STREWTH. With rainbows streaming out of music numbers, ‘I Got Sun in the Mornin”, ‘I Got Lost in his Arms’ and ‘There’s No Business Like Showbusiness,’, it’s a shock to realise the troubled haul that making ‘Annie Get your Gun’ was back in the day.
John Daly, better known to these pages through Limerick Jazz, is one of the 10-strong band supporting Limerick Musical Society’s production at UCH, running April 28 into April 30. He looks back on the behind-the-scenes drama to filming this 1950s Irving Berlin/ Dorothy Fields spectacular.
“Did you know the role of Annie was originally for Judy Garland?” muses the percussion player who chairs Limerick Jazz Festival and season programmes. “But Judy was not turning up for rehearsals.
“Ginger Rogers was looking for the part but producer Louis B Mayer told her go away and stay in her high heels. Betty Hutton got it, not a big name then and was not popular with the cast as they felt Judy was done out of it”.
Ultimately, Hutton took home a Golden Globe for her work as Annie Oakley in the end. This conflicted movie won an Oscar for best score and was nominated in three other categories. It took the Writers Guild of America award for Best Written American Musical.
Photo: Ian Collins
Judy Garland was initially under the direction of Busby Berkely with whom she had plenty of history during her stint with Mickey Rooney. Doing her best to get him fired, MGM suspended her for delinquency and George Sidney was final choice as director.
There’s more. “‘Annie Get Your Gun’ is basically a love story between a cowboy and a girl but the real story continued behind the scenes. Howard Keel got the part of Frank Butler [romantic lead] and did not get good reviews for it, his American film debut”.
“Frank Morgan, cast as Wild Bill Hickock, dropped dead of a heart attack after singing the film’s first song. He was replaced by Louis Calhern”, apparently the only soul to have time for the leading lady. Poor Betty was not even invited to the movie premiere in New York.
High time so for the promising production coming from LMS, with Marie Keary-Scanlon leading chorus and band, AIMS winner Des Henn directing and AIMS winner Niamh Twomey on choreography.
This big budget show, costing €45,000, is sure to impress. Booking now on www.uch.ie for April 28-30.
