Robert J. Elisberg: The Greatest Musical You've Never Heard Of

Published: December 31, 1969, 7:00 pm

It's rare, indeed close to impossible, when one can make a subjective opinion and have it be objective and demonstrably provable. I believe this is one of those times. The musical in question won the Pulitzer Prize. Emphatically a notable standard. But further, at the time it won - 1959 - it was only the third musical ever to win the award. (The two previous were the renowned "Of Thee I Sing" by the Gershwins and "South Pacific.") So, this isn't only a high honor, but you're in rarified air. Countless great musicals haven't won the Pulitzer Prize. "Oklahoma!" didn't win a Pulitzer Prize. Neither did "My Fair Lady," "The Music Man" or "West Side Story." Or...well, fill in the blank. It's a long blank. The evidence goes deeper. It won the Tony Award for Best Musical. Among the shows it beat that year was "West Side Story." That's a pretty good trick. Actually, it tied as Best Musical that year, with "The Sound of Music." But that didn't win the Pulitzer Prize either.

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