favorite song, but the wife’s interjections in the Boston tryout (which I found on YouTube) add another dimension to it. I think “Side By Side By Side” works very well as the penultimate song (and I love the creepy “Poor Baby” section thrown in!). I also prefer “Happily Ever After” to “Being Alive”, and was wondering if that Central Park epilogue as mentioned in “Finishing The Hat” is present in this particular live recording.
I’d love to hear the full Boston show, and the more-polished May 2nd Broadway cast would be nice to hear as well!
Thank you!
-Frank
Hi, Frank! Thanks for reading and commenting — and subscribing!
I have emailed you at your post address for access to the two audios you requested.
(And I’ve deleted your duplicate comments.)