| Gee, 'Wiz': I wonder why Mills didn't get a Tony nomination | |
| Last Edit: WaymanWong 04:12 pm EDT 05/31/23 | |
| Posted by: WaymanWong 04:04 pm EDT 05/31/23 | |
| In reply to: re: 'The Wiz' star Stephanie Mills backs Halle Bailey, the new 'Little Mermaid,' amid racial backlash - lordofspeech 01:10 pm EDT 05/30/23 | |
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| Given what a star-making turn it was, and how she got a Drama Desk nomination, it's surprising to me that she wasn't Tony-nominated as well. ''The Wiz'' became a hit with 8 nominations and won 7 of them, and launched her on a career that led to Grammy-winning R&B success in the '80s. Was Mills edged out because the other Best Actress nominees were better-known? You had Angela Lansbury, who won for ''Gypsy,'' plus Bernadette Peters (''Mack and Mabel,'' 66 performances); Ann Reinking (''Goodbye, Charlie,'' 101 performances) & Lola Falana (''Doctor Jazz,'' 5 performances!). Granted, Mills was below the title, but the Tonys sometimes boosted below-the-title performers. Jerry Orbach (''Promises, Promises'') was below the title, but won for Leading Actor (in the same season William Daniels of ''1776'' turned down his Featured nomination as the show's lead). If Mills were categorized as Featured, it's still baffling she didn't get one of the 6 slots, like her ''Wiz'' co-star Dee Dee Bridgewater, who won. (I once read somewhere there was some confusion among the Tony nominators about the ''Wiz'' actresses; anyone ever hear that?) Anyway, 2025 will be ''The Wiz's'' 50th anniversary. I hope the Tonys invite Mills to celebrate that historic occasion! |
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| Link | NBC Flashback (1977): Stephanie Mills on auditioning for 'The Wiz' (and if she and Michael Jackson are a romantic couple) |
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