Threaded Order Chronological Order
| What was the Nine vs. Dreamgirls drama about? | |
| Posted by: bobby2 12:04 am EST 02/17/21 | |
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| Except the Tonys of course. I remember that was going to be a season of Feud but Ryan Murphy seems to have abandoned that series. Was there enough off stage drama for a mini-series? |
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| According to Michael Riedel's book "Razzle Dazzle" ... | |
| Posted by: tmdonahue 08:38 am EST 02/17/21 | |
| In reply to: What was the Nine vs. Dreamgirls drama about? - bobby2 12:04 am EST 02/17/21 | |
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| ...it was about the impending destruction of three theaters, including the original Helen Hayes Theater plus the Morosco and the Bijou, to build the Marriott Hotel. (The Bijou was rarely a legit theater by this time, used for spells as a movie house and a television studio.) The city fathers were in favor of the hotel, hoping it would be the first step in cleaning up 42nd Street and the Broadway neighborhood. So were the theatrical unions except for Equity. "Dreamgirls" was supported by the Shubert Organization, which was in favor of the hotel. "Nine" was supported by Nederlander, which was not. I was at that time going to the theater when I could get to NYC and I remember the protests, Joe Papp leading them, with actors lying down in front of bulldozers. So, the Tony voters, per Riedel, voting for "Nine" to thwart the Shubert Org over preserving the old theaters. Riedel also says, if I remember, there was existing animus against the Shubert Org. but Shubert was so powerful that few theater folks would say it out loud. The anonymous Tony vote was a way to say "Fuck You!" to the Shubert Org and still keep working on Broadway. None of this saved the theaters. The name of the Helen Hayes theater transferred to the Little Theater, so it remains in name at least. |
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| re: According to Michael Riedel's book "Razzle Dazzle" ... | |
| Posted by: Singapore/Fling 01:16 pm EST 02/17/21 | |
| In reply to: According to Michael Riedel's book "Razzle Dazzle" ... - tmdonahue 08:38 am EST 02/17/21 | |
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| The weird thing about that story is that Nederlander owns the Marquis theater, rather than Shubert. Curious what happened between Nederlander opposing the hotel and them owning/building the theater, or if this is another case where Riedel's reporting is a bit confused. | |
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| Ownership of the Marquis Theater | |
| Posted by: tmdonahue 03:52 pm EST 02/17/21 | |
| In reply to: re: According to Michael Riedel's book "Razzle Dazzle" ... - Singapore/Fling 01:16 pm EST 02/17/21 | |
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| According to Forbes, Vornado Realty Trust, leases the Marquis theater to the Nederlander Organization. I don't know the timing of the lease agreement and whether that had been decided before the demolitions. Even though Nederlander doesn't own the venue, still your point is interesting. | |
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| re: Ownership of the Marquis Theater | |
| Posted by: ryhog 09:32 am EST 02/18/21 | |
| In reply to: Ownership of the Marquis Theater - tmdonahue 03:52 pm EST 02/17/21 | |
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| Vornado's "ownership" (which is only of the retail space which includes the theatre) is of fairly recent vintage. Before that, Marriott was the "landlord." As is often the case with Riedel, I think there are anecdotal conspiracy theories that will have rough sailing if scrutinized. One other observation about how Nederlander ended up with the Marquis is that it is alone among the landlords in having an appetite for theatres within big buildings; neither of the others have even one. | |
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| Shubert monopoly settlement | |
| Posted by: tmdonahue 08:31 am EST 02/19/21 | |
| In reply to: re: Ownership of the Marquis Theater - ryhog 09:32 am EST 02/18/21 | |
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| For some years, beginning in 1955 and ending ???, the Shubert Organization was limited to one-half of Broadway theaters due to a settlement of a monopoly court case. It sold a number of theaters at that time. Amusingly, because the number of Broadway theaters was an odd number, the Shubert Organization owned one-half of the Music Box, the rest held by Irving Berlin. In 2007, Shubert bought the rest of the Music Box. | |
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| re: According to Michael Riedel's book "Razzle Dazzle" ... | |
| Last Edit: EvFoDr 10:48 am EST 02/17/21 | |
| Posted by: EvFoDr 10:46 am EST 02/17/21 | |
| In reply to: According to Michael Riedel's book "Razzle Dazzle" ... - tmdonahue 08:38 am EST 02/17/21 | |
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| Here is either the entire chapter from Riedel's book, or an excerpt, I am not sure which. As published in Vanity Fair. | |
| Link | Dreamgirls, Nine, and the Greatest Face-Off in Tony Award History |
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