HART, Dorothy [Barbara Siman; Charles Strouse].
Thou Swell, Thou Witty: The Life and Lyrics of Lorenz Hart
New York: Harper & Row , 1976.
We're sorry, this item has sold.
+$500
First Edition of Thou Swell, Thou Witty; Inscribed by Dorothy Hart to Barbara Siman, Wife of Broadway Composer Charles Strouse
First edition of this richly illustrated celebration of the great lyricist Lorenz Hart, edited and with a memoir by his sister-in-law Dorothy Hart. Quarto, original publisher's blue cloth, profusely illustrated with black-and-white photographs. Association copy, inscribed by the editor on the half-title page, “To Barbara Strouse — A talented lady with a talented family — Dorothy Hart. May 13, 1983.” The recipient, choreographer Barbara Siman, is the wife of Tony, Grammy, and Emmy Award–winning composer Charles Strouse — the “talented family” affectionately saluted in Dorothy Hart’s inscription. Over his 50-year career, Charles Strouse wrote the music for such iconic musical theater hits as Bye Bye Birdie, Applause, and Annie, as well as the theme song for the classic sitcom All in the Family (“Those Were the Days”). His partnership with Martin Charnin on Annie produced one of Broadway’s most successful scores ever, with “Tomorrow” and other songs from the production becoming enduring American musical standards admired by generations. His reach knew no genre or generation — from a number-one Billboard hit in 1958 to Jay-Z’s Grammy-winning sampling of “It’s the Hard-Knock Life” four decades later — and his honors include three Tony Awards and induction into both the Songwriters and Theater Halls of Fame. From the collection of Charles Strouse and Barbara Siman. Near fine in a good dust jacket with chipping, edgewear, and a loss to the rear panel. Jacket design and part-title illustrations by Frederic Marvin.
Thou Swell, Thou Witty: The Life and Lyrics of Lorenz Hart (1976) is a biographical tribute to one of the most gifted and tragic figures in the history of the American musical theater, compiled by Dorothy Hart, the sister-in-law of Lorenz Hart, whose intimate family connection gave her access to rare photographs, personal recollections, and private materials unavailable to any outside biographer. Lorenz Milton Hart (1895-1943) was the lyricist half of the legendary songwriting partnership Rodgers and Hart, whose collaboration with composer Richard Rodgers from 1919 to 1943 produced a body of work encompassing such enduring standards as "Blue Moon," "The Lady Is a Tramp," "My Funny Valentine," "Manhattan," "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered," and the title song "Thou Swell," written for the 1927 musical A Connecticut Yankee and notable for its inventive blending of archaic English and modern slang. The volume draws on recollections by friends and colleagues alongside rare family photographs, providing a walk through the golden age of Broadway and Tin Pan Alley as seen from the rare vantage point of someone who knew its subject from within the family circle, and offering an intimate portrait of a man of extraordinary verbal brilliance whose personal struggles with alcoholism and his private emotional life shortened what might have been an even more remarkable career. The book was also the basis for the celebrated PBS Great Performances documentary The Rodgers and Hart Story: Thou Swell, Thou Witty,
Thou Swell, Thou Witty: The Life and Lyrics of Lorenz Hart
Out of Stock
