Phil Harris (Almost) in The Music Man

[Roman]

Over the weekend, my mother, who was a big fan of Jack's radio show, told me that Phil Harris had said during a Larry King interview that his biggest professional regret was turning down the role of Professor Harold Hill in Meredith Wilson's The Music Man. I had never heard before that Phil was considered for this role. But it made sense since I had read that Phil was good friends with Meredith Wilson and Phil would have seemed a more natural fit for the role than Robert Preston who wasn't known as a musical performer.

I found more details about this on the Turner Classic Movies website. Not only was Phil considered for the role, the role was specifically written for him. It would have been hard to top Robert Preston, but I think Phil would have been just as great in his own way. It's a shame Phil turned down this role of a lifetime.

According to the website (http://alt.tcm.turner.com/SPECIAL_THEME/01/02/cons.htm):

Nobody thought Meredith Wilson could turn out a hit musical back in 1949 when he started working on a story inspired by his Iowa childhood and the time he spent playing piccolo for John Philip Sousa. He'd never written a musical before, just incidental numbers for Broadway, film and radio, and the background score for Charles Chaplin's The Great Dictator (1940). His original producers dropped him as work dragged on over eight years. But his mentor, songwriter Frank Loesser, stuck by him and ended up producing The Music Man, one of Broadway's biggest hits of the '50s.

Leading man Robert Preston went into the project an underdog, too. He had been the perennial second lead in Hollywood during the '40s, usually dying before the final reel. In the '50s, as the studios were cutting back production, he moved to the stage, where he had enjoyed a few modest hits. But he had never done a musical before. Nor was he first choice to play Harold Hill, the musical con artist. Wilson had written the role for his friend, bandleader Phil Harris, but Harris had decided not to risk the move to Broadway. Then it was offered to and rejected by Gene Kelly, Danny Kaye and Ray Bolger before they settled for the perfect man for the part, Preston.

[David47Jens]

About three years ago, there were a few posts about this very subject on the old forum. Check 'em out! http://www.jackbenny.org/wwwboard/messages/1339.html

[TheSportsmenQuartet]

In a side note connected to the Jack Benny program - The Sportsmen appeared in a production of "The Music Man" at the Melodyland Theater in Anaheim in 1963 with Bert Parks as Professor Harold Hill.

[Roman]

That's interesting about the Sportsmen. Considering that Meredith Wilson wrote the role of Harold Hill with Phil in mind, I wonder if he wrote the barbershop quartet in The Music Man with an eye toward the Sportsmen.

[TheSportsmenQuartet]

According to the late Max Smith, who was the original second tenor of the Sportsmen and left in 1948 to form the Mellomen with Thurl Ravenscroft, Meredith Willson wanted the Mellomen to be in the original Broadway production. They turned it down because they didn't want to leave all their contacts/jobs around town or their families.

[Gerry O.]

According to the late Max Smith, who was the original second tenor of the Sportsmen and left in 1948 to form the Mellomen with Thurl Ravenscroft, Meredith Willson wanted the Mellomen to be in the original Broadway production. They turned it down because they didn't want to leave all their contacts/jobs around town or their families.

Wow, these "original choice" bits of info are very interesting.....

....but I just hope that we don't find out that Iris Adrian was Meredith Willson's first choice to play Marian The Librarian!

[Clyde]

Hold it there, wonga! I think that would have been a wonderful casting choice!!!

[LLeff]

Hold it there, wonga! I think that would have been a wonderful casting choice!!!

Re-imagining Iris Adrian singing "Goodnight My Someone"...

[Brad from Georgia]

"Seventy-six trombones led the big parade,
Followed by turnip greens and good fried hammy,
Marchin' down to Alabammy,
Pecan pie and grits an' all,
With a hundred an' ten cornets havin' a ball,
Followed by rows an' rows
Of deep-fried piccolos,
And a [bam-ba-bam] right behind!
And you'll never get rid of that [bam-ba-bam]
It'll drive you outa your mind!"

[TheSportsmenQuartet]

According to "Meredith Willson - America's Music Man" by Bill Oates (published by authorHOUSE), Phil Harris NEVER returned Willson's calls to talk about the role of Harold Hill. When he realized that Harris wasn't interested, he tried to get Danny Kaye involved but his Mrs. Kaye (Sylvia Fine) talked Danny out of accepting because she felt it "wasn't right for him".

According to the book the following actors were considered for the role of Hill: Danny Kaye, Phil Harris, Dan Dailey, Gene Kelly, Ray Bolger, Jackie Gleason, Milton Berle, Jason Robards, Art Carney, Andy Griffith, and Bert Parks. Some interesting choices there

[Gerry O.]

Something which should be realized is that the role of Harold Hill is considered to be a VERY difficult role to play, mainly because of the song "Trouble". Many very talented performers have played Hill in various stage productions (Dick Van Dyke, Donald O'Connor, etc.) and several of them have had a very tough time mastering that song. Of course, after performing such rapid-fire patter numbers as "That's What I Like About The South" and "Darktown Poker Club", I highly doubt that the lyrics of Willson's "Trouble" would have been difficult for Phil Harris to memorize and rattle off!

[TheSportsmenQuartet]

But also remember, this is before anyone saw the show and "knew" what it was and what it entailed. If Phil never returned the phone calls, he just knew that the "word on the street" was how "corny" it was...talk about the pot calling the kettle black!

[Gerry O.]

But also remember, this is before anyone saw the show and "knew" what it was and what it entailed. If Phil never returned the phone calls, he just knew that the "word on the street" was how "corny" it was...talk about the pot calling the kettle black!

Also, besides the show, Meredith Willson had the reputation of being "corny" and even a little "nerdy" himself. Much of that was the public persona that Willson portrayed on the various radio programs that he appeared on (much like Jack Benny being a cheapskate or Gracie Allen being a ditzy scatterbrain), but the reputation stuck with him over the years....and maybe THAT was why Phil didn't want to get involved with the production....and besides, Mason City isn't HALF as exciting a place as Doo Wah Ditty is!

[TimL2005]

But also remember, this is before anyone saw the show and "knew" what it was and what it entailed. If Phil never returned the phone calls, he just knew that the "word on the street" was how "corny" it was...talk about the pot calling the kettle black!

Also, besides the show, Meredith Willson had the reputation of being "corny" and even a little "nerdy" himself. Much of that was the public persona that Willson portrayed on the various radio programs that he appeared on (much like Jack Benny being a cheapskate or Gracie Allen being a ditzy scatterbrain), but the reputation stuck with him over the years....and maybe THAT was why Phil didn't want to get involved with the production....and besides, Mason City isn't HALF as exciting a place as Doo Wah Ditty is!

I had the pleasure of seeing Meredith Willson as a regular on Game Show Network repeats of "The Name's The Same" (1951-55) an underrated ABC-TV program. I thought he was quite articulate and funny. He could have been a comedian full time if he didnt have a music background. He was in the early episodes as a regular. Others on the show with a radio background were Bill Cullen, Joan Alexander (Lois Lane on Radio's SUPERMAN), Bill Stern, Arnold Stang and hosts Robert Q. Lewis and Later, comedy duo Bob And Ray