Ethel Merman "HUMPTY DUMPTY" ("Take a Chance") 1932 Pennsylvania Railroad Menu

Description

This is a rare September 10th, 1932 Breakfast Menu provided by the Pennsylvania Railroad to the
SCHWAB and
DeSYLVA company on its trip to Pittsburgh for the
Pre-Broadway tryout and WORLD PREMIERE engagement of the B. G. "Buddy" DeSYLVA and LAURENCE SCHWAB musical comedy "HUMPTY DUMPTY" starring LOU HOLTZ, ETHEL MERMAN and EDDIE FOY, Jr. (
The production would open September 12th, 1932
at the Nixon Theatre in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
and play only five performances before closing for revisions. After considerable rewrites, the show returned to the road retitled "TAKE A CHANCE", eventually opening November 26th, 1932 at the Apollo Theatre in New York City and running for 243 performances.) ..... The cast included ETHEL MERMAN, EDDIE FOY, Jr., SID SILVERS, LOU HOLTZ, JUNE KNIGHT, LISA SILBERT, DORIS GRODAY, DOUGLAS WOOD, J. C. NUGENT, WILLIAM LYNN, WALTER ARMIN, HARRY T. SHANNON, OSCAR RAGLAND, SARA JANE, VERNON BIDDLE, TONI CHASE, EDITH SPEARE, O. J. VANASSE, TOM DIAMOND, MARY DAY, BOBBY DAY, THOMAS LADD, JACK ARMSTRONG, BUDD KELHNER, PAUL PEGUE, EDWARD DELRIDGE, NEIL EVANS, CHET BREE and WILLIAM H. STAMM
..... Side note:
Humpty-Dumpty
was a thinly plotted musical comedy about a theatrical family backing a musical revue concerning great moments in American history featuring a cast that included
LOU HOLTZ,
SID SILVERS,
EDDIE FOY, Jr
. and
ETHEL MERMAN
(in only her third musical). After a disastrous five-performance run in Pittsburgh,
Humpty-Dumpty
closed for repairs. The sketches were reduced, VINCENT YOUMANS was brought in to beef up the score, and all of the principal cast members, save MERMAN and SILVERS were replaced. The new line-up would feature JACK WHITING and JUNE KNIGHT as the backer and the star (in a romance of course) and JACK HALEY as another comic. Retitled
Take a Chance,
the show finally opened in November and was a surprise hit ..... CREDITS: Book and Lyrics by
LAURENCE SCHWAB and B. G. DeSYLVA; Music by NACIO HERB BROWN and RICHARD WHITING; Sets designed by CLEON THROCKMORTON; Costumes designed by KIVIETTE and CHARLES LeMAIRE; Musical Arrangement for Miss Merman by ROGER EDENS; Choreographed by GEORGIE HALE; Directed by LAURENCE SCHWAB; Produced by LAURENCE SCHWAB and B. G. De SYLVA
..... DETAILS: The single page, two-sided menu measures 6 1/4" X 10 1/2" inches, is printed on a heavy card stock and was personalized for the members of the
Humpty-Dumpty
company. Also
includes a ticket envelope with two ticket stubs, but from a separate trip and destination ..... CONDITION: With the exception of light soiling to the backside of the menu and handwritten numbers in pencil inside the envelope flap, this rare set is in excellent condition and will make a wonderful addition to the collection of any musical theatre aficionado or historian. These items will be carefully packaged in a protective, carded sleeve and backed by stiff cardboard.