Colored Lights: Forty Years of Words and Music, Show Biz, Collaboration, and All That Jazz (7 page)
Authors: Greg Lawrence,John Kander,Fred Ebb
BOOK: Colored Lights: Forty Years of Words and Music, Show Biz, Collaboration, and All That Jazz
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KANDER: She was messy in those days and didn’t know how to make herself as attractive as she is. She didn’t have what she developed later, that Liza style.
EBB: She sat on the couch, took off her shoes and tucked her legs under her. We played her some songs but didn’t get much of a reaction. Then Liza said, “What are you writing now?” We told her we were writing a musical called
Flora, the Red Menace
, and she said, “Can I hear some of those songs?” We played two or three numbers, and Liza suddenly became animated, jumped up, and said, “Can I try singing that?” I remember she stood behind you and read the lyrics over your shoulder. When she began to sing, I was wild for her. I thought,
This girl is terrific
!
Flora, the Red Menace
, and she said, “Can I hear some of those songs?” We played two or three numbers, and Liza suddenly became animated, jumped up, and said, “Can I try singing that?” I remember she stood behind you and read the lyrics over your shoulder. When she began to sing, I was wild for her. I thought,
This girl is terrific
!
KANDER: It was easy to see how talented she was.
EBB: And we had been having trouble finding a Flora. It seemed like the perfect thing for Liza to do. At the time, she had another show that Richard Adler had written, based on the movie
Roman Holiday
. She was going to do that, but then she heard
Flora
and obviously wanted to do it. She was all over the place, saying, “Oh, can I be in it? Who do I have to speak to? Who does my agent have to call?” So we set up an audition. But George Abbott had seen Liza’s first show,
Best Foot Forward
, and when we suggested her for the part, he said, “I don’t like the girl, but bring her in.”
Roman Holiday
. She was going to do that, but then she heard
Flora
and obviously wanted to do it. She was all over the place, saying, “Oh, can I be in it? Who do I have to speak to? Who does my agent have to call?” So we set up an audition. But George Abbott had seen Liza’s first show,
Best Foot Forward
, and when we suggested her for the part, he said, “I don’t like the girl, but bring her in.”
We taught her the song “A Quiet Thing” so it would be clear she was our choice. But when she came on during the audition, as she walked across the stage, Mr. Abbott said loudly, “Well, this is a waste of time!” His voice carried in the theater, and Liza heard him. There was a little hitch in her step, and she had that frightened-little-girl look that she gets. She sat down and sang, and after she finished, he said, “Thank you.” But there was no way he was going to give her the part. And who was going to tell her? Mr. Abbott said, “You have to tell her, Fred. You made the biggest pitch for her.” So I had to call and say, “Liza, you didn’t get it.” That was an awful phone call.
Liza Minnelli on auditioning for
Flora
:
Flora
:
George Abbott didn’t want me, and Freddy was the one who had to call and tell me that I didn’t have the part in
Flora
. Poor Freddy. I said, “Oh, that’s okay,” but I was dying inside.
Flora
. Poor Freddy. I said, “Oh, that’s okay,” but I was dying inside.
EBB: But then a couple of weeks went by and—
KANDER: The actress who Abbott wanted was suddenly unavailable.
EBB: Eydie Gorme. He was going to have dinner with her
one night. At rehearsal the next morning—he was not an emotional guy—we asked him, “How did dinner go?” He said, “She never came,” and that was it. He was really offended, and you knew she was out. Abbott went off to Florida, and we talked to Hal. Liza’s name kept coming up, and Hal said, “Let me call Mr. Abbott.”
one night. At rehearsal the next morning—he was not an emotional guy—we asked him, “How did dinner go?” He said, “She never came,” and that was it. He was really offended, and you knew she was out. Abbott went off to Florida, and we talked to Hal. Liza’s name kept coming up, and Hal said, “Let me call Mr. Abbott.”
KANDER: Mr. Abbott finally said, “Well, get me that Minnelli girl.” Simple as that. His attitude was “We’re professionals—”
EBB: “And we don’t have to talk about it. Just get her.” Now we were thrilled. I said, “Can I make that phone call?” So I called Liza and told her she had the part.
KANDER: Then Mr. Abbott fell completely in love with her.
EBB: Within a couple of weeks of rehearsals, he became her devoted slave.
KANDER: He really did. He would come back and sit in her dressing room night after night. He loved young talent. That really excited him. On Liza’s birthday, Mr. Abbott came waltzing into a rehearsal with a cake, which was something he would never ordinarily do.
EBB: He loved the kind of singer she was. She could belt out that Karen Morrow thing.
KANDER: By the time we met him, he was slightly deaf. But he could certainly hear Liza.
EBB: I don’t think she was ever less than aware of how important this show was for her, and Mr. Abbott was very protective of her. He insisted that Liza have an eleven o’clock number that we wrote out of town, “Sing Happy.” She had to have a big song at the end.
KANDER: He was right. “Sing Happy” was the story of a woman who is literally having a nervous breakdown, whose world has collapsed around her, so that it was really screaming at somebody. The right way to do the song is in the context of the show. There was a concert in London once and a guy was singing
it. He was singing it very well, but it didn’t have a lot of meaning until I told him what the character in the show was feeling, and then he sang it and took your head off:
it. He was singing it very well, but it didn’t have a lot of meaning until I told him what the character in the show was feeling, and then he sang it and took your head off:
Sing me a happy song about robins in spring.
Sing me a happy song with a happy ending,
Some cheerful roundelay about catching the ring.
Sing happy.
Sing me a happy song with a happy ending,
Some cheerful roundelay about catching the ring.
Sing happy.
Sing me a sonnet all about rolling in gold;
Some peppy melody about rainbows blending,
Nothing with phrases saying you’re out in the cold.
Sing happy.
Some peppy melody about rainbows blending,
Nothing with phrases saying you’re out in the cold.
Sing happy.
Tell me tomorrow’s gonna be peaches and cream.
Assure me clouds are lined with a silver lining.
Say how you realize an impossible dream.
Sing me a happy song.
Assure me clouds are lined with a silver lining.
Say how you realize an impossible dream.
Sing me a happy song.
Play me a madrigal about trips to the moon,
Or some old ballad all about two eyes shining;
It can’t be loud enough or a moment too soon,
Sing happy.
Or some old ballad all about two eyes shining;
It can’t be loud enough or a moment too soon,
Sing happy.
No need reminding me that it all fell apart,
I need no lyric singing of stormy weather;
There’s quite enough around me that’s breaking my heart,
Sing happy.
I need no lyric singing of stormy weather;
There’s quite enough around me that’s breaking my heart,
Sing happy.
Give me a hallelujah and get up and shout,
Tell me the sun is shining around the corner;
Whoever’s interested in helping me out,
Please keep it happy
Tell me the sun is shining around the corner;
Whoever’s interested in helping me out,
Please keep it happy
I’m only in the market for long, loud laughter,
I’ll let you serenade me ’til dawn comes along;
Just make it a happy,
Keep it a happy song!
I’ll let you serenade me ’til dawn comes along;
Just make it a happy,
Keep it a happy song!
EBB: Another director might not have thought in terms of giving Liza a big number like that, but Mr. Abbott did because she was Liza and because of her notoriety. There was something notorious about her getting the role because she was Judy Garland’s daughter.
KANDER: In writing for her, I don’t think we ever thought in terms of her mother. We only thought of Judy as a kind of specter hanging over Liza. She was a controversial figure, and I guess in some ways still is. People would cruelly write that she was only getting work because she was her mother’s daughter. That was always there, and I think Liza was terribly aware of it.
EBB: Judy came to the opening night of
Flora
. We had written the song “You Are You,” and one of the lyrics was “You are not Myrna Loy, Myrna Loy is Myrna Loy. You are you.” After the show, Judy came backstage and said to me, “Listen, I have a suggestion for that song. ‘You are not
Judy Garland, Judy Garland is Judy Garland.
You are you.’ That’s what it should be.” Then she turned around and walked away. I thought, my God, how amazing that she would say a thing like that. I later told Liza, and she was humiliated.
Flora
. We had written the song “You Are You,” and one of the lyrics was “You are not Myrna Loy, Myrna Loy is Myrna Loy. You are you.” After the show, Judy came backstage and said to me, “Listen, I have a suggestion for that song. ‘You are not
Judy Garland, Judy Garland is Judy Garland.
You are you.’ That’s what it should be.” Then she turned around and walked away. I thought, my God, how amazing that she would say a thing like that. I later told Liza, and she was humiliated.
KANDER: She had the curse of being Judy Garland’s daughter. She was always afraid that her mother would be in the audience and overshadow her. With the first nightclub act that she did, there was a question whether Judy was going to be there or not, and as I recall, Liza tried to get you to make sure she wasn’t there. But her mother did show up, and that night Liza sat in front of her dressing mirror just shaking.
EBB: She was torn — “Do I introduce her? Do I not introduce
her?” There were a couple of incidents. At the Waldorf-Astoria, Liza leaned down to her mother in the audience, and Judy literally grabbed her off the stage, then got up there with her. Liza sat on the side of the stage while Judy did two or three numbers, with the audience going crazy.
her?” There were a couple of incidents. At the Waldorf-Astoria, Liza leaned down to her mother in the audience, and Judy literally grabbed her off the stage, then got up there with her. Liza sat on the side of the stage while Judy did two or three numbers, with the audience going crazy.
KANDER: When the two of them performed together and it was planned, that was different. But if it was a night that was supposed to be Liza’s and her mother took over, that was difficult. The first time I saw that happen was the opening at the Waldorf, and Liza was sitting at her dressing table. Judy was there and she was drunk, sitting next to Liza. Judy said something like, “This is what we always wanted, isn’t it, baby? This is our big night, baby. This is what we’ve always wanted.” Liza just froze. I remember her face in the mirror, and it was one of those times I wished I was someplace else.
EBB: It was terrifying for her. She had anxiety attacks whenever she thought her mother was going to show up on any given night. That was sad. Ron Fields choreographed her act. We hired him because when he first approached us, he was wearing a sport coat with a red lining and Liza thought that was so spiffy. Marvin Hamlisch did all the arrangements. Marvin played for her and made all the musical selections. She sang “Pass that Peace Pipe.” That was one of our big numbers. She also sang “Liza with a Z,” and as I recall, she ended with “Sing Happy” from
Flora
as her finale.
Flora
as her finale.
KANDER: She also did “Maybe This Time.”
EBB: What else did she sing? Oh, Sondheim’s
[singing]
“It’s a nice night and the mood’s right / All I need now is the boy.” At first her agents at MCA had hired another writer to do her act, a guy who had written for the McGuire Sisters. He was trying to write for Liza the way that he wrote for them. But he went away for a week, and in that time you and I wrote “Liza with a Z.” I forget his name right now. I’m having a senior moment.
[singing]
“It’s a nice night and the mood’s right / All I need now is the boy.” At first her agents at MCA had hired another writer to do her act, a guy who had written for the McGuire Sisters. He was trying to write for Liza the way that he wrote for them. But he went away for a week, and in that time you and I wrote “Liza with a Z.” I forget his name right now. I’m having a senior moment.
KANDER: Wilbur Evans.
EBB: That’s right. No, it’s not, but who cares? Wasn’t Wilbur Evans in
Up in Central Park?
Up in Central Park?
KANDER: Well …
EBB: Well, maybe not. Who cares? After he left, I took over her act.
Liza Minnelli on ″Liza with a Z″:
Fred and John wrote that song in an hour or an hour and a half, and I learned it in an hour, which was impossible. “Liza with a Z” made the name Liza famous, and I’ll always sing that song, just like I’ll always sing “Maybe This Time.”
KANDER: “Liza with a Z” was absolutely true. People were always calling her Lisa.
EBB: Writing the truth is what makes special material work.
KANDER: As a matter of fact, when she performed some years later at the Winter Garden, she wasn’t sure whether it would be such a good idea to use that song again. But on the tickets for that show, her name was misspelled, which gave her the opportunity to say that night, “I thought I would never have to sing this song again, but if you look at your tickets …”
EBB: They had printed the tickets with only one “n” in Minnelli. I remember after
Flora
the first date that we played with Liza in concerts was the Shoreham Hotel in Washington. At that time, I didn’t know anything about standing ovations. They were not something that happened every minute as far as I knew. At the end of our opening night, everyone in the audience stood up, and I thought,
Oh, my God
,
they’re going home!
Liza thought they were going to the coat room. She stood there utterly bewildered and eventually sat down on the stage, overwhelmed by the response. She didn’t know what to make of it, and I didn’t either.
Ron Field was sitting with me, and he said, “They’re standing up because they love her!”
Flora
the first date that we played with Liza in concerts was the Shoreham Hotel in Washington. At that time, I didn’t know anything about standing ovations. They were not something that happened every minute as far as I knew. At the end of our opening night, everyone in the audience stood up, and I thought,
Oh, my God
,
they’re going home!
Liza thought they were going to the coat room. She stood there utterly bewildered and eventually sat down on the stage, overwhelmed by the response. She didn’t know what to make of it, and I didn’t either.
Ron Field was sitting with me, and he said, “They’re standing up because they love her!”
KANDER: She was terrific in
Flora
because she was working with this absolute authority who was not going to put up with anything false. Mr. Abbott would not play that game. He really was crazy about her. He was the daddy that she needed.
Flora
because she was working with this absolute authority who was not going to put up with anything false. Mr. Abbott would not play that game. He really was crazy about her. He was the daddy that she needed.
EBB: But with Liza, when you let her loose, she’s very creative. She has a deadly instinct for what will work with an audience. If you give her that freedom, you get the benefit of that expertise. On the other hand, if you are as dictatorial as Abbott, you don’t get it. I think during
Flora
she wasn’t ready to make that kind of contribution, even though she won a Tony Award for it. But later on, certainly during her TV special
Liza with a Z
and when she came into
Chicago,
she was ready. In 1993 I did her act
Stepping Out
at Radio City Music Hall, and we gave her the song “Seeing Things” from
The Happy Time
. She said, “I would like to close the first act with that song and show film clips of me and my father. I think that ‘Seeing Things’ is like our relationship. I was the practical one. He was the dreamer.” She asked me, “Can I put that film together?”
Flora
she wasn’t ready to make that kind of contribution, even though she won a Tony Award for it. But later on, certainly during her TV special
Liza with a Z
and when she came into
Chicago,
she was ready. In 1993 I did her act
Stepping Out
at Radio City Music Hall, and we gave her the song “Seeing Things” from
The Happy Time
. She said, “I would like to close the first act with that song and show film clips of me and my father. I think that ‘Seeing Things’ is like our relationship. I was the practical one. He was the dreamer.” She asked me, “Can I put that film together?”
Now, out of total trust for her instinct, I said, “Of course.” She put the film together, and we could not have had a better closing for the first act. But Liza did that. Now, it could be that if George Abbott had been directing, he might not have let her. I didn’t have a moment’s doubt about Liza or about any of the other actors who were in
Flora.
Bob Dishy, Skipper Damon, and Mary Louise Wilson were perfect. I thought we were really lucky to have such a great cast.
Flora.
Bob Dishy, Skipper Damon, and Mary Louise Wilson were perfect. I thought we were really lucky to have such a great cast.
KANDER: Mr. Abbott later said that he thought he was the person responsible for
Flora’s
not working.
Flora’s
not working.
EBB: I told Liza that I thought his love for her killed the show. He wouldn’t allow that spunky side of her to come out.
KANDER: Mr. Abbott didn’t want to see Liza do anything ugly or unseemly at all. The one thing that became very clear to
us toward the end was that he couldn’t bear the idea that Flora would be seriously in love with a Communist, because of his own political feelings.
us toward the end was that he couldn’t bear the idea that Flora would be seriously in love with a Communist, because of his own political feelings.
EBB: He didn’t relate to the material in that show because it was a world he never knew.
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