Happy Birthday Julie!

Seventy-seven years ago today, October 1^st 1935, a baby girl arrived in the maternity hospital at Walton-on-Thames. As Barbara and Ted Wells gazed upon their beautiful little girl, they would have been quite shocked to know just how far from their small village little Julia would travel one day, and how many millions of people she would touch.

As I began this blog on The Julie Andrews Hour, it seemed to me that Julie Andrews’ career was so well-known; it would be redundant to write about it. However, I realize that while many people know her for some of her roles, not everyone knows about her early years.  In any case, there could be no more perfect time to write about Ms. Andrews' career than the occasion of her birthday.

Julia Wells, as she was officially named by her parents, spent her early years as a fairly normal child. She had a brother, Johnny, two years younger than her, and they spent their time playing and doing the things that children do. In addition, little Julie attended dance classes, conducted by her Aunt Joan.

There were things in Julie’s young life were not ordinary or easy for a child to deal with. During her childhood, she experienced the hardships and fears of wartime. In addition, her mother, who was a pianist, often left home to play for the soldiers. She was five, when she learned that her mother had deserted her father to live with a singer named Ted Andrews.

When Julie was seven, Ted Andrews began to give her singing lessons. Around this same time, a doctor discovered that she had a larynx that was almost completely developed. At the age of nine and a half she began studying voice with a well-known opera singer, Madam Lilian Stiles-Allen.

The war ended in 1945. Shortly after that Julie turned ten. By now her singing had developed, and she joined her mother and step-father onstage for the first time as “Julie Andrews.”

During The Julie Andrews Hour series, I remember being somewhat baffled to hear Julie speak of herself as a child singer in terms that seemed rather demeaning to me. It was during the show that I first learned of her rare ability as a child and of her many performances, both onstage and on the radio. One of her performances at that time was part of the Command Performance for King George V and his family, the eldest child being Princess Elizabeth, the present Queen of England. Seeing a photo of young Julie, I thought she was a beautiful and adorable child. I knew that her ability as a child was quite remarkable.

As Julie Andrews grew from child to teenager, she expanded her work, appearing in pantomimes and playing roles. At the age of eighteen, she was chosen to play the lead, Polly Benedict, in The Boyfriend, a musical which had played England and was slated to open in the United States on Broadway. In her wonderful biography, Home, Ms. Andrews writes of how she balked on the idea of going to America. There were problems at home and she felt she didn’t want to be away that long, but as fate would have it, she did go and her life was forever changed.

Following her success in The Boy Friend, Julie was cast in the new musical by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Lowe, My Fair Lady, opposite stage veteran Rex Harrison. Julie did not have an easy time. Not only was the role of Eliza Doolittle demanding, but the energy and ability to bring a character across the footlights, especially on Broadway, was a huge task. Thanks to the show’s director, Moss Hart, and his work with Julie over a 48 hour period, a brilliant new musical actress was born. With the opening of My Fair Lady, Julie Andrews became a true star. People could not get enough of her. During the next few years, she appeared on television numerous times and recorded many fine albums.

My Fair Lady was followed by another Lerner and Lowe show, Camelot, which starred Richard Burton as King Arthur and newcomer Robert Goulet as Sir Lancelot. Following this Broadway show, Julie Andrews entered the world of film, beginning with Mary Poppins, followed by The Americanization of Emily and, then, The Sound of Music. Her life and the film world would never be the same.

As a singer and performer, Julie Andrews was able to do what few had. Julie was a singer with a classical background and a five octave range, but her tone and manner in singing never pigeon-holed her as a classical singer alone. During those early days, her voice was considered to be one of the most remarkable in the business. It dazzled and people could not get enough. But along with Julie’s dazzling range and pure tones, there was another aspect to her singing. Listen to “How Are Things in Glocca Mora?” or “I’m Old Fashioned.” Her voice moves beautifully with the music and, in some songs, (as with the two above), her phrasing and intonation is quite unique. It is absolutely fresh. Even today, no one has recorded anything quite like it, or in this writer’s humble opinion, quite as lovely.

In 1972, entering her third month of work on The Julie Andrews Hour, Julie, celebrated her thirty-seventh birthday. Although she looked and seemed so young then, she was well-aware of the passage of time. When she took on the show, she told her husband, Blake Edwards, that she should “do it now” while she was still able.

In the years between her first film, Mary Poppins, and The Julie Andrews Hour, Julie’s life had gone through many changes. She had married her childhood sweetheart, Tony Walton, given birth to a beautiful little girl, Emma Kate, and then had gone through a divorce. The divorce seemed quite shocking at the time, even scandalous for this young, beautiful and seemingly perfect star.

In the years following The Sound of Music, Julie Andrews made a number of musical films. With each film, the producer of that film had great hopes the work would match the success of The Sound of Music. None did.

Following two dramas: Torn Curtain and Hawaii in 1966, Julie filmed Thoroughly Modern Millie” the following year. The theme song for that film was a huge success, and played repeatedly on popular radio stations. The film, itself, was the biggest success Universal Pictures had had to that point.

Julie’s next film, “Star!” about the life of Gertrude Lawrence was filled with music and grand costumes. Its theme song was also a huge hit, and played repeatedly on the radio and at nearly every big awards show. The film, however, was not popular. Julie had attempted to expand her work in playing Gertrude Lawrence, but even though films were changing to be “reality” oriented, it appears that people didn’t want to see her troubled, angry or anyway but happy.

In 1969, Julie went to work on a new film, Darling Lili, which was directed by the man who would soon become her husband, Blake Edwards. The score was by Henry Mancini. Everyone involved was sure that this film had the markings of greatness and would be a success. In fact, at this time there are those who consider Darling Lili one of Edwards’ best films, but at the time critics and audiences were not enthusiastic.

After all these films--which I’m sure had many viewers—reviews and box office receipts –all compared to The Sound of Music, left reviewers and studios referring to the new films as “flops.”

After this, Julie took a three year break. She had not planned on a break of that length, but meanwhile she was busy. She had a new husband and two new children: Blake’s daughter, Jenny, and his son, Geoffrey, as well as her own daughter, Emma, to care for. Whatever she felt about her career, she was happy being a mother and wife.

There was one more aspect of Julie Andrews that came into play during this time period; she wrote her first children’s book, “Mandy.” In the documentary, Julie, Blake Edwards thoughtfully asks his wife about the new book she is working on, asking how working on a television show will affect her ability to continue with her writing. Clearly, he is aware that her writing means a great deal to her. As of this date, Julie has written approximately 41 books - both with her daughter, Emma Walton Hamilton and by herself.

Since The Julie Andrews Hour, Julie has appeared in many, many films, on television, on Broadway and off, as well as in concerts around the world. Her catalog of work is truly amazing.

Here’s to Julie - wishing her a very happy birthday and many more years, doing the work she loves. She has added a great deal to all our lives.

For more information on Julie Andrews' life, read her marvelous book, Home. She is writing part 2 now.

Episode Three - Julie with Ken Berry and Jack Cassidy

Forty years ago, September 27, 1972….

Dressed as Carol Burnett’s char lady, carrying a mop and pail, Julie Andrews walks onstage, begins to mop the floor, and then seats herself on the bucket. So begins the third episode of The Julie Andrews Hour. This entrance, of course, was a nod to Julie’s good friend, Carol Burnett.

The opening scene changes as eight male dancers arrive, telling Julie that what she’s doing has “been done.” “That’s Been Done” is an intricate musical sketch of interwoven clips showing Julie, her dancers, historic clips, and comedy bits by Rich Little, who plays everyone from Jack Benny, Johnny Cash and Johnny Carson to Walter Brennan.

The guest stars for Episode Three are actor/song and dance man Ken Berry and Broadway musical actor, Jack Cassidy, who it is said was nominated for as many Tony Awards as anyone in history. The show is a fun and beautiful tribute to the musicals of the 1930s. Watching the show once again today brought a smile to my face. It seems even more wonderful now than it did in 1972.

“It was a beautiful, elegant show,” Ken Berry said recently when speaking of The Julie Andrews Hour. “Julie was a sweetheart to work with.”

Berry was invited to be on the show, partly because of his association with Julie’s good friend, Carol Burnett, whose show he appeared on frequently.

During the first half of the show, Julie and Ken pay tribute to the Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers films of the 1930s with a compendium sketch of their films. Once Julie and Ken step onto the set of their 1930s story, it’s beautiful music, wonderful dancing, gorgeous costumes and fun, fun, fun! 

As Ken Berry walks across the floor with that Fred Astaire saunter that no one else has duplicated, we are taken by his ability and charm. He and Julie dance beautifully together. The sketch is pure joy. When I commented to Mr. Berry recently on what a wonderful song and dance man he was, he told me some interesting stories about his life.

Born on November 3^rd, 1933 in Moline, Illinois, Berry knew by the time he was twelve years old that he wanted to be a dancer. Those years of his youth were the time of the movie musical. He spent a lot of time watching Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly on the big screen.

While Ken Berry was the all American guy, “a gentleman,” as choreographer Tony Charmoli called him, Jack Cassidy was full of “pranks.” In the second half of the show, Jack Cassidy appears as a very flamboyant Florenz Ziegfeld, the legendary showman of the “Great White Way,” before Broadway was Broadway. 

Julie plays an aspiring performer, and Alice Ghostly appears as the tragic, yet comic widow of a magician. Rich Little also appears as a young George Burns (as well as Jack Benny), trying to get hired by Ziegfeld.

Jack Cassidy was born in Richmond Hill, New York on March 5, 1927. He had a very successful career on Broadway, winning Best Featured Actor for the musical, She Loves Me in 1964. His catalog of work on television and film is tremendous.

Jack Cassidy married Shirley Jones in 1956. In 1972, Shirley and Jack’s son by his first wife, David Cassidy, were working together on the very popular television series, The Partridge Family. Jack and Shirley had three sons together.

Julie Andrews’ musical numbers with Jack Cassidy are classic. Cassidy, with his Broadway energy, style, and over the top characterization make for a great show.

About working with Julie, Ken Berry expressed what a great experience it was, adding. “She was so beautiful. I will never forget working with her.”

Ken Berry and Julie Andrews in a musical number from
the Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers tribute.
l. to r. Jerry Trent, Walter Stratton, Wayne Dugger,
Gary Menteer, Ken Berry, Julie, Kate Kahn, Sally Mason,
Jude Von Wormer (courtesy Jerry Trent)

At the conclusion of the show, Julie, Ken and Jack sing a medley of old songs tied together by the more modern, “Just an Old Fashioned Love Song.” I. This medley would make a great addition to an album of Julie Andrews Hour songs.

There are many elements to this show I have not mentioned here, including three beautiful solos by Julie (I adore Tulip Time where Julie is dressed as a Dutch girl and she and the chorus dance in wooden shoes). There is also a great sketch with Alice Ghostly playing a housewife in curlers, who fantasizes about Humphrey Bogart, (played by Rich Little) as her ideal man.

Jack Cassidy would appear on two more Julie Andrews Hour shows. Ken Berry was invited back, but at the time they wanted him, he was not available. “I had a contract and I just couldn’t get out of it,” he said regretfully.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Berry

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Cassidy

ALL PHOTOS HERE FOR ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES ONLY.

Coming next – Happy Birthday, Julie!

Tony Charmoli and The Tony Charmoli Dancers

Note: Since this interview several years ago, Tony Charmoli has written his autobiography. It is called "Stars In My Eyes" and is available through your local book store or Amazon.

Cut and paste to go directly to the book. Tony tells a very interesting story, however, there is not much about The Julie Andrews Hour in the book.

http://www.amazon.com/Stars-My-Eyes-Tony-Charmoli/dp/0997382902/ref=sr_1_1_twi_har_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1463071818&sr=8-1&keywords=Stars+In+My+Eyes

***

When Tony Charmoli first received the call from Nick Vanoff about working on The Julie Andrews Hour, he was expecting to be offered the job of director. Tony first met Nick and his wife, Felisa, back in New York more than twenty years earlier when they were all attending dance class at the Charles Weidman studio. “When you work in the business,” he told me, “it becomes a very small world.”

Tony began dancing when he was just a tiny tot in Duluth, Minnesota. He was born in Duluth on June 11, 1921, one year, minus a day, before another future famous Minnesota native. At one of his first performances, he met her--Frances Gumm, who, a few years later, would be known by the world as Judy Garland.

After three years in the Armed Services, Tony moved to New York to study dance. He appeared in numerous Broadway shows, and, in 1949, took his first job as choreo-grapher for the television show, Stop the Music. From there, he went on to choreo-graph dances on the very popular, Your Hit Parade. His work on this show in 1955 won him his first Emmy.

During the early days of television, they were filming dance numbers in the same way audiences would view them in the theater, straight on. Tony Charmoli realized that dance numbers need to be choreographed and filmed in a different way, which he did, changing television entertainment and making dance much more accessible for audiences at home.

Once he moved to Hollywood, Tony Charmoli’s talents were in constant demand. During the late 1950s and 1960s’ he worked with some of the greatest stars in show business, including Danny Kaye and Mitzi Gaynor.

When Charmoli worked with Cyd Charisse, she suggested that he not only choreograph her show, but take over as director. “You’re already doing it all anyway,” she told him. Tony enjoyed directing, and from this point on continued to work as a director.

The night Nick and Felisa Vanoff invited him over to talk about working on The Julie Andrews Hour, Tony made his position clear; he wasn’t interested in just being a choreographer. But his old friends “begged” him to come onboard and join the creative team. Nick told him, “If anything happens, you’ll be able to take over.’ Finally, Tony agreed. Many years later, he commented that Bill Davis never took a day off for the entire run of The Julie Andrews Hour. “Even when he was so sick he was practically dying, he wouldn’t stop working.”

Tony Charmoli’s work with Julie on The Julie Andrews Hour was not the first time he had worked with her. Back in 1965 he’d been hired as choreographer for The Julie Andrews Show, a special with Gene Kelly. Like many shows Tony worked on, this special involved doing something he was good at--taking two very different performers, with different strengths and choreographing dances in a way that brought out each performer’s best qualities. Tony liked doing this and those he worked with felt they were in good hands.

After agreeing to take the job of choreographer for The Julie Andrews Hour, Tony met with Nick and Julie to discuss the show. It was agreed that Julie would have a group of eight chorus boys to dance with on the series. With Charmoli’s vast experience in theater and television, he knew many people and was able to assemble a fine group of dancers. On special occasions, a number of girls were added to the ensemble.

In the meantime, Nick Vanoff had hired Dick Williams (brother of Andy Williams and formerly a member of the Williams Brothers), to direct a group of eight singers, who would pre-record back-up vocals for Julie and her guest stars; the singers would never appear on camera. Yet, despite The Dick Williams Singers, Mr. Charmoli insisted that his dancers sing as well; all of the dancers had to be good singers. He wanted his dancers to be like a Broadway chorus, able to sing, dance and act. This, no doubt, added to the quality of the show. During the next eight months, The Tony Charmoli Dancers often appeared in scenes such as the Noel Coward Tribute and Don Rickles’ sketch, where they portrayed people from various times in history. The dancers were able to do just about anything required of them, and do it well.

Although I posted this photo on the last blog, I did not
have the names of the dancers.  L. to R. Joe Kyle,
Jerry Trent, Garrett Lewis, Julie, Gary Menteer,
Tom Anthony and Walter Stratton.
(Courtesy Jerry Trent)

                                                   ***

A few months ago, I mentioned to guest star Ken Berry that I had only discovered the identity of Julie's eight male dancers because she had introduced each one by name on the last show. Mr. Berry commented on how kind this was of Julie, saying:

“Dancers work so hard. They don’t get paid that much or get a lot of recognition and their careers don’t last that long. It was really so nice of her to recognize them in that way.”

Each of The Tony Charmoli Dancers has had a fascinating theatrical/dance history. Here, in the order Julie introduced them, is a little about each dancer:

Joe Kyle - Tony Charmoli believes that he first choreographed Joe in an act for Carol Lawrence. If Joe Kyle the dancer is the same person as Joe Kyle the actor, he is listed as appearing in several television shows and the film, Frazier the Lion. If anyone has further information on Joe Kyle, please contact me.

Jerry Trent has had the longest dance career of any of The Tony Charmoli Dancers. Most recently, he appeared on Dancing with the Stars for a special dance performance.

Wayne Dugger – I have no information on Wayne. If anyone knew him, or has any information on his career, please contact me.

Walter Stratton began his Broadway career in 1961, when he appeared as part of the ensemble in the musical Milk and Honey. Walter moved out to Hollywood where in 1969 he appeared in the film Sweet Charity.


Gary Crab - Tony Charmoli believes he first hired Gary to work in an act with Lisa Kirk. If anyone has further information on Gary Crab, please contact me.


Gary Menteer - Had a long career from Broadway to television and film and finally to producing Punkie Brewster.

Tom Anthony – I have no information on Tom. If anyone has any information on him, or knows of his whereabouts, please contact me.

Garrett Lewis was not only the tallest of the dancers (6’3”), he was probably the performer with the most extensive theatrical background, He first met Julie Andrews during the time she was starring on Broadway in My Fair Lady. He also appeared with her in the film Star. Finally he became an Academy Award nominated Set Designer!

                                                   ***

It is important to mention Dick Beard, Tony Charmoli’s Assistant Choreographer. Of all the dancers who worked on The Julie Andrews Hour, Dick Beard probably had the most fascinating dance history.

Born Richard Park Beard, in Florida in 1925, he began his career in ballet, training with some of the greatest dancers of his time, including Balanchine, Vladimiroff, and Anna Pavlova’s student, Muriel Stuart. When Beard appeared with Ballet International in 1944, he was rehearsed and trained by Bronislava Nijinska, Leonide Massine (who appeared in the film, The Red Shoes), Mme. Vera Fokina and Boris Romanoff. For those not knowledge-able in the history of ballet, these dancers are all legendary for their work.

Early on, Dick Beard became a member of the American Ballet Theater,  working under the direction of the English choreographer, Antony Tudor. Tudor created many roles for Beard, including the Bridegroom in Undertow. While working under Antony Tudor, Dick Beard partnered Dame Alicia Markova in Romeo and Juliet and Facsimile, a ballet by Jerome Robbins.

Following his career at ABT, Beard went to the New York City Ballet company where he worked with Balanchine. He also worked on the very popular Your Show of Shows, starring Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca. Eventually, Beard formed a dance trio which appeared in hotels and clubs throughout the U.S. and in Paris.

Tony Charmoli had worked with Dick in New York. When Dick moved out to California, he worked with Tony again. As Tony explained to me, he partnered with Dick in working out various dance routines. Tony would take Julie’s part in order to see if the dance was working before trying it out on Julie.

Episode Two - Guests Carl Reiner and Cass Elliot

      After the grand premiere of The Julie Andrews Hour, everyone associated with the show, worked hard to keep it at a high level of excellence.

The guest stars for the second show were Carl Reiner and Cass Elliot, along with Julie's regular co-star, Alice Ghostley.  

Here is a little bit about  these wonderful stars.

Comedian Carl Reiner was born March 20, 1922 in the Bronx, New York. As he states on the show, his parents were Jewish immigrants; his father came from Romania and his mother from Austria. When he was sixteen, Carl’s older brother, Charlie, told him about a free dramatic workshop that he’d seen advertised in the New York Daily News. Carl said that news changed the entire direction of his career and his life. Reiner appeared in many theatrical shows, including musicals on Broadway. In 1950, he worked on Sid Caesar’s Show of Shows, performing skits on the air with Mel Brooks and Neil Simon. In 1960, beginning on The Steve Allen Show, Reiner and Brooks formed a comedy duo which appeared both on television and stage.

Around this same time Carl Reiner developed a television plot which eventually became The Dick Van Dyke Show, making stars of Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore. Carl is the father of Rob Reiner, who became well-known around this time for his acting role as “Meathead” on All in the Family.

Cass Elliot was born Ellen Naomi Cohen in Baltimore, Maryland on September 19, 1941. Serious interest in performing began during her senior year of high school when she appeared in a summer stock performance of The Boyfriend, the very same musical that brought Julie Andrews to America and Broadway. Although in 1962 Cass tried for the role of Miss Marmelstein on Broadway, she lost out to another unknown, Barbra Streisand.

After working in a folk trio and as a solo act, in 1965 Cass Elliot joined The Mamas and The Papas with John Phillips, Michelle Phillips and Denny Doherty. I remember the summer of 1967 when everyone was playing “California Dreamin.’” Other songs recorded by the group include, Monday, Monday and Dedicated to the One I Love.

In 1968, Cass Elliot left The Mamas and The Papas for a solo career, recording songs that sold many albums including: Make Your Own Kind of Music, New World Coming and Dream a Little Dream, among others. Although her weight had sometimes been an issue with her obtaining work, Cass Elliot was a tremendously talented performer in every way, and a warm human being. Evidence of this shows on The Julie Andrews Hour, Episode 2. Once would not automatically think of Julie Andrews and Cass Elliot singing together, but their voices blend beautifully.

Alice Ghostley was born Alice Margaret Ghostley in Eve, Missouri on August 14, 1924. She was raised in Oklahoma and attended the University of Oklahoma until she made the decision to pursue a career in the theater. Moving to New York, Alice’s first appearance on Broadway was in “The New Faces of 1952,” a show which contained many future stars, including Eartha Kitt.

In 1957, Alice had been cast as “Joy” one of the ugly step-stepsisters a new musical, made for television. The show was “Cinderella,” starring Julie Andrews. Kay Ballard played the other sister. In every episode of The Julie Andrews Hour where Alice and Julie appear together, it is obvious that they enjoy working together and play off each other well.

                                                   *******

The second episode of The Julie Andrews Hour began with a party atmosphere as Julie sang “On a Wonderful Night Like Tonight,” followed by “It’s Today” from the musical Mame, during which she introduced her guests. 

One of the funniest moments in the show was a segment where  the four stars lined up on stage, reading from reading famous lines of “the Silver Screen” from scripts. Julie, Carl Reiner, Alice Ghostley and Cass Elliot are unexpectedly hilariously funny with these lines, so much so that they crack each other up. Director Bill Davis wisely did not cut out the bloopers.

In the next scene, Julie Andrews sings “This is My Beloved wearing a lovely white gown, surrounded by trees, dripping with jewels and/or crystals. The music and the photography are dazzling.

Promo for the second show, the Rat Tap number with
Julie's eight fellas:

Another highlight of this flawless show is the tap number, “Rap Tap” performed by Julie and her eight fellas. Her tap dancing is impressive. It’s a nice break in the midst of all the comedy and music.

When one thinks of singers, one hardly pictures Julie Andrews and Cass Elliot in a duet, but the two singers make beautiful music together as they launch into a medley that begins with “Make Your Own Kind of Music.” 

Another funny sketch appears in the show, one that is timeless and classic titled, “All About the Wheels.” In it, Julie and her guests tell the story of a roller derby queen and a sweet, but cut-throat fan. Carl Reiner plays a reported known as “Alison Slime,” with an accent that sounds like an spot-on imitation of James Mason. Cass Elliot is Tiny. Julie is “Helen Wheels” (or Hell on Wheels) the young, seemingly innocent girl who has come to meet her idol played by Alice Ghostley. This sketch is the roller derby version of "All About Eve."

During the "Getting to Know You" segment, during which everyone sitts around, drinking tea and sharing stories. we learned some very interesting things about Carl Reiner, At one point, Julie, wearing a little girls' dress, recreates a song she sang as a child soprano. Carl Reiner gives us a taste of his singing as an Irish tenor, and Cass Elliot goes back to the time of Benny Goodman and sings some of Helen O’Connell’s hits. This is really great stuff and proves what an artist Cass Elliot was.

If you would like to see The Julie Andrews Hour put out on DVD, along with  a Duets CD of Julie and her guests (and maybe others as well), please send a respectful e-mail to requesting this to:     dan.gopal@itv.com

NEXT BLOG – Choreographer Tony Charmoli and Julie’s Eight Guys (The Dancers)

To learn more about these guests, please visit the sites listed below:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Reiner

http://www.casselliot.com/biography.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_Ghostley

The Julie Andrews Hour - Director Bill Davis

The premiere of The Julie Andrews Hour was covered by all the papers and given great reviews. In the long run, the show would win director Bill Davis an Emmy Award.

Recently, Bill Davis, who was born in Canada and has since retired there, agreed to answer some questions about his career as a director and his work on The Julie Andrews Hour. Our "conversations" have taken place via e-mail.

About his beginnings, Bill Davis writes: “I started in TV as a stagehand in Toronto at the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) before they went on the air in September of 1952 and became a producer-director in 1957."

By 1972, Davis was living in Los Angeles, directing CBS television series, The Wacky World of Jonathan Winters. Writers Frank Peppiat and John Aylesworth, also from Canada, were the producers of the show.

Late that spring, the Jonathan Winters’ show went on summer hiatus, and Bill went to work on Hee Haw, which was the summer replacement for Winters’ show. Nick Vanoff was the producer on Hee Haw, and Peppiat and Aylesworth were the writers.

When Bill Davis heard about the new show starring Julie Andrews that Nick Vanoff was going to produce, he wanted to direct it. This would be a once in a lifetime opportunity. “I remember begging for The Julie Andrews Hour,” he recalls. “I was lucky enough to be chosen as director… partly because I was already working with Nick Vanoff and the writers…”

Vanoff chose a good portion of the talent for Julie’s show from the list of people he knew and had already worked with. Frank Peppiat and John Aylesworth had a long list of writing credits. Not only that, like many others who came to work on the Julie Andrews’ show, the men had worked as a team on The Judy Garland Show seven years earlier in1965.

By early summer, Vanoff, Davis, Aylesworth and Peppiat, along with a growing crew, were hard at work, creating what they knew was going to be a great show. Some of the early work took place at Blake and Julie’s home in Beverly Hills. Once the actual staging and rehearsals began, they went to a studio on Sunset Boulevard, a mile or so from ABC Studio on Prospect Avenue, where the show would be taped.

Bill Davis describes the work on the premiere show in this way:

 “The first show was a very ambitious script calling for 3 Julies on camera simultaneously: Julie as herself, Eliza Doolittle and Mary Poppins. That required many setups and chromo-key, which in those years was a technically difficult thing to handle. So, we developed a shooting technique which was almost like a film shoot.”

“Put up a set, light it, rehearse it, dress everyone and shoot it. Then take a break, during which time Julie would wash her hair and do another complete makeup and prep for the next segment. This took many hours over a 2 day period…”

Despite the rave reviews of the first show, during the next few weeks, Davis could see the long hours of shooting were taking a lot of time and “costing a fortune.” He began to worry about the situation. “After a few weeks I could see the handwriting on the wall:  LETS FIRE THE DIRECTOR AND GET SOMEONE IN HERE WHO CAN SPEED UP THE PROCESS.”

In the interest of keeping his job, Bill had a meeting with Nick Vanoff and discussed the possibility of shooting the show as a live performance. Nick agreed. They would try it.

The next few shows (possibly episodes 5, 6, and 7) were shot in this manner, but Julie, a perfectionist, was not comfortable with the “quick changes” required. Eventually, they went back to the old schedule, taking their time and, as Bill put it, allowing Julie “the perfection that she needed to satisfy her.”

Audiences were brought in for portions of the later shows, but even then, the shooting involved many takes. As I would later witness, audiences were excited to see Julie and her guests working in person, but after an hour or two, many grew tired of the work and did not stay. As Bill Davis points out, they often used audiences “for the comedy,” which added to the feeling of a live show, gave them live laughter, rather than canned, and helped the performers, though the crew did a fairly good job of laughing and responding to the numbers.

Tomorrow I will write about the second show. It was one that concentrated a great deal on comedy. Julie’s co-stars were Carl Reiner and Mama Cass Elliot.

Premiere of The Julie Andrews Hour

Here I am rushing off to an event in Indiana, but I could not miss remembering the premiere of this great show which meant so much to me. Next week, I promise, much more!

Forty years ago this week, television audiences across the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom were looking forward to a new television series, starring one of the most wonderful film and stage stars  – Julie Andrews. Audiences no doubt hoped for a show that had class, beauty, inspiration, as well as some fun. They were not disappointed.

On September 13^th, ABC aired the first episode of The Julie Andrews Hour. Julie was in fine form. She performed songs from both the stage shows she had starred in -- The Boy Friend, My Fair Lady and Camelot, as well as songs from her most famous films, Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music.



From the author's 1972 scrapbook



Early in the show, audiences got a surprise--not one Julie Andrews but three! There was Eliza Doolittle whom Julie had charmed theater audiences with, both in the U.S. and England, the very proper Mary Poppins, whom Julie had won an Oscar portraying. And then there was the real Julie, charming, elegant, and beautiful, a real person with a lovely English voice. Audiences of 1972 may have enjoyed the entertainment of this scene, the three ladies with their different personalities, battling it out. Watching the scene today reveals how very clever the creators of the show were, and what a truly great actress Julie Andrews was and is.

At one point, the creators of the episode bring Julie out of the make-believe world and into the real world by inserting comments from people on the street and having her respond to them. They also took Julie and a group of people (actors and dancers dressed like ordinary people) out through the loading dock of the sound stage and onto the streets of Los Angeles where Julie and an odd assortment of characters dance on the sidewalk, in a rather rundown shopping mall and in a park.

Julie Andrews’s permanent guests, Rich Little and Alice Ghostly made quick appearances in this show. Rich helped Julie in the Camelot section by portraying Robert Goulet and Richard Burton. Alice appeared in a segment called “Roommates,” which portrayed the two women as roommates (made up, of course) during their early theater days. Alice plays the down and out roommate with no dates and no phone calls, while Julie plays the “practically perfect” roommate who gets a starring role, and memorizes it in a snap. She also gets loads of calls from men wanting to take her out on a date.



This is not the gown
from the premiere,
but designer Bear often
dressed her elegantly in white.



Later, someone I met commented to me about Julie, saying, “You know that roommate section when Julie learned a script in a snap?  That’s Julie… almost.”

Perhaps the most dazzling moment of the show is when Julie twirls in her gorgeous white gown (by Jack Bear) and sings “I Could Have Danced All Night.” At one point the camera shows her in a kaleidoscope effect, creating five or six Julies, like a gorgeous frescoed ceiling. Truly gorgeous!

All in all, the show was everything any fan or admirer of Miss Andrews, theater and good music could hope for. It was fun, elegant, and enchanting.

So, the new television series was off and running and the network, crew, and Julie herself were looking forward to a great run on television. The only problem was that show was set for ten pm, on a weeknight. As producer Nick Vanoff would later say, at that time a good portion of Julie’s fans were already in bed.