What should you know about Oscar Hammerstein II?
Born in 1895 in New York City into a prominent theatrical family, Oscar Hammerstein II contributed more to American musical theater than any other single person. His grandfather, whom he was named after, was an opera producer. His father managed the Hammerstein's Victoria, a vaudeville theatre, and his uncle was a successful Broadway producer. Though encouraged by his father to study law at Columbia Law School, he couldn't deny the draw of theatre, and he soon talked his uncle into hiring him as an assistant stage manager for his current production. He soon was promoted to stage manager for all his uncle's productions.
He began writing books and lyrics for musicals, although primarily for operettas. His first play, "The Light", produced by his uncle in 1919, ran for four performances, but Hammerstein kept writing with a series of collaborators. His two most successful partnerships were with Jerome Kern and Richard Rodgers. With them, Hammerstein would change musical theatre forever.
What were Hammerstein's greatest contributions to American musical theatre?
Hammerstein wrote eight musicals with composer Jerome Kern, including "Show Boat" which is widely considered the first modern American musical play. Produced in 1927, "Show Boat" transcended previous musical comedies with rich, dynamic songs that served to move the plot, developed the characters and helped to reinforce the setting and time. Later, he and Kern later won Best Original Song Academy Award for "The Last Time I Saw Paris" in the film "Lady be Good" in 1941, making him the first Oscar to win an Oscar.
In his partnership with Richard Rodgers, Hammerstein won a Pulitzer Prize for "Oklahoma!" in 1943 and a second Academy Award for "It Might as Well be Spring" in the film "State Fair" in 1945. "Oklahoma!" broke new ground in musical theatre. It was a musical without humor, without sight gags. It drifted into tragedy, killing one of the main characters at the climax of the story. Instead of showgirls dancing in scant outfits, it incorporated an extended ballet sequence. It was like nothing anyone had ever seen.
With their seemingly simple and accessible lyrics and music, the duo tackled social issues in many of their musicals. "South Pacific," which won the duo a second Pulitzer in 1949, examined racial and social prejudices, as did "The King and I" two years later. Hammerstein's last musical "The Sound of Music" in 1959 dealt in part with the pervasiveness of the Nazi movement through Europe in the late 1930s.
Oscar Hammerstein II died in 1960.
What is Hammerstein's legacy?
With Rodgers, Hammerstein produced numerous plays, musicals and revivals including Irving Berlin's widely popular "Annie Get Your Gun". He was a mentor to Alan Lerner, who wrote "My Fair Lady" and "Camelot" with composer Frederick Lowe, and a mentor and close friend of Stephen Sondheim, who penned such hits as "Sweeney Todd" and "Sunday in the Park with George."
Hammerstein served on the board of directors for many theatrical and film professional organizations, won five Tony Awards, two Pulitzer Prizes, two Academy Awards and received five honorary degrees. During the centennial anniversary of his birth in 1995 and 1996, three of his musicals played simultaneously on Broadway. "Show Boat" and "The King and I" took home the Tony Award for Best Musical Revival in 1995 and 1996 respectively, while "State Fair," which was the only musical Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote for film, was nominated for the 1996 Tony Award for Best Score.
Sources: Broadway: The American Musical on PBS.com, Songwriters Hall of Fame, The Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization, TheatreHistory.com
Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II
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