Guys and Dolls - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Overview

Guys and Dolls is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser

Frank Loesser

Frank Henry Loesser was an American songwriter who wrote the lyrics and scores to the Broadway hits Guys and Dolls and How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, among others. He won separate Tony Awards for the music and lyrics in both shows, as well as sharing the Pulitzer Prize for...

and book by Jo Swerling

Jo Swerling

Jo Swerling was an American theatre writer and lyricist and a screenwriter.Born in Berdichev, Russian Empire, Swerling was a refugee of the Czarist regime who grew up on New York City's lower East Side, where he sold newspapers to help support his family...

and Abe Burrows

Abe Burrows

Abe Burrows was a Tony and Pulitzer-winning American humorist, author, and director for radio and the stage.-Early years:...

. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown

The Idyll Of Miss Sarah Brown

"The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" is a short story by Damon Runyon upon which the musical Guys and Dolls is based. It was first published in 1933. In 1949, it was dramatized on radio as part of a program called Damon Runyon Theatre....

" and "Blood Pressure", two short stories by Damon Runyon

Damon Runyon

Alfred Damon Runyon was an American newspaperman and writer.He was best known for his short stories celebrating the world of Broadway in New York City that grew out of the Prohibition era. To New Yorkers of his generation, a "Damon Runyon character" evoked a distinctive social type from the...

, and also borrows characters and plot elements from other Runyon stories, most notably "Pick the Winner". Premiering on Broadway

Broadway theatre

Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...

in 1950, the original production ran for 1200 performances and won the Tony Award

Tony Award

The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...

for Best Musical. The musical has had several Broadway revivals as well as West End

West End theatre

West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...

productions.

Abe Burrows wrote most of Guys and Dolls, replacing Jo Swerling.

Unanswered Questions

What songs might best be used in a musical tribute to Damon Runyon, who wrote the original book of Guys and Dolls? That is, what songs best represent ...

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Quotations

No doll can take the place of aces back to back.

Daddy! I got cider in my ear.

Is it wrong to gamble or only to lose? I'd better come back for help when I'm broke.

Among my people, being considered a chump is like losing your citizenship.

You have wished yourself a Scarsdale Gallahad, a breakfast-eating, Brooks Brothers type. - "I'll Know"

A one-woman mission for the personal salvation of me?

Luck be a lady tonight. Luck be a lady tonight. Luck, if you've ever been a lady to begin with, Luck be a lady tonight! - "Luck Be a Lady"

A lady wouldn't leave her escort. It isn't fair, it isn't nice. A lady wouldn't wander all over the room and blow on some other guy's dice! - "Luck be a Lady Tonight"

Obediah, that's my real name. I've never told that to anyone before.

It's just so unusual for a successful sinner to be unhappy about sin.

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