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| Micki Grant, a star and Tony-nominated writer of 'Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope,' dies at 80 | |
| Last Edit: WaymanWong 04:11 pm EDT 08/22/21 | |
| Posted by: WaymanWong 04:04 pm EDT 08/22/21 | |
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| BroadwayWorld reports that Micki Grant, an actress and 2-time Tony nominee for writing the book and score to ''Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope,'' has passed away at age 80. Grant made history with this 1972 revue, a celebration of African-American culture and community. She has been cited as the first woman to write both the music and lyrics for a Broadway musical and the first woman to win a Grammy for the score of a Broadway musical. Anyone recall the original ''Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope''? It was Tony-nominated for Best Musical and ran for 1,068 performances. In 2016, the York Theatre staged a limited run, and in 2018, Encores! Off-Center revived it, choreographed and directed by Savion Glover. Grant got her third Tony nomination for contributing to the score of ''Working'' (1978), alongside Stephen Schwartz, Craig Carnelia, James Taylor, Mary Rodgers and Susan Birkenhead. (And she wrote two of my favorite songs from ''Working'': ''If I Could've Been'' and ''Cleanin' Women.'') As an actress, Grant performed Off-Broadway in the early '60s in Jean Genet's ''The Blacks'' with James Earl Jones and Cicely Tyson. And she played attorney Peggy Nolan on NBC's ''Another World'' in the first storyline written for an African-American in a daytime soap. Her accomplishments and awards were many. For more of them, see BroadwayWorld's story below. |
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| Link | BroadwayWorld.com: Micki Grant, Composer, Playwright and Performer, Dies at Age 80 |
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| re: Micki Grant, a star and Tony-nominated writer of 'Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope,' dies at 80 | |
| Last Edit: Seth Christenfeld 05:13 pm EDT 08/23/21 | |
| Posted by: Seth Christenfeld (tabula-rasa@verizon.net) 05:13 pm EDT 08/23/21 | |
| In reply to: Micki Grant, a star and Tony-nominated writer of 'Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope,' dies at 80 - WaymanWong 04:04 pm EDT 08/22/21 | |
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| She has been cited as the first woman to write both the music and lyrics for a Broadway musical and the first woman to win a Grammy for the score of a Broadway musical. She was the first woman to write book, music, and lyrics to a Broadway musical; for the first woman to write music and lyrics, you have to go back to 1942's Count Me In, with music and lyrics by Ann Ronell. (I don't think anything predates that.) Seth, who had to check |
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| re: Micki Grant, a star and Tony-nominated writer of 'Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope,' dies at 80 | |
| Last Edit: WaymanWong 08:25 pm EDT 08/23/21 | |
| Posted by: WaymanWong 08:09 pm EDT 08/23/21 | |
| In reply to: re: Micki Grant, a star and Tony-nominated writer of 'Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope,' dies at 80 - Seth Christenfeld 05:13 pm EDT 08/23/21 | |
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| Thanks, Seth. I took the citation of Grant being ''the first woman to write both the music and lyrics for a Broadway musical'' from news stories about her. And even Grant believed that, telling American Theatre in her final interview: ''I was the first female to do a score of a Broadway musical.'' But Wikipedia confirms Ann Ronell got there earlier: in 1942 with ''Count Me In,'' a revue with a book by Walter Kerr and Leo Brady. Its cast included Jean Arthur and Gower Champion. It ran for 61 shows and got poor reviews, prompting Sigmund Romberg to write Ronell a letter of consolation. ''Count Me In'' didn't appear to have produced any standards, but Ronell is best remembered for one she wrote in 1932: ''Willow, Weep for Me.'' It's been recorded by Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra and even Chad & Jeremy, who had a top 20 hit with it in 1965. (And in 1933, Ronell and Frank Churchill co-wrote ''Who's Afraid of the Big, Bad Wolf?'' for the Disney cartoon of ''Three Little Pigs.'') |
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| re: Micki Grant, a star and Tony-nominated writer of 'Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope,' dies at 80 | |
| Posted by: PaulGrin 06:42 pm EDT 08/22/21 | |
| In reply to: Micki Grant, a star and Tony-nominated writer of 'Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope,' dies at 80 - WaymanWong 04:04 pm EDT 08/22/21 | |
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| I saw ''Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope'' at the Edison Theatre in 1972. I went with a few of my high school friends and all of us loved it. | |
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| re: Micki Grant, a star and Tony-nominated writer of 'Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope,' dies at 80 | |
| Posted by: dreambaby 04:18 pm EDT 08/23/21 | |
| In reply to: re: Micki Grant, a star and Tony-nominated writer of 'Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope,' dies at 80 - PaulGrin 06:42 pm EDT 08/22/21 | |
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| Much respect to Micki Grant. She made entertainment that made an impact - "Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope" certainly made an impact on me when I got to see it as a kid... and then played the original cast album over and over! | |
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| Micki Grant sings 'So Little Time' from 'Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope' | |
| Last Edit: WaymanWong 02:22 am EDT 08/23/21 | |
| Posted by: WaymanWong 02:21 am EDT 08/23/21 | |
| In reply to: re: Micki Grant, a star and Tony-nominated writer of 'Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope,' dies at 80 - PaulGrin 06:42 pm EDT 08/22/21 | |
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| Grant also got a 1972 Obie Award for her music and lyrics to ''Don't Bother Me,'' & this lovely song sounds like it might've been her life's philosophy. | |
| Link | Micki Grant with 'So Little Time' from 'Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope' |
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| re: Micki Grant sings 'So Little Time' from 'Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope' | |
| Posted by: stevemr 09:23 am EDT 08/23/21 | |
| In reply to: Micki Grant sings 'So Little Time' from 'Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope' - WaymanWong 02:21 am EDT 08/23/21 | |
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| That original production was terrific, as was the score. That OC LP was one of my favorites. | |
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