This is a rare ticket envelope and ticket stub from the Thursday, January 26th, 1933 matinee performance of the Original Broadway production of the GEORGE GERSHWIN, IRA GERSHWIN and HERBERT FIELDS musical comedy "PARDON MY ENGLISH" at the Majestic Theatre in New York City. (The production opened January 20th, 1933 and closed February 25th, 1933 after only 43 performances.) ..... Production History: Producers ALEX A. AARONS and VINTON FREEDLEY approached GEORGE and IRA GERSHWIN to create a showcase for the talents of English music hall star JACK BUCHANAN, and linked them with HERBERT FIELDS and MORRIE RYSKIND, whose book required the actor to appear in dual roles, lower-class German thug "Golo Schmidt" and upper-crust British nobleman "Michael Bramleigh". The sophisticated Buchanan had no problem portraying "Bramleigh" but was unable to capture the essence of "Schmidt". The show opened in Philadelphia to critical pans. Rather than proceed to Broadway, the creative team added characters and expanded the role of police commissioner "Bauer", played by radio's "Baron Munchausen", JACK PEARL. The revised production opened in Newark, New Jersey on January 2nd, 1933, but it was obvious that Buchanan was still a major problem. They bought out his contract and the producers replaced him with dialect comedian GEORGE GIVOT. The production opened on Broadway on January 20th, 1933 at the Majestic Theatre. The book was directed by JOHN McGOWAN, the production was staged by producer VINTON FREEDLEY, and the musical numbers staged by GEORGE HALE. In addition to Givot and Pearl, the cast included JOSEPHINE HUSTON as Bauer's daughter "Ilse" and musical-comedy star LYDA ROBERTI (her speciality was a "polyglot of Polish, German, and near-Hungarian") as "Gita Gobel". According to Ben Brantley, "By the time it hit Broadway it was a desperately stitched patchwork that ran for 43 performances before exiting into oblivion. It was, Ira Gershwin later wrote, 'a headache from start to finish'." The critics unanimously condemned it. (Wikipedia) ..... In addition to JACK PEARL, GEORGE GIVOT, LYDA ROBERTI and JOSEPHINE HUSTON, the cast included TONY BLAIR, ELEANOR SHALER, JACK DAVIS, ROBERT SPENCER, WILLIAM LILLING, CLIFF "CHARLIE" HALL, BETTY HAMILTON, CARL RANDALL, BARBARA NEWBERRY, HARRY T. SHANNON, GERALD OLIVER SMITH, RUTH URBAN, WILMA ROELOFF, GEORGE SHIELDS, JOHN CORTEZ, BEAU TILDEN and JACK CARVER ..... CREDITS: Book by HERBERT FIELDS; Music by GEORGE GERSHWIN ("Girl Crazy", "Lady, Be Good!", "Of Thee I Sing", "Oh, Kay!", "Rosalie", "Funny Face", "Porgy and Bess", "George White's Scandals"); Lyrics by IRA GERSHWIN; Choreographed by GEORGE HALE; Sets designed by JOHN WENGER; Costumes designed by ROBERT TEN EYCK STEVENSON; Book Directed by JOHN McGOWAN; Staged by VINTON FREEDLEY; Produced by ALEX A. AARONS and VINTON FREEDLEY ..... DETAILS: This rare Majestic Theatre ticket envelope measures 4 1/4" X 2 1/2" inches and has advertising for Schenley Distillers Corp. on both the front and backside. The January 26th, 1933 ticket stub measures approx. 1 1/2" X 1 5/8" inches (both the front and back sides are shown in the scanned images) ..... CONDITION: With the exception of a small hole in the lower right corner of the envelope, this rare set is in excellent condition and will make a wonderful addition to the collection of any musical theatre aficionado or historian. This item will be carefully packaged in a protective, carded sleeve and backed by stiff cardboard ..... SHIPPING DISCOUNTS: Check my "Other Items" for additional rare Broadway playbills and other theatre related memorabilia. Shipping discounts are available for multiple purchases when all items are combined into a single payment. Please wait for a revised invoice before sending payment ..... THANKS !!!

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