Aladdin was a 1958 musical fantasy written especially for television with a book by S.J. Perelman and music and lyrics by Cole Porter

Cole Porter

Cole Albert Porter was an American composer and songwriter. Born to a wealthy family in Indiana, he defied the wishes of his domineering grandfather and took up music as a profession. Classically trained, he was drawn towards musical theatre...

, telecast in color on the DuPont Show of the Month by CBS

CBS

CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

. It was Porter's very last musical score. The musical was later presented on stage in London, premiering on December 17, 1959 at the Coliseum. Bob Monkhouse, Doretta Morrow, Ian Wallace & Ronald Shiner starred. The Musical Director was Bobby Howell. Columbia Records

Columbia Records

Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...

 issued both monophonic

Monaural

Monaural or monophonic sound reproduction is single-channel. Typically there is only one microphone, one loudspeaker, or channels are fed from a common signal path...

 and stereophonic LP's of the songs with members of the original TV cast, which included Cyril Ritchard

Cyril Ritchard

Cyril Ritchard was an Australian stage, screen and television actor, and director. He is probably best remembered today for his performance as Captain Hook in the Mary Martin musical production of Peter Pan....

, Dennis King

Dennis King (actor)

Dennis King was an English actor and singer.Born in Coventry as Dennis Pratt, King had a stage career in both drama and musicals. He emigrated to the USA in 1921 and went on to a successful career on the Broadway stage. He appeared in two musical films and played non-singing roles in two other...

, Basil Rathbone

Basil Rathbone

Sir Basil Rathbone, KBE, MC, Kt was an English actor. He rose to prominence in England as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in over 70 films, primarily costume dramas, swashbucklers, and, occasionally, horror films...

, Anna Maria Alberghetti

Anna Maria Alberghetti

Anna Maria Alberghetti is an Italian-born operatic singer and actress.Born in Pesaro, Marche, she starred on Broadway and won a Tony Award in 1962 as Best Actress for Carnival! .Alberghetti was a child prodigy. Her father was an opera singer and concert master of the Rome Opera Company...

, Geoffrey Holder

Geoffrey Holder

Geoffrey Richard Holder is a Trinidadian actor, choreographer, director, dancer, painter, costume designer, singer and voice-over artist.-Early life:...

 (as the Genie), and Sal Mineo

Sal Mineo

Salvatore "Sal" Mineo, Jr. , was an American film and theatre actor, best known for his performance as John "Plato" Crawford opposite James Dean in the film Rebel Without a Cause...

 (as Aladdin). Sony Records has digitally remastered the stereo recording for release on CD.

As far as is known, the original telecast was never repeated (although videotape was in use by then), nor has it been issued on VHS or DVD. A kinescope of the 1958 broadcast survives and can be viewed at both the New York City and Beverly Hills, California branches of The Paley Center For Media.