Staged Right - Episode 11: Fanny & Barbra and the Legacy of 'Funny Girl'

Поділитися
Вставка
  • Опубліковано 7 лис 2021
  • "Funny Girl" is finally coming back to Broadway for the first time since its original production. This episode talks about the life of Fanny Brice, the rise of Barbra Streisand, and the making of "Funny Girl".
    Fanny Brice in "Be Yourself" (1930): • Be Yourself! NTSC
    Check out the UA-cam channel Be Kind Rewind and their episode about Barbra Streisand's 1969 Oscar win: • How Barbra Streisand a...
    FACT CHECKS:
    - At 4:53, I quote 'Herman Goldman' when in fact it's HERBERT G. GOLDMAN who wrote "Fanny Brice: The Original Funny Girl" (1994)
    - At 16:50, I say that Garson Kanin had never directed a musical. This is wrong. In 1960, he directed "Do Re Mi" (which had a score by Jule Styne) and even wrote the book.
    RESOURCES
    The Fanny Brice Collection: www.brice.nl/index.html
    Barbra Archives: www.barbra-archives.info/
    Standard License purchased to use 'Jazz Drums' from KL Productions
  • Розваги

КОМЕНТАРІ • 602

  • @alegramonticelli6038
    @alegramonticelli6038 Рік тому +76

    Barbra has never been "ugly". She has a special kind of beauty that even increases while watching and hearing her

    • @TheGinguk
      @TheGinguk 6 місяців тому +1

      💯 %

    • @MadininaCarribean
      @MadininaCarribean 5 місяців тому +3

      Yep just like Gaga.

    • @labbecedario1579
      @labbecedario1579 2 місяці тому +2

      She was always charming, that is so much better than be just a tipical beauty

  • @maytedrew8638
    @maytedrew8638 2 роки тому +104

    Barbra performance cannot be topped as Fanny Brice in Funny Girl. Her voice, the stage presence, and talent are one most iconic performance both on stage and on film.

  • @travisgrant5608
    @travisgrant5608 2 роки тому +45

    There is NO ONE and I mean NO ONE can ever top Barbra Streisand 💞

    • @mabeldurocher2258
      @mabeldurocher2258 8 днів тому

      Personally - I would never conscientiously even think of a comparing Barbra with anyone else .. for the most part .. the uniqueness cannot be duplicated anyway !

  • @gdr9213
    @gdr9213 2 роки тому +164

    I am about to turn 70 and have been a theater buff all my life. I used to spend my babysitting money on Broadway shows back in the 60s. I am amazed at how many young people in theater today have little idea of Broadway history. Keep these videos coming!

    • @Laeiryn
      @Laeiryn 2 роки тому +6

      I'm floored at the claim that you made enough babysitting to go to Broadway. That's like two weeks' wages at full time, these days, for the cheapest seat in the house on a Tuesday matinee.

    • @gdr9213
      @gdr9213 2 роки тому +14

      @@Laeiryn Well, IIRC, I paid about $8.00 for a back orchestra seat on a Saturday matinee to see Man of La Mancha in the spring of 1969. But that was about 16 hours of babysitting money because the going rate then was $0.50 an hour. Also, I may have used what we used to call "Twofers," which is what we used before the tickets booth in Duffy Square. I saw a lot of shows using Twofers. I know, I know, I'm ancient! I would pick up a twofer coupon at a store (they were available all over at most store counters in the city) when I went into NYC to attend one show, and then use it to purchase a ticket at the box office of the next show I wanted to see.
      Later on, in 1979, I remember a friend and I paying a whopping $20 for orchestra seats to a play, Deathtrap, and thinking at the time, wow, Broadway prices have really gotten expensive! I'm about to plop down $110 for a ticket to Randy Rainbow's book tour next month at the Gramercy Theater, that is, if there are any left!
      My "claim," as you put it is not so outrageous when one considers that in 1956, the average price of a B'way orchestra seat was about $5.00 (yes, you read it right, $5.00). Why are tickets prices so high? Because in addition to costs going up, producers know that we rabid Broadway fans will pay top dollar to see the shows and artists we love. They found that out when they started charging nearly $500 for orchestra seats for the musical, The Producers back 2001, and found that ticket buyers would line up around the block to buy them. After that, they kept upping the ante.

    • @patriciamorgan2049
      @patriciamorgan2049 6 місяців тому

    • @debrabaron1909
      @debrabaron1909 5 місяців тому

      ​@Laeiryn There was a time when a Bdwy play was cheaper than a movie .😊

    • @joannetailor4094
      @joannetailor4094 Місяць тому

      Yes. Today's lot know very little about live theatre. It's all push button take it or leave it. No choice.

  • @kazza6078
    @kazza6078 2 роки тому +437

    WOW props to Sondheim for insisting a Jewish actress play such an iconic Jewish performer! Accurate/appropriate casting is a fight still being fought today for most roles

    • @susanpayer3472
      @susanpayer3472 2 роки тому +31

      And Sondheim didn’t even have much power back then! He was pretty young himself!

    • @andrewm5402
      @andrewm5402 2 роки тому +18

      You mean like Bea Arthur and Estelle Getty playing Sicilians on the Golden Girls?

    • @mtp4430
      @mtp4430 2 роки тому +5

      @@andrewm5402 Good one 😂

    • @micheleburdetteelmore2162
      @micheleburdetteelmore2162 2 роки тому +4

      So only Jewish people can be in Fiddler? Oops. Done it twice. Also, I was in From Door to Door and The Sisters Rosensweig so I've played Jewish women 4 times.

    • @lawodinskya
      @lawodinskya 2 роки тому +16

      @@andrewm5402 IMO they (Bea Arthur and Estelle Getty) were really playing Jewish, but the powers that be didn't have to courage for that so they called them Sicilian/Italian.

  • @violetsnotroses3640
    @violetsnotroses3640 2 роки тому +33

    I remember being surprised by how much I liked Funny Girl when I first saw it as a preteen, around 2010. I also remember being utterly confused by the insinuation that Barbra was ugly, and honestly I still am.

    • @aatb7
      @aatb7 2 роки тому

      She’s not pretty in the traditional sense - but with a nice figure, perfect hair, clothes, and makeup, and acts pretty, she’s pretty in a different way. But she has some attractive features - very beautiful eyes - nice legs - Jon Peters liked her tussy (as he said in an interview but didn’t use the word tussy)

    • @l.n.3372
      @l.n.3372 11 місяців тому +2

      I saw the movie during the pandemic for the first time. I was also surprised by how much I loved it.

  • @stardusth2o
    @stardusth2o 2 роки тому +160

    Barbra was obviously excellent as Fanny and it seemed to be tailor-made to her public persona at the time as well as her acting ability. Not to mention, the music was the perfect vehicle to really showcase the breadth of her considerable skill as a vocalist. But, I think the intrinsic link between Barbra and this role exists for more than just her wonderful performance. She was TRULY at the right place at EXACTLY the right time. When Funny Girl debuted on Broadway, she had already made quite a name for herself. She preceded the imminent cultural shift from the impossible old Hollywood standards to the ushering in of celebrating and glamorizing of unique and unconventional beauty in the late 60’s into the 70’s. She was NEW and exciting. The zeitgeist was STARVED for it’s new, “ugly duckling” mega-belter, just as it’s previous one, Judy Garland, was beginning to make her exit. So, it was really an anomaly. Not at all trying to lessen the impact of her unbelievable talent, because that alone would have been enough to make her into a MEGA star, but the TIMING and cultural climate was really the cherry on top that catapulted her into the stratosphere and ultimately made the role of Fanny Brice in Funny Girl belong indelibly to Barbra in the public consciousness.

    • @geoffreysonnen3482
      @geoffreysonnen3482 2 роки тому +11

      Oh, that's so funny! Exactly! i just wrote here that i wondered who else they would have found at the time to fit that role? i've read every book about Barbra since my teens, reading about others who were considered, and really there's not a one that would be as tailor-made as Barbra. Yes, truly meant to be! i used to live a block from where The Lion used to be (Bondini's at the time), on the corner of Christopher and Gay Street in the mid '80s. Many stories about those days! Anyway, i couldn't agree with you more, with one exception: Unusual, yes. But i'd never found Barbra as an "ugly duckling". i've always been fascinated with her face.

    • @stardusth2o
      @stardusth2o 2 роки тому +6

      @@geoffreysonnen3482 oh wow I’d love to hear those stories! Also, I also never thought Barbra was an ugly duckling. I’ve always found her to be very attractive. What I meant was during that time, she was (somehow) not considered a great beauty. They said the same thing about Judy and yet today they’re both regarded for their unique beauty.

    • @mgconlan
      @mgconlan 2 роки тому +6

      @@geoffreysonnen3482 Barbra Streisand loved the way the veteran cinematographer Harry Stradling lit her on "Funny Girl," and she insisted that he photograph all her subsequent films. When he died in the middle of filming "The Owl and the Pussycat," she insisted that his son, Harry Stradling, Jr., replace him. Among the things she liked about Stradling was his skill at lighting her nose so it blended into the rest of her face while still sticking out as if it belonged there.

    • @diannebuckley8948
      @diannebuckley8948 2 роки тому +9

      So how did Omar Sharif get the role? Why didn’t they talk about that? I can’t imagine another Nicki! If anyone says they didn’t have chemistry, wow, they are off the mark!

    • @herbertlongfellow7702
      @herbertlongfellow7702 2 роки тому +5

      @@mgconlan Judy Garland was apparently astonished at how beautiful she looked in Meet Me in St.Louis and might well have contributed to/why she fell in love with Vincent Minnelli. She was so radiant in that film. Barbra Streisand is an extraordinary beauty to my mind. With her beautiful hands. Almost a 'freak of nature' and I mean that in the best possible way !

  • @wotan10950
    @wotan10950 2 роки тому +23

    My grandparents had actually seen Fanny Brice onstage. They thought she was fantastic; funny/sad, chic/dumpy, and they said she had a wonderful voice……but not like Streisand’s voice! (When my parents played a Streisand record for them, they said, “Oh, Fanny was great……but she couldn’t sing like THAT!). My own parents had seen Streisand at a nightclub and on the Broadway stage. When the movie came out, they dragged us kids (we were pre-teens) to see it, and we were PISSED! But we watched the movie, and our collective jaws hit the floor. We were just shocked that one person could be funny and sad, sing soft ballads and blow the roof off with belters, and simply be so magnetic. So I was a fan from that moment. As for the impending Broadway revival, here’s my thought: the show itself isn’t all that great, not like The King and I, Fiddler, Gypsy, et al, that are often revived. Funny Girl is so indelibly connected with Streisand that I can’t imagine anyone else being more than middling.

  • @peterfraser2137
    @peterfraser2137 2 роки тому +106

    This was my first Barbra-record. I was 10 years old. Then I saw 'A Happening In Central park". My Mom snuck the little TV in my room and I was smitten forever-I loved it. But FG changed the equation for me, and
    now I'm 65 and I still love Barbra.

    • @StagedRight
      @StagedRight  2 роки тому +7

      This is just lovely.

    • @MrDuboce
      @MrDuboce 2 роки тому +7

      At age 10 I was sitting at our kitchen table listening to a small radio when the song Funny Girl came on. I was hardly a musician at that age (become one later) but I was struck at why the words "a girl's gotta have a sense of humor' were being sung with such melancholy. And of course, THAT VOICE. I asked my Mom, "Who is that singing?" and she replied, "That's Barbra Streisand." That year I asked for Simply Streisand for Christmas and have been a fan ever since. I've seen her in concert four times.

    • @QueenOfTheNorth65
      @QueenOfTheNorth65 2 роки тому +5

      I was born in 1965, and “Funny Girl” is the first music I have ANY memory of. I have 5 older sisters, and they played the album constantly. By the time I was 3, I knew every song, word for word.

    • @tracyjohn826
      @tracyjohn826 2 роки тому +6

      I was lucky enough to see FG for my 10th birthday treat. I was stunned and fell forever in love with Barbra. I am 63. Also lucky enough to have met her 10 years ago. She was beautiful, kind and gracious, also something I will never forget.

  • @glendalynda6587
    @glendalynda6587 2 роки тому +17

    I never thought Barbara Streisand was ugly. Always liked her voice. Bold and beautiful woman.

  • @don_actor_improv
    @don_actor_improv 2 роки тому +20

    Barbra Streisand was wonderful in this. And it’s ironic how much her own personality mirrored that of Fanny Brice. I remember my grandmother talking about Fanny Brice and what a great performer she was.

  • @glennlaroche1524
    @glennlaroche1524 2 роки тому +26

    So, one time my mom asked me, "But WHY are you gay?"----My instant reply was "You're the one who took me to see Funny Girl when I was six!" Ba-dum-tiss.
    But seriously, folks, I will always remember the ending---that inCREDible version of My Man that blew six-year old me right out of my seat. No hate no shade to Beanie Feldman, but there will only ever be one Funny Girl for me, and that's Barbra. Goddess.

  • @blanchefan
    @blanchefan 2 роки тому +80

    Wonderful job here--thank you for this superlative production. I'll have more to say later; I'm one of the fortunate ones who saw Barbra on Broadway in Funny Girl in June of 1965; I was a teenager; but I remember everything! To this day, I've never seen a more magnetic stage performance...she was/is unforgettable. More later--thank you again!

    • @blanchefan
      @blanchefan 2 роки тому +8

      @violamateo Yes! You're so right--I've seen that What's My Line program. An amazing tribute from legendary Bette Davis! :)

    • @Noise_floorxx
      @Noise_floorxx Рік тому

      Ugh.... amazing!

  • @terryhammond1253
    @terryhammond1253 2 роки тому +12

    An excellent clip. I saw Babs do it on Broadway when I wss 17. I waited for her to come out and gushed about her performance, predicting a soaring fiture for her in Hollywood. She signed my playbill, looked at me and said in her inimitable way: "Who-a-yoo?"
    ( I. E. "Who are you?" )

  • @pattycallahan6122
    @pattycallahan6122 2 роки тому +28

    OMG, this was a FASCINATING look at one of my favorite movies and actresses of ALL TIME! "Funny Girl" was the first Barbra movie that I ever saw (I was 8) and I thought she was the most beautiful and talented woman alive. Then, when I saw "Hello, Dolly!" a year later, I knew I was going to be a fan for life. I have never heard Beanie Feldstein sing, but I'm not sure if ANYONE can bring down the house like Barbra, especially when singing "Don't Rain on My Parade" and "My Man". If I could fly to NYC and see this revival, I would. I might even try to do that, since it is one of my favorite musicals of all time and I know it will be a stellar revival that doesn't veer far from what die-hard fans have come to love from watching the movie around 100 times. BTW, Jerry Orbach would have been a wonderful Nicky Arenstein! He was soooooo handsome!

  • @miketunney556
    @miketunney556 2 роки тому +23

    Let's not forget Mimi Hines who replaced Barbra Streisand in the original production of Funny Girl on Broadway. She was a smash hit in the role, starring for a year and a half on Broadway after Streisand left the cast in December, 1965.

    • @steveb1164
      @steveb1164 Рік тому

      Or Marilyn Michaels (yes, the impersonator), who played Fanny in the touring comany (Lilian Roth played Rose Brice).

  • @dolldoll2914
    @dolldoll2914 2 роки тому +8

    👩‍💻The Funny Girl movie soundtrack was my first ever vinyl record. I went babysitting one night, had seen the movie, loved it, but was broke and could not afford the soundtrack. Luck was one my side, my employer had the Funny Girl movie soundtrack, she let me play it while she was gone, and I couldn't go home without it. So ... I made a deal and traded my babysitting services that night for that most glorious vinyl recording. That started my love affair with all things Barbara Streisand. I am 66 years old now and still my love for Barbara's music burns in my heart. Ms. Streisand is the most ironic performer for the 20th Century, "She Did it Her Way" and opened doors for women just like Fanny Brice did for her generation and generations to come. God Bless Barbara Streisand. Much love and peace. 🙋‍♀️🪔🥰🐞🧘‍♀️☯️😷🇺🇲

  • @ntgonish
    @ntgonish 2 роки тому +9

    I saw Streisand in funny Girl twice in Philadelphia. I forget which theater she opened in, but the musical was moved to the Erlanger Theater a much larger venue, due to the demand for tickets. There was a sense at the time that something important was happening, that musical theater history was being made by this relative unknown.

  • @BillofRights1951
    @BillofRights1951 2 роки тому +12

    People don't realize how BIG Funny Girl was when it debuted as a film....Streisand was already the #1 female singer on vinyl, and every album release was an event. The film was a certified blockbuster. In LA, the venerable Egyptian theatre was remodeled for its release. It played in that theatre for over a year. Funny Girl lost out to Oliver! for best picture, also a very well made film. If Oliver weren't the 'Bigger' of the two musicals...Funny Girl had a great shot at winning Best Picture, though The Lion in Winter" was a big prestige production. Still, a great time to go to the movies back then, truly transporting you to another place, I still remember the audience laughing hysterically at the gags in Funny Girl.

  • @thomasgriffith2953
    @thomasgriffith2953 2 роки тому +6

    No one and I mean NO ONE can ever live up to Barbra Streisand performance on stage or screen in the roll of Fanny Brice in Funny Girl.
    I've seen theater productions of Funny Girl and the magic, without Streisand, just wasn't there.

  • @cheriestelzer9969
    @cheriestelzer9969 2 роки тому +8

    There will never be another Fanny Brice other than Barbara

  • @kc-lp6wg
    @kc-lp6wg 2 роки тому +86

    Thank you, Sondheim and Carol Burnett for taking the stance they did. Kevin, once again, l amazed and impressed by the amount of information you pack into your videos. I always learn so much. Xo

    • @lawrencegatti8283
      @lawrencegatti8283 2 роки тому +5

      Fantastic job here. We'll researched and flows beautifully. I'm sure Matt Howe's page was indispensable; I've been depending on him for background as well as all the latest Barbra news. And thanks also for the tip on Lillias White and her incredible Parade cover.

    • @Laeiryn
      @Laeiryn 2 роки тому +1

      which is funny because Burnett had tantrums over her doing Dolly in the film

    • @kc-lp6wg
      @kc-lp6wg 2 роки тому +1

      @@Laeiryn Really? That IS funny.

  • @fabrisseterbrugghe8567
    @fabrisseterbrugghe8567 2 роки тому +16

    Fanny Brice's understated performance of My Man is wonderful.

  • @seattlesusieq6945
    @seattlesusieq6945 2 роки тому +46

    For those of you who can't imagine Beanie Feldstein as Fanny, I say go and see for yourself. I could never, ever imagine anyone other than Robin Williams playing Mrs Doubtfire. But I went to see this new show on Broadway last fall. Rob McClure is absolutely fantastic. I have tickets for the new production of Funny Girl already. :-)

    • @debrawilliams9303
      @debrawilliams9303 2 роки тому +1

      6

    • @hannahorr5475
      @hannahorr5475 2 роки тому +9

      Unfortunately I saw Beanie last week she was not good. I was so excited to see her but she sounds like a highschooler trying to sing those songs.

    • @mimar3052
      @mimar3052 2 роки тому +1

      Pass.

    • @mimar3052
      @mimar3052 2 роки тому +7

      @@hannahorr5475 Exactly what I imagined her performance to be like--and a small town high school at that!

    • @micheleburdetteelmore2162
      @micheleburdetteelmore2162 2 роки тому +2

      @@hannahorr5475 She sounds like every pop soprano I hear at auditions lately.

  • @Tason123
    @Tason123 2 роки тому +5

    Funny Lady is worth it for that "How Lucky Can You Get" number

  • @louispitalo7401
    @louispitalo7401 2 роки тому +32

    Barbra is the ultimate, she’s done it all her own way, just listen to the difference in her voice and style compared to what is happening on the music scene today!!!

  • @sanssoleil8993
    @sanssoleil8993 2 роки тому +42

    You're actually missing something if you don't watch Funny Lady! There Fanny Brice is depicted as more mature, when she comes back home she wants reality and not an illusion of it like on stage and I think it's one of the main subjects. I've seldom seen a woman and her emotions so well depicted in a movie from that area, it makes you feel like you can actually relate to her, truelly identify with her feelings and the choices she's got to make for herself. Besides James Caan offers a great performance as her love interest and it really shows how things evolve in life, in people. It's unlike a lot of romantic movies. I particulary liked those two movies for that particulary the moment in the first movie when you think it's the ending, she's married, living almost in a castle, pregnant and then the problems come and you notice that they were there since the beginning, overshadowed by her blind and strong love.

    • @geoffreysonnen3482
      @geoffreysonnen3482 2 роки тому +3

      And Fanny could curse a sailor to shame, according to what i'd read about her. It's been a while since seeing Funny Lady, but think i remember that was a little "peppering" in the movie, wasn't there?

    • @aatb7
      @aatb7 2 роки тому +2

      Funny Lady doesn’t hold a candle to the first one - it doesn’t have the 60’s vibe the first one did. But it still isn’t half bad!

  • @raymondmaurer1838
    @raymondmaurer1838 2 роки тому +15

    "And all this time I was in love with a set of God damned toothbrushes." - "Funny Lady" - And please don't be dissin' "Funny Lady" ESPECIALLY if you haven't seen it! It is a tour de force of all things Streisand. Great songs, comic bits, and many quotable zingers. OTHERWISE, thank you for this post, it was very informative and nicely done.

    • @sueparras6028
      @sueparras6028 2 роки тому +4

      I also enjoyed Funny Lady and was not impressed that the narrator dissed the movie with never having seen it. Not very professional of him.

  • @kathyshore1004
    @kathyshore1004 2 роки тому +8

    "Funny Girl" was the movie that made me a Barbra Streisand fan. She's a legend! I love her, and all her movies. She's a mega talent, and beautiful in her own way. So much more than just a pretty face.

  • @jimkahn957
    @jimkahn957 2 роки тому +9

    Nicely done! Yeah...I was one of those teenagers back in the 60's who was totally bowled over by Barbra...and have been so ever since.

  • @stephaniestanley8041
    @stephaniestanley8041 2 роки тому +9

    This is a jewel. Barbra Streisand and her debut performance is amazing

  • @diamondgoddess2534
    @diamondgoddess2534 2 роки тому +29

    Excellent! One of my favorite movies, and I enjoy Funny Lady, too. Fanny was a very stylish woman irl; talented interior designer, etc. Fascinating woman! Barbra's performance is so on point.

  • @diamondgoddess2534
    @diamondgoddess2534 2 роки тому +15

    Funny Lady is good, too. Some astonishing musical numbers and of course, amazing styling.

  • @stephencuskley5251
    @stephencuskley5251 2 роки тому +4

    My grandfather was a huge fan of Fanny Brice and the Ziegfeld Follies. He lived in Manhattan at 32 E 64th Street and went to the Follies all the time. He was absolutely thrilled and could hardly believe it when one day a certain woman moved into the apartment directly above his.... yup... you guessed who!!!

  • @jareddavidhirsh4948
    @jareddavidhirsh4948 2 роки тому +16

    I believe that Jules Stein tried to get a revival of FG with Taylor Dayne playing Fanny. Obviously it never saw the light of day. It’s amazing how this new production is opening on 4/24/2022, which is Barbra’s 80th birthday.

    • @susanmema7738
      @susanmema7738 2 роки тому +1

      Doesn’t seem fair to Barbra...

    • @geoffreysonnen3482
      @geoffreysonnen3482 2 роки тому +1

      Oy! Well, a "salute" to her? i don't know. It's like how Bette Midler was quoted as saying when her performance in "The Rose" was being compared to Barbra's in "A Star Is Born", "...like an ant snapping at the heals of an elephant," i don't know why these folk always try to tackle the standard only to fall far short of it. i love Sondheim, but a new "West Side Story"? Better? Hmmm...No fresh ideas? And Trumplican Dayne playing the role? *gasp*

    • @kallen868
      @kallen868 2 роки тому

      I remember the Taylor Dayne anouncement. Debbie Gibson toured in it. A friend saw it and dubbed it Un-Funny Girl.

    • @micheleburdetteelmore2162
      @micheleburdetteelmore2162 2 роки тому

      @@kallen868 There is video of Debbie Gibson. Yuk.

  • @farfle
    @farfle 2 роки тому +11

    I never saw Barbra do this on Broadway. I have, however, seen a couple of productions on stage, and they had the same problem: their stars were playing Barbra Streisand playing Fannie Brice and I thought, "If I wanna see Barbra do it again, I'll go home and watch the DVD!" I hope that this will not be the case for the upcoming Broadway revival.

  • @2degucitas
    @2degucitas 2 роки тому +14

    Streisand was perfect in this role. I can't imagine anyone else doing it.

  • @marcackerman492
    @marcackerman492 2 роки тому +22

    I agree. Streisand owns this.

  • @stacymoore9836
    @stacymoore9836 2 роки тому +3

    In 1968 I was 7 years old. My mother and I went to see it 6 times. I have the movie on DVD..

  • @richardrosenthal9552
    @richardrosenthal9552 2 роки тому +6

    I saw Barbara Streisand in I Can Get It For You Wholesale, Funny Girl on stage and as a movie. I also saw Funny Lady, the movie and many of her TV performances. I enjoyed every one of them. Along with the above she made a number of dramatic and comedic movies, showing her acting versatility. I was and still am a fan of hers. She is one of a kind as was Fanny Brice. They both seemed to have to prove themselves over and over again. They succeeded well. Barbara Streisand can still amaze people today as she did in the past.

    • @jodikirsh
      @jodikirsh Рік тому

      How was I Can Get It For You Wholesale live? I would've loved to have seen that live with Barbra as Marmelstein. I've listened to the original cast recording countless times, LOL

    • @alexd1121
      @alexd1121 9 місяців тому

      Omg! Wow! Please could you share details on seeing her in I Can Get It For You Wholesale and Funny Girl. Can’t imagine seeing these in real life! How was Barbra? Was she as incredible as later hyped?

    • @richardrosenthal9552
      @richardrosenthal9552 9 місяців тому

      Barbara Streisand was and is incredible to watch, and hear in any medium. I Can Get It For You Wholesale was one of her early Broadway shows. Miss Marmelstein was her role in the show. You laughed and enjoyed her acting and singing in the show. She took Broadway by storm. I can’t remember any role I saw her play where she wasn’t terrific in it. Her voice was and is strong, she commanded a stage like nobody else and her comedic talent was unique to see and hear. Playing Fanny Brice on Broadway and in the movies was something, I believe few others could do as well.

    • @alexd1121
      @alexd1121 9 місяців тому +1

      @@richardrosenthal9552 thank you! Yes of course Another evening with Harry Stoones, Miss Marmelstein and Fanny Brice were her only Broadway roles which makes it all the more incredible that she was able to ditch the theater so fast to become a Hollywood superstar.
      I think she is immensely intelligent, her and her manager Marty knew how to play the jewish card just like later key artists would play the Latino or African American cards to become icons and play with the political power of ethnic representation and demographics. But she did it with such class. At that time America was ready for an openly Jewish Brooklyn superstar and that’s really what pushed her undeniable talent to the forefront I think.
      I cannot imagine having seen her in I Can Get It For You Wholesale and much less Funny Girl but I know that Broadway and Hollywood had a nearly otherworldly mystique at that time and that she was a very big deal that way.
      I think she was a star already when she did Funny Girl on Broadway. That’s what many people in Europe who discovered her in the 80’s singing Woman In Love didn’t understand. She had been a proper singing star already in the 60’s and then she became a movie star.
      I think her voice and humor were really at their peak during the 60’s and the 70’s. From the 80’s on her directorial efforts might have overshadowed her immense comedic skills as an actress and we never got to see a Judie Maxwell or a Fanny Brice or a Katie girl again. Maybe in Meet The Fockers but that wasn’t that substantial. Seth Rogen needs to be sued for dragging her into The Guilt Trip. Anyways thank you for your answer and apologies for my endless comment but it’s fascinating to exchange with someone who actually saw her live at the time.

  • @user-rz8bu6vl8x
    @user-rz8bu6vl8x 5 місяців тому +3

    My favorite movie of all time ❤

  • @johnscherer882
    @johnscherer882 2 роки тому +6

    I played Eddie Ryan in that Actors Fund benefit and got to perform Who Taught Her Everything She Knows with the late, great Kaye Ballard. It was a thrilling night- especially Lilias White, and Sutton Foster. What a great documentary you've put together-really interesting! Can't wait to see the revival on Broadway.

    • @StagedRight
      @StagedRight  2 роки тому +1

      How cool to have been part of that night! Thanks for the kind words! xo

  • @ROBYNMARKOW
    @ROBYNMARKOW 2 роки тому +4

    My mom played the OBC album constantly. She "identities" w/Barbra Streisand in a way; both have Jewish backgrounds & grew up in working-class Brooklyn neighborhoods . Mom mostly gave up her ambitions after my brother & I came along( that & she developed crippling stage fright) but a part of her still craved that career path & she would take acting or voice classes from time to time & do extra work but never really seriously pursued a caree, Still, mom( who's 90 now) had "Funny Girl" (& Streisand's career) to live that life vicariously.

  • @markgriffin8708
    @markgriffin8708 2 роки тому +38

    This was truly spectacular! The research, the clips, the narration. All expertly handled. It seems as though Fanny Brice brought out the best in everyone...Ziegfeld, Streisand and now Kevin Morris. Way to go!

  • @hannahorr5475
    @hannahorr5475 2 роки тому +5

    My favorite musical of all time, I love you BARBRA!!!!

  • @laurengin4581
    @laurengin4581 Рік тому +13

    Well written tribute to Fanny Brice. Enjoying the theater history of your series. I just watched the movie for the 1st time and I was surprised at how funny it is. The history adds a lot of depth.

  • @SeaTravelr123
    @SeaTravelr123 2 роки тому +8

    Well done you. This was so well done. I love the history of Fanny Brice and I think somewhere along the way, we all ran with Streisand and forgot Fanny. She was a trailblazer and probably one of the wealthiest women of her time. Funny Lady iSNT sooooo bad. I loved her oomph in it and her take no BS attitude. I never realized how young she died and having this background now, has made her much brighter in my mind. Thanks.

  • @loveismylanguage9162
    @loveismylanguage9162 Рік тому +4

    The fact people think Barbra is ugly is perplexing.

  • @whalesong999
    @whalesong999 2 роки тому +3

    "Baby Snooks", I remember giggling as a wee boy to hear her on the radio in the '40s. Not a fan of musicals or stage productions but Streisand was lovable in the movie and really, somehow, quite beautiful.

  • @stanleycostello9610
    @stanleycostello9610 2 роки тому +4

    I was a gay 13 year-old boy when I first saw "Funny Girl." I was, as they say, stunned. Much later I saw the the restored dye print transfers. I was again, stunned.

  • @mhm8922
    @mhm8922 2 роки тому +4

    I saw both Funny Girl and Funny Lady on ABC's 4:30 Movie when I was a kid. It was my first introduction to Barbra Streisand and I cringe at the idea of anyone else playing Fanny Brice. I would be shaking in my boots if I were any of the actresses attempting it. But God bless them for having the strength to do it. I'd love to see the London show and I wish the actors in the upcoming Broadway show all the luck in the world.

  • @collegealgebravideos9540
    @collegealgebravideos9540 Рік тому +4

    In the 1970s, I saw a summer stock production of Funny Girl, starring Carol Lawrence. I was pleasantly surprised by how funny she was in the part. Although the script is generally weak, the comedy is definitely written into it, so a good actress (with a good director) can find and deliver it.

  • @maxinecornucci5953
    @maxinecornucci5953 2 роки тому +4

    Fanny and Barbara are like bookends for the 20th Century of its Greatest Comediennes!

  • @markwhitman9542
    @markwhitman9542 2 роки тому +77

    You are too young to have been there when FUNNY GIRL opened on Broadway. Most of your research is laudable, but I think if you did more research you would find that the days & weeks after, Streisand's impact was SEISMIC. Newspapers tried to outdo themselves w superlatives. Within a few weeks, Barbra Streisand, at 22 years of age, made the cover of TIME magazine (nearly unheard of in those days before the self-promotional internet efforts of today). FUNNY GIRL became THE show to see and was the HAMILTON of its day (booked long in advance) & Streisand the highest-paid performer on Broadway...

    • @markwhitman9542
      @markwhitman9542 2 роки тому +16

      Also worth mentioning is that Ms. Streisand was already a national recording star when FUNNY GIRL opened. She VERY briefly played small Greenwich Village clubs, quickly moving on to the Blue Angel & the Bon Soir, had already done WHOLESALE and a national tour, released and won the Grammy Award for ALBUM OF THE YEAR, and appeared on THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW, the BOB HOPE SHOW and, especially, THE JUDY GARLAND SHOW. The anticipation, therefore, for FUNNY GIRL, had reached a fever pitch by March, 1964.

    • @black_sheep_nation
      @black_sheep_nation 10 місяців тому +4

      Thank you for giving context, and correcting errors that would otherwise become factual record.
      Those of us over 40, 50, 60, must remain vigilant to the past, even in UA-cam comments!🙏🙏🙏

    • @peteradaniel
      @peteradaniel 9 місяців тому +4

      It’s a shame the show is pretty much dull as dishwater without Streisand in the lead, which shows how inadequate and weak it was in the first place.

    • @sonavevo
      @sonavevo 8 місяців тому

      @@black_sheep_nation worry about your wobbly knees

    • @Smallerie
      @Smallerie 4 місяці тому

      You are wrong.... watch Lillias White's performance. It is a great show. Just needs a Star to lead it. streisand is a star. Lillias is a STAR... Leah Michelle is a brat with an OK voice and mediocre acting skills. Anyone else on Glee could blow her away.... anyone, male or female.

  • @SWDetboy
    @SWDetboy 2 роки тому +2

    Love "Fanny Brice".. Wish her life could of lasted longer.. She was So Unique & Talented.. An Underrated "LEGEND".... Thanks for this nice story..

  • @wimsminia9527
    @wimsminia9527 2 роки тому +6

    Many thanks for this great document about two FABULOUS women. Great Unique material can been seen in this video.
    Staged Right Made this document with great care.
    For over 53 years I collecting everything about Fanny Brice and Funny Girl. My great hobby.
    Again,many thanks. Wim.

  • @lindaanthony7890
    @lindaanthony7890 2 роки тому +3

    My Mother saw Funny Lady in the theatre more than 6 times. Great movie! I’d seen the movie, but wish I had seen the theatre performance too. Amazing performance by Streisand, Omar Sharif, and supporting cast.

  • @stephenmkatzasc
    @stephenmkatzasc 2 роки тому +4

    I stumbled on this today. Very impressive documentary on the work & pain that defines a great piece of theater. I was in high school when a group of us went to see Barbra at the Coconut Grove in Los Angeles. We had no idea what to expect. I was totally blown away, a fan was born. Many years latter I had the opportunity to photography her for a benefit.
    She has an amazing presence. I am curious how the new revival will be staged and the actress playing the role. Unfortunately I live in France and don’t have much opportunity to visit NY. The one thing I miss most is Broadway.
    Thank you for this. I certainly will look forward to future pieces… Merci.

  • @SoulfoodSeminars
    @SoulfoodSeminars 2 роки тому +7

    Oh my god, this was sooooooo freaking fabulous! I watched it twice, and I’ll be back to watch it again, and again, and again! ♥️

  • @marystewart8569
    @marystewart8569 2 роки тому +5

    Barbra, the best female sound in my lifetime.

  • @ares6953
    @ares6953 2 роки тому +5

    This is fascinating ! I learned so much ! Funny girl was the movie that made me fall in love with Barbra Streisand ! i still love her music !

  • @ericbrown1750
    @ericbrown1750 4 місяці тому +1

    I am of a relative fortunate few who got to see Streisand live in those earliest years a number of times, including seeing her 4 times in FUNNY GIRL, 2 concerts at the Forest Hills Tennis Stadium; I was at the tapings of her 1st 2 specials (My Name is Barbra & Color Me Barbra), as well as being at the Central Park concert. I saw her live again in 1980, and my last time was her 2006 tour. It is impossible to realistically convey how much more electric she was in person in those earlier years. With all her successes on the big and small screens, not to mention her unparalleled recording career, there was something about her live that defies understanding. Call it charisma, which she had in abundance, there simply was never anyone ever who was even close to the size of talent and power she projected from a stage.
    Here I am some 61 years later, and she still is thriving.
    Note to the maker/narrator of this otherwise great documentary: Can you somehow edit out all references to the fiasco that was Beanie Feldstein? In hindsight, your enthusiasm for her seems contrived at best (no one was ever even the slightest bit excited about the thought of her being cast), and undermines your credibility at worst.

    • @StagedRight
      @StagedRight  4 місяці тому +3

      Hi, Sadly, the video as writ would be too difficult to edit from UA-cam. I can cut things out but doing that here would have made things disjointed. I actually made a follow up video in November 2022, a few weeks into Lea’s run. It contextualized a lot of things as I understood them then. I am not a Lea fan for a number of reasons but also recognize the weaknesses in Beanie’s performance. The long and short of it: Beanie shouldn’t have been cast. The producers should never have put her in that position. I have so many other thoughts but that is the crux of it. Thanks for watching and sharing your story!

  • @lawrencedistefano145
    @lawrencedistefano145 2 роки тому +4

    Soooo awesome to learn of all this. Thrilled to have found you. Thanks so much.

  • @sweetartgal
    @sweetartgal 2 роки тому +18

    I had no idea about the history of this! I love Barbara, so this is fascinating. Thank you for this detailed and insightful video! So well done! ❤️

  • @lisaahmari7199
    @lisaahmari7199 2 роки тому +1

    This was absolutely wonderful! Thank you so much for your excellent work!

  • @corneliuswhite5139
    @corneliuswhite5139 2 роки тому +3

    This was exquisitely done!...so much I didn't know. Thank you!

  • @citywoof
    @citywoof 2 роки тому +1

    This was so well-made! I really really enjoyed your video, this was a lot of work. What a treasure trove of vintage footage and all the clips and articles and everything....excellent excellent little doc. Thank you!

  • @EM2theBee
    @EM2theBee 2 роки тому +1

    Brilliant! Thank you so much and I also love Be Kind Rewind!

  • @macmachine
    @macmachine 10 днів тому

    Fascinating to hear how hit and miss and endlessly refined the classic we know often is.

  • @panicqueertruecrime
    @panicqueertruecrime Рік тому +2

    One of the best researched and written things I've seen on the tube. Thank you

  • @Alex30Ian
    @Alex30Ian 2 роки тому +2

    I'm always so happy to see a notification from this channel!!!

  • @JOEYEMANUEL1717
    @JOEYEMANUEL1717 2 роки тому +6

    wonderful thank you for covering this story so well i can see it in my head this is a great show i loved Barbra and will always anything she touches is Gold the story of Fanny Brice is now even more clear then before thanks love it. i love to see more of this.

  • @cathyheckman7415
    @cathyheckman7415 2 роки тому +3

    Thank you so much for this video! This movie is one of my top 5 of all time movies. Can’t tell you how many times I have watched it and still every time she sings My Man I still cry. Not just a tear or two but the ugly crying kind! 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏❤️

  • @LoisSharbel
    @LoisSharbel 2 роки тому +1

    What a marvellous documentary! Excellently done, entertaining in interesting from beginning to end! Thank you!!!

  • @raoulfoto4
    @raoulfoto4 7 місяців тому +1

    I have never subscribed to any channel as fast and happily as I subscribed to Staged Right! So well researched, such a pleasing manner, cadence and voice from out host!

  • @tracyjohn826
    @tracyjohn826 2 роки тому

    Excellent program. Thank you.

  • @jamesmelvin8917
    @jamesmelvin8917 2 роки тому +2

    Excellent documentary Thanks you

  • @douglaso6428
    @douglaso6428 2 роки тому +1

    Thank you for this beautiful interwoven presentation about Fanny Brice, Barbra Streisand and the musical experience of Funny GIrl. I look forward to watching your other presentations. I will write a longer comment about Fanny Brice soon, and thank you so much for bringing attention to her as a part of this documentary!

  • @meshuggepup
    @meshuggepup 2 роки тому +7

    Outstanding. Thank you. Many facts I didn't know. Great footage. Wonderful narration. Thoroughly enjoyed it!!

  • @cynthiatrantham6770
    @cynthiatrantham6770 2 роки тому +6

    I just got finished watching your video! I am very impressed with the presentation of the subject matter. I have been a HUGE fan of the Funny Girl movie with Barbra! You did an outstanding job of researching and presenting the real Fanny Brice. Very informative!

  • @jessicamckay0514
    @jessicamckay0514 2 роки тому

    Luckily I found you around episode 4. Happy to be here with you. Love BKR and you. Keep up the great work!

  • @robertaverill936
    @robertaverill936 2 роки тому +2

    Very well done..throughly enjoyable..thank you..

  • @voraciousreader3341
    @voraciousreader3341 15 днів тому

    This is really a touching tribute to Fanny Brice, in whom I’ve been interested for many years. I really appreciate the work that went into this, thank you.

  • @Mike_Neal
    @Mike_Neal 2 роки тому +8

    This was great! I love Barbra! I would love to see you do Dreamgirls!

  • @surejack5
    @surejack5 2 роки тому

    I loved this - thanks for posting.

  • @murphytn
    @murphytn Рік тому +1

    Thank You!!! This was an amazing enlightenment!!!

  • @knockshinnoch1950
    @knockshinnoch1950 2 роки тому +2

    This is an excellent presentation.

  • @MGBrown-sw6wm
    @MGBrown-sw6wm 2 роки тому +2

    I've read every book about Streisand out there. Really nice to be able to visualize stuff for a change, Thanks for sharing,

  • @LS-kg6my
    @LS-kg6my 2 роки тому +1

    Thanks for this really excellent doc

  • @josephmarzullo4416
    @josephmarzullo4416 2 роки тому +5

    Great job, packed with Fanny info.

  • @happiness1956
    @happiness1956 Рік тому +3

    It saddens me so much to learn about her life I love her talent but now to learn what's behind it it's heartbreaking

  • @danielpruna9884
    @danielpruna9884 2 роки тому +1

    Thanks for this video. It's highly entertaining, and educationally fascinating.

  • @bungalowlogic7676
    @bungalowlogic7676 2 роки тому +3

    This was a fascinating documentary. just caught The Great Zeigfeld starring William Powell on Turner Classics this week, featuring Fanny Brice playing herself. (Glad you used a few quick clips from it) Embarrassed that I'd never seen it before, because I played Nicky in a regional production years ago.

  • @nolasfamily3913
    @nolasfamily3913 2 роки тому +2

    I enjoyed every moment!

  • @lolly2222aa
    @lolly2222aa 2 роки тому

    FANTASTIC. Great job!!!!!

  • @gabschasse600
    @gabschasse600 2 роки тому +4

    Thank you for this. I d like to think that Fanny had generous enough a spirit that shed be glad to share her life if it gave people happiness,inspiration and and a boost to helping new careers .

  • @susanfleischer7714
    @susanfleischer7714 4 місяці тому +1

    I saw Barbra Streisand in Funny Girl at the Prince of Wales theatre in London England in 1966. The ticket cost $1.50. She was Fabulous.

  • @Evan1060
    @Evan1060 2 роки тому +3

    First time viewing your videos. Really enjoyed your approach. My attention was held throughout the entire presentation. Thank you! As far as Funny Girl - the movie has always been a top 10 if not a top 5 on my list. My sister and I used to play the recording (vinyl) while cleaning to the house. We repeated it so many times my mother would finally yell down to us "can we PLEASE listen to something else?". HA I also have a fondness for Fanny Brice. She is funny and has such a gentle heart. I've seen only a few of her performances but something in her seems familiar - like a family member - someone I would trust. Thanks for the view into her life.

  • @barbraarchives5604
    @barbraarchives5604 2 роки тому +5

    Very well done ! Congrats to you.

  • @stevenkosmata6800
    @stevenkosmata6800 2 роки тому +1

    Very well done;, and the production value far exceeded most videos on here for sure. Thank you for doing this. And I have subscribed