Jerry Ross
Jerry Ross wrote the musical scores for two of the most popular and enduring musicals in Broadway Theater, "The Pajama Game" and "Damn Yankees," two shows which personify the innocence and exuberance of the Golden Age of Broadway. Jerry Ross was born Jerold Rosenberg on March 9, 1926, to Russian immigrant parents, Lena and Jacob Rosenberg, in the East Bronx, New York City. As a child and young teen, he was the "hottest young property on the Jewish stage," singing and acting professionally and billed as the "Boy Star" in Yiddish stage and movie productions. An ongoing bronchial condition, however, ended his performing career while he was still in high school. Fortunately, he also began writing songs while in high school, although he had no formal training in music. Subsequently he studied at New York University under Rudolph Schramm. A fortuitous introduction to Eddie Fisher led to further introductions to music publishers at the hub of songwriting activity, the famed Brill Building. Fisher recorded Ross' "The Newspaper Song," which garnered early attention for both of them. After penning several well-received songs, some in collaboration with Buddy Kaye and other Brill Building alumni, Ross met Richard Adler in 1950. They decided to team their talents, writing songs and special material (mainly for TV and nightclub acts). They had published several songs together when they attracted the attention of writer/publisher Frank Loesser and became his protégés. By 1953, their song "Rags to Riches" rocketed to number 1 on the charts, becoming a long-standing smash hit, recorded by Tony Bennett. Ross began his career in the Broadway Theater with "John Murray Anderson's Almanac," a revue for which he and Adler wrote most of the songs (resulting in recordings of "Acorn in the Meadow" by Harry Belafonte and "Fini" by Polly Bergen). In 1954, after several auditions and Loesser's recommendation, George Abbott contracted this promising young songwriting duo to write the score for a new musical about union/management relations at a pajama factory. "The Pajama Game" opened to rave reviews, winning the coveted Tony Award for best score, as well as the Donaldson Award and the Variety Drama Critics Award. Songs from the show included "Hernando's Hideaway" and "Hey There" (a hit for Rosemary Clooney), both of which also topped the Hit Parade of popular songs, capturing the number one and two spots on the music charts and setting a precedent in music business history. Other songs from Pajama Game include the famed Bob Fosse dance number "Steam Heat," as well as "Small Talk," and "Seven And A Half Cents." A year later, in May 1955, the musical "Damn Yankees" played to equal excitement and success. This baseball tale with a Faustian theme once again won Ross the Tony Award, the Donaldson Award, and the Variety Drama Critics Award, plus cross-over recording hits for "You've Gotta Have Heart" (recorded by a more well-established Fisher, among many others) and "Whatever Lola Wants, Lola Gets." Both shows ran on Broadway for over 1000 performances. Successful films were made of both musicals, although Ross did not get to see them realized. He died from complications related to the lung disease bronchiectisis on November 11th, 1955. He was 29. At the time he died, Jerry Ross had written the number one and number two shows running on Broadway. He had written more than 250 popular American songs. His untimely death at such a young age cut short a creative force that was sure to be as popular and enduring as his songs. Jerry Ross was admitted posthumously to the Songwriter's Hall of Fame in 1982. His wife, Judy, and daughter, Janie, accepted the award in his honor. Recordings of his songs have sold many millions of copies, and his shows are continually performed and enjoyed, from first-class to first-grade productions!
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Did you see our latest news earlier in the week? Chitty flies again! We're thrilled to announce that rights to the full, 2-act version of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang are now available without restrictions for performances scheduled to take place before 31st December 2023. Applications for 2024 are currently restricted to those in venues of less than 500 seats. Apply today! www.mtishows.co.uk/chitty-chitty-bang-bang #chittychittybangbang #newrelease #trulyscrumptious
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Xanadu is now available for licensing! You have to believe we are magic... Xanadu is a moving, electrifying tale of endless fun that will keep audiences in stitches, while the original, legendary chart-topping tunes lift them out of their seats. Find out more: www.mtishows.co.uk/xanadu #xanadu #newshow #amateurtheatre #licensing #olivianewtonjohn #strangemagic
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Bravo to everyone at @_spotlight.theatre who went Into the Woods at Nottingham Arts Theatre earlier in the month. These photos look great! Photo credit: Martin Holtom. #intothewoods #nottingham #amateurtheatre #amdram
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A huge congratulations to everyone at @green_room_productions on their hugely successful production of Sunshine on Leith. We really would have walked 500 miles to grab a ticket. #sunshineonleith #pottersbar #amateurtheatre #wyllyotts
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As schools across the UK and Europe wind down for the Summer holidays we wanted to take this opportunity to celebrate the incredible teachers everywhere who make musical theatre happen year after year. To those teachers we say: you are an inspiration! We had close to 100 of these incredible teachers take part in this years Junior Theatre Festival, so lets enjoy the special teacher number from that days awards ceremony. #teachers #jtf22 #musicaltheatre #schoolshow #inspiration #education #broadwayjr
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We love these production shots of Disneys The Little Mermaid JR from @pqanorthampton #merfolk #thelittlemermaidjr #performingarts #disney #broadwayjr
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Bravo to @curtaincallshrewsbury on their production of Roald Dahls Matilda the Musical JR. Theyre currently having the best time working on the show, and these wonderful photos prove it! Enjoy your final performances. #matildajr #broadwayjr #shrewsbury #roalddahl #youththeatre #maggots
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WHAT A PICTURE We'll definitely be sticking these in the family album A few snaps from @haslemereplayers dress rehearsal of KIPPS - The New Half a Sixpence Musical which runs at Haslemere Hall this week. Break a leg! #kipps #kippshalfasixpence #haslemere #haslemerehall #surreytheatre #surrey
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Do you love musicals and want to work at MTI? We're searching for a new Licensing Assistant / Receptionist. The successful candidate will be required to work from our newly refurbished office in London at 12-14 Mortimer Street, W1T 3JJ. The core duties/responsibilities will include: Reception duties: * answering a busy telephone switchboard * greeting all visitors to the office Amateur Licensing support: * show availability requests * answering basic enquiries both via phone and in email * general administrative support as required Professional Licensing support: * general enquiries * generation of invoices as per instructions from the Professional Licensing team * vetting of foreign language translations The successful candidate will have a keen interest in musical theatre (on or off stage) and have excellent administrative skills. For full details visit: https://www.mtishows.co.uk/.../job-vacancy-licensing... #vacancy #licensing #receptionist #job #musicals #opportunity
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JTF is making the news! @skynews @fyi_skykids came to Birmingham last month to share the power of jazz hands and spirit fingers with a wider audience. The JTF piece will air Saturday at 10:30 and 16:30 and then on Sunday at 10:30. We can't wait! Check out this sneak peak, which follows Timi from The British Theatre Academy. #jtf22 #news #jazzhands #broadwayjr
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