Who wrote the 1905 opera 'The Merry Widow'?
"The Merry Widow (1934 film) The Merry Widow is a 1934 film adaptation of the operetta of the same name by Franz Lehár. It was directed and produced by Ernst Lubitsch and starred Maurice Chevalier and Jeanette MacDonald. A French-language version was produced at the same time and released in France the same year as La Veuve joyeuse. Playboy Captain Danilo (Maurice Chevalier) is ordered by King Achmet of Marshovia (George Barbier) to court and marry Madame Sonia (Jeanette MacDonald), a rich widow who owns a large portion of the kingdom. Cedric Gibbons and Fredric Hope won the Academy Award"
"Basil Hood Basil Willett Charles Hood (5 April 1864 – 7 August 1917) was a British dramatist and lyricist, perhaps best known for writing the libretti of half a dozen Savoy Operas and for his English adaptations of operettas, including ""The Merry Widow"". He embarked on a career in the British Army, rising to the rank of captain, while writing theatrical pieces in his spare time. After some modest success, Hood and his collaborator, the composer Walter Slaughter, had a major hit with their long-running show, ""Gentleman Joe"", in 1895. Another long-running success was ""The French Maid"" (1896). Hood then"
"a cameo role), and ""Comradeship"" (1919). Lily Elsie Lily Elsie (born Elsie Hodder; 8 April 1886 – 16 December 1962) was an English actress and singer during the Edwardian era. She was best known for her starring role in the London premiere of Franz Lehár's operetta ""The Merry Widow"". Beginning as a child star in the 1890s, Elsie built her reputation in several successful Edwardian musical comedies before her great success in ""The Merry Widow"", opening in 1907. Afterwards, she starred in several more successful operettas and musicals, including ""The Dollar Princess"" (1909), ""A Waltz Dream"" (1911) and ""The Count"
"Lily Elsie Lily Elsie (born Elsie Hodder; 8 April 1886 – 16 December 1962) was an English actress and singer during the Edwardian era. She was best known for her starring role in the London premiere of Franz Lehár's operetta ""The Merry Widow"". Beginning as a child star in the 1890s, Elsie built her reputation in several successful Edwardian musical comedies before her great success in ""The Merry Widow"", opening in 1907. Afterwards, she starred in several more successful operettas and musicals, including ""The Dollar Princess"" (1909), ""A Waltz Dream"" (1911) and ""The Count of Luxembourg"" (1911). Admired for her"
"in the 1890s, operettas returned to London and Broadway in 1907 with ""The Merry Widow"", and operettas and musicals became direct competitors for a time. In the early years of the 20th century, English-language adaptations of 19th century continental operettas, as well as operettas by a new generation of European composers, such as Franz Lehár and Oscar Straus, among others, spread throughout the English-speaking world. In America, Victor Herbert produced a string of famous operettas (""The Fortune Teller"" (1898), ""Babes in Toyland"" (1903), ""Mlle. Modiste"" (1905), ""The Red Mill"" (1906) and ""Naughty Marietta"" (1910)), often with librettist Harry B. Smith,"
"Doris Armine Ashworth; she died about 1958. Hood died suddenly in his flat in St. James's Street, London, at the age of 53, from the effects of overwork and neglecting to eat. After his death, his children's book, ""Saint George of England"", was published in 1919 by George G. Harrap & Co., London. Basil Hood Basil Willett Charles Hood (5 April 1864 – 7 August 1917) was a British dramatist and lyricist, perhaps best known for writing the libretti of half a dozen Savoy Operas and for his English adaptations of operettas, including ""The Merry Widow"". He embarked on a"
"Frederick Loewe Frederick Loewe (, originally German ""Friedrich (Fritz) Löwe"" ; June 10, 1901 – February 14, 1988), was an Austrian-American composer. He collaborated with lyricist Alan Jay Lerner on a series of Broadway musicals, including ""My Fair Lady"" and ""Camelot"", both of which were made into films. Loewe was born in Berlin, Germany, to Viennese parents Edmond and Rosa Loewe. His father was a noted Jewish operetta star who performed throughout Europe and in North and South America; he starred as Count Danilo in the 1906 Berlin production of ""The Merry Widow"". Loewe grew up in Berlin and attended"
"Franz Lehár Franz Lehár (; 30 April 1870 – 24 October 1948) was an Austro-Hungarian composer. He is mainly known for his operettas, of which the most successful and best known is ""The Merry Widow"" (""Die lustige Witwe""). Lehár was born in the northern part of Komárom, Kingdom of Hungary, Austria-Hungary (now Komárno, Slovakia), the eldest son of Franz Lehár (senior) (1838–1898), an Austrian bandmaster in the Infantry Regiment No. 50 of the Austro-Hungarian Army and Christine Neubrandt (1849–1906), a Hungarian woman from a family of German descent. He grew up speaking only Hungarian until the age of 12. Later"
"commercial success. In its English adaptation by Basil Hood, with lyrics by Adrian Ross, ""The Merry Widow"" became a sensation at Daly's Theatre in London, opening on 8 June 1907, starring Lily Elsie and Joseph Coyne and featuring George Graves as the Baron, Robert Evett as Camille and W. H. Berry as Nisch, with costumes by Lucile and Percy Anderson. Gabrielle Ray was a replacement as the Maxim's dancer Frou-Frou. It was produced by George Edwardes. The production ran for an extraordinary 778 performances in London and toured extensively in Great Britain. The adaptation renamed many of the characters, to"
"comedies, operettas returned to London and Broadway in 1907 with ""The Merry Widow"", and adaptations of continental operettas became direct competitors with musicals. Franz Lehár and Oscar Straus composed new operettas that were popular in English until World War I. In America, Victor Herbert produced a string of enduring operettas including ""The Fortune Teller"" (1898), ""Babes in Toyland"" (1903), ""Mlle. Modiste"" (1905), ""The Red Mill"" (1906) and ""Naughty Marietta"" (1910). In the 1910s, the team of P. G. Wodehouse, Guy Bolton and Jerome Kern, following in the footsteps of Gilbert and Sullivan, created the ""Princess Theatre shows"" and paved the"
"Viktor Léon Victor Léon, also Viktor Léon (born Victor Hirschfeld; 4 January 1858, Szenic, Nyitra County, Kingdom of Hungary, Austrian Empire (today Senica, Slovakia) – 3 February 1940, Vienna) was a well-known Jewish Austrian-Hungarian librettist. He collaborated with Leo Stein to produce the libretto of Franz Lehár's romantic operetta ""The Merry Widow"" (""Die lustige Witwe""). Hirschfeld began a career as a journalist, and then branched out in the theatre under the pseudonym that was to become familiar - Viktor Léon. Between 1880 and 1884 he wrote one-act libretti for Vienna's variety theatre, the Carl-Schultze-Theater in Hamburg, and the German Theatre"
"successful himself, his career brought him in contact with the biggest stars of Viennese opera during his time. Léon's property was confiscated after Austria's annexation by Nazi Germany in 1938. He died of starvation while in hiding in 1940 at the age of 82. Viktor Léon Victor Léon, also Viktor Léon (born Victor Hirschfeld; 4 January 1858, Szenic, Nyitra County, Kingdom of Hungary, Austrian Empire (today Senica, Slovakia) – 3 February 1940, Vienna) was a well-known Jewish Austrian-Hungarian librettist. He collaborated with Leo Stein to produce the libretto of Franz Lehár's romantic operetta ""The Merry Widow"" (""Die lustige Witwe""). Hirschfeld"
"New York, aged 73. Donald Brian Donald Brian (February 17, 1877 – December 22, 1948) was an actor, dancer and singer born in St. John's, Newfoundland (now Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada). In 1907, he starred in the hit operetta ""The Merry Widow"". Brian, a tenor, was employed in a Boston machine shop and, at the age of 16, began performing with a vocal quartet. When he joined a theatrical troupe in New York City, he was soon in demand as a leading man. He had leading roles in more than 20 Broadway musicals. In 1915 Brian signed with film producer"
"Brussels, where he was made chief conductor at the Théâtre de la Monnaie and saw instant success with his ballet ""Ispahan"" and several tunes. His wife, Suzy Delsart, was an operetta star (operette divette) and sang the title role of ""The Merry Widow"" by Franz Lehár and also influenced her husband into writing lighter and more popular tunes. In 1907 he completed the music for Marcel Gerbidon's operetta,""Flossie"" or ""Je m'appelle Flossie."" In 1908 he adapted Pierre Veber's comedy ""Loute"", then in 1914 began the musical comedy ""Flup !"" to a libretto by Gaston Dumestre, which had a successful premiere"
"The Merry Wives of Windsor (opera) The Merry Wives of Windsor (in German: Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor) is an opera in three acts by Otto Nicolai to a German libretto by Salomon Hermann Mosenthal based on the play ""The Merry Wives of Windsor"" by William Shakespeare. The opera is a ""Singspiel"", containing much spoken dialogue between distinct musical numbers. The opera remains popular in Germany, and the overture is sometimes heard in concert in other countries. Otto Nicolai composed the music from 1845 to 1849. He had previously achieved great success with a few Italian operas, but this opera"
"critical and box office success. Critics praised Murray's dramatic skills while also noting that von Stroheim had ""made an actress out of Miss Murray"". The film made a profit of $758,000. ""The Merry Widow"" was adapted for the screen in 1934, 1952, 1962, and 1994. The Merry Widow (1925 film) The Merry Widow is a 1925 American silent romantic drama/black comedy film directed and written by Erich von Stroheim. Released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the film stars Mae Murray, John Gilbert, Roy D'Arcy, and Tully Marshall, with pre-fame uncredited appearances by Joan Crawford and Clark Gable. The film is based on the"
"The Merry Wives of Windsor (1950 film) The Merry Wives of Windsor () is a 1950 East German musical comedy film directed by Georg Wildhagen. It was based on William Shakespeare's play by the same name. In Elizabethan England, Sir John Falstaff is embroiled in attempting to have a love affair with several women, which soon turns into a humorous adventure. The film is an adaptation of the 1849 opera ""The Merry Wives of Windsor"" composed by Otto Nicolai with a libretto by Salomon Hermann Mosenthal which was based on William Shakespeare's play of the same title. It was made"
"she is infatuated with. In February 1905 she was in a production of ""The Brixton Burglary"" at the Carnegie Lyceum in Manhattan. Written by Frederick W. Sidney, the presentation could not be staged in Brooklyn, New York, because of the burning of the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Several hundred members and friends of the Amaranth, Brooklyn's oldest dramatic society, attended the performance. She starred in ""The Blue Moon"" on Broadway in 1906. Henry W. Savage secured Jackson to sing the role of Sonia in the original Broadway production of ""The Merry Widow"". The Viennese comic opera was written by Victor"
"Donald Brian Donald Brian (February 17, 1877 – December 22, 1948) was an actor, dancer and singer born in St. John's, Newfoundland (now Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada). In 1907, he starred in the hit operetta ""The Merry Widow"". Brian, a tenor, was employed in a Boston machine shop and, at the age of 16, began performing with a vocal quartet. When he joined a theatrical troupe in New York City, he was soon in demand as a leading man. He had leading roles in more than 20 Broadway musicals. In 1915 Brian signed with film producer Jesse L. Lasky to"
"a cast featuring Sterling Holloway, Frank Atkinson, Leonard Sillman and his sister June Carroll. In the fall of 1932, Hecht worked on another theater play, a revised and modernized version of Franz Lehár's operetta, ""The Merry Widow"". The play was brought up to date by J. Keirn Brennan with dance numbers by Hecht and vocal numbers by H. L. Heidecker. Karl Hajos composed and conducted the 30-piece orchestra and the cast included Herbert Evans, Ruth Gillette, Alex Callam, Florinne McKinney, Franklin Record, Roland Woodruff, Diane Warfield, Paul Sauter, Rolloe Dix, William Jeffries, Harold Reeves and Evelyn Cunningham. The play opened"
"Otto Nicolai Carl Otto Ehrenfried Nicolai (9 June 1810 – 11 May 1849) was a German composer, conductor, and one of the founders of the Vienna Philharmonic. Nicolai is best known for his operatic version of Shakespeare's comedy ""The Merry Wives of Windsor"" as """". In addition to five operas, Nicolai composed lieder, works for orchestra, chorus, ensemble, and solo instruments. Nicolai, a child prodigy, was born in Königsberg, Prussia. He received his first musical education from his father, Carl Ernst Daniel Nicolai, who was also a composer and musical director. During his childhood his parents divorced, and while still"
"Opera Company"" in a number of leading roles. In a highly publicized case she took Ernest Tyson to court alleging ""breach of promise"", in August 1901. The matter was settled out of court. In July 1903 she left Australia for England, where she appeared for producer George Edwardes. For five years she performed on the London stage and in provincial theatre, becoming ""a much-paragraphed and much-photographed actress."" In mid 1908 she returned to Australia, to perform the role of Sonia in ""The Merry Widow"" for Williamson, a role that brought her great acclaim. She married Englishman Percy Bigwood in September,"
"Merrie England (opera) Merrie England is an English comic opera in two acts by Edward German to a libretto by Basil Hood. The patriotic story concerns love and rivalries at the court of Queen Elizabeth I, when a love letter sent by Sir Walter Raleigh to one of Queen Elizabeth’s Ladies in Waiting, Bessie Throckmorton, ends up in the hands of the Queen. Well-known songs from the opera include ""O Peaceful England"", ""The Yeomen of England"" and ""Dan Cupid hath a Garden"". It opened at the Savoy Theatre in London on 2 April 1902, under the management of William Greet,"
"wit and poet. By contrast, in the view of the ""Encyclopedia of Popular Music"", ""adapting German and Viennese operettas … is where he found his métier. Often discarding the original premise, he helped create lively and very popular operettas."" Hood generally changed the structure of these works from three acts to two, often greatly re-writing them and adapting the plots. Shows that Hood adapted included the tremendously popular London production of ""The Merry Widow"" (1907); another hit, ""The Dollar Princess"" (1908); ""A Waltz Dream"" (1908); another success, ""The Count of Luxembourg"" (1911), and the also popular ""Gypsy Love"" (1912). Hood's"
"the age of 70. Louis F. Gottschalk Louis Ferdinand Gottschalk (October 7, 1864 – July 15, 1934) was an American composer and conductor born in St. Louis, Missouri. The son of a Missouri governor, also named Louis, he studied music in Stuttgart, Germany, where his father, a judge, was American consul. Louis Moreau Gottschalk was his great-uncle. He came to attention as conductor of the U.S. premiere of Franz Lehár's ""The Merry Widow"". He was a pioneer of original film music, largely due to his work with independent filmmaker L. Frank Baum, for whom he composed the musical, ""The Tik-Tok"
"and ran for 155 performances in the West End. Frederick Lonsdale Frederick Lonsdale (5 February 1881 – 4 April 1954) was an English playwright known for his librettos to several successful musicals early in the 20th century, including ""King of Cadonia"" (1908), ""The Balkan Princess"" (1910), ""Betty"" (1915), ""The Maid of the Mountains"" (1917), ""Monsieur Beaucaire"" (1919) and ""Madame Pompadour"" (1923). He also wrote comedy plays, including ""The Last of Mrs. Cheyney"" (1925) and ""On Approval"" (1927) and the murder melodrama ""But for the Grace of God"" (1946). Some of his plays and musicals were made into films, and he"
"George Graves (actor) George Windsor Graves (1 January 1876 – 2 April 1949) was an English comic actor. Although he could neither sing nor dance, he became a leading comedian in musical comedies, adapting the French and Viennese ""opéra-bouffe"" style of light comic relief into a broader comedy popular with English audiences of the period. His comic portrayals did much to ensure the West End success of ""Véronique"" (1904) ""The Little Michus"" (1905; for which he invented the Gazeka), and ""The Merry Widow"" (1907). In addition to musical comedy, operettas and revues, Graves specialised in pantomime and music hall. Later"
"Mizzi Günther Mizzi Günther (8 February 1879 – 18 March 1961) was a Bohemian-Viennese operetta soprano. Günther was born in Warnsdorf, Bohemia (now the Czech Republic). Her debut was in 1897 in Hermannstadt, now Sibiu, in Romania. She achieved stardom in Vienna in 1901 as O Mimosa San in ""The Geisha"". She subsequently sang in England, France and Russia. She created the title roles of Franz Lehár's ""The Merry Widow"" in 1905 and Leo Fall's ""Die Dollarprinzessin"" (1907), also appearing in the premieres of Fall's """" (1908) and Emmerich Kálmán's ""Der kleine König"" (1912). She died in Vienna, Austria, and"
"the changing tastes of his audiences. For a time, he successfully presented English adaptations of continental European operettas, like ""The Little Michus"" (1905), ""The Merveilleuses"" (1906), the highly successful ""The Merry Widow"" (1907), ""The Dollar Princess"" (1909), ""The Count of Luxembourg"" (1911), Gipsy Love (1912) and ""Betty"" (1915). In this series, Percy Greenbank replaced his brother Harry, who had died at the age of 33, songwriter Paul Rubens joined the team, and new actors joined or replaced the older ones, including leading men Bertram Wallis, Courtice Pounds and Robert Evett, and leading ladies Gertie Millar, Lily Elsie, Gabrielle Ray, Isabel"
"of a Jewish family, he studied music in Berlin under Max Bruch, and became an orchestral conductor, working at the Überbrettl cabaret. He went back to Vienna and began writing operettas, becoming a serious rival to Franz Lehár. When Lehár's popular ""The Merry Widow"" premiered in 1905, Straus was said to have remarked ""Das kann ich auch!"" (I can also do that!). In 1939, following the Nazi Anschluss, he fled to Paris, where he received the honour of a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur, and then to Hollywood. After the war, he returned to Europe, and settled at Bad Ischl,"
"Music"", but Alan Blyth in his ""Opera on CD"" regrets the casting of a baritone as Danilo in both sets and prefers the 1958 Decca version. Among the filmed productions on DVD, the Penguin Guide recommends the one from the San Francisco Opera, recorded live in 2001, conducted by Erich Kunzel and directed by Lotfi Mansouri, with Yvonne Kenny as Hanna and Bo Skovhus as Danilo. The recordings listed below are sung in German unless otherwise noted. Notes Sources The Merry Widow discography This is a discography of ""The Merry Widow"" (German: ""Die lustige Witwe""), an operetta by the Austro–Hungarian"
"""The Shop Girl"" (1894) and ""The Circus Girl"" (1896). Ross next wrote the lyrics for a string of hit musicals, beginning with ""A Greek Slave"" (1898), ""San Toy"" (1899), ""The Messenger Boy"" (1900) and ""The Toreador"" (1901) and continuing without a break through World War I. He also wrote the English lyrics for a series of hit adaptations of European operettas beginning with ""The Merry Widow"" in 1907. During World War I, Ross was one of the founders of the Performing Rights Society. He continued writing until 1930, producing several more successes after the war. He also wrote the popular"
"produced by his widow, Helen, who engaged William Greet as manager of the Savoy Theatre during the run of ""The Emerald Isle"". German, to this point, was known chiefly as a composer of orchestral and incidental music. ""The Emerald Isle"" was sufficiently successful to launch German on an operatic career. German's most famous opera was ""Merrie England"" (1902), also written with Hood, and Hood went on to a very successful career as an adapter of European operettas for the English stage. Unlike Hood's first opera with Sullivan, ""The Rose of Persia"", ""The Emerald Isle"" does not pay much homage to"