Jump to content

Minick

Add links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other uses, seeMinick (disambiguation).
Minick
Page from a printed playbill
Playbillfor the Booth Theatre production
Written byEdna FerberandGeorge S. Kaufman
Based on"Old Man Minick"
by Edna Ferber
Date premieredSeptember 24, 1924(1924-09-24)
Place premieredBooth Theatre
Original languageEnglish
GenreComedy
SettingChicago

Minickis a three-act Broadway play written byEdna FerberandGeorge S. Kaufman,[1]based on Ferber's 1922 short story "Old Man Minick",that opened on September 24, 1924. ProducerWinthrop Amesstaged it at theBooth TheatreonBroadway,withO. P. Heggiein the title role. The play is about an elderly widower who comes to live with his son and daughter-in-law in theirChicagoapartment.

History

[edit]

George S. KaufmanandEdna Ferberdeveloped Ferber's short story "Old Man Minick"into the playMinick,which was initially produced byWinthrop Amesand opened on September 24, 1924.[2]

Ames cast a Black actress, Emma Wise, to play the Minicks' maid, which was unusual at a time when most productions were racially segregated.[3]Previewswere held in three cities inConnecticut:New Haven,Hartford,[4]andNew London.In New London, a disused theater was reopened for the preview, which was interrupted by the emergence of hundreds of bats that had taken up residence in the building while it was closed.[3]

Cast and characters

[edit]

The characters and opening night cast from the Broadway production are given below:[5]

Opening night cast
Character Broadway cast
Old Man Minick O. P. Heggie
Fred Minick Frederic Burt
Nettie Minick Phyllis Povah
Jim Corey Sydney Booth
Al Diamond Ralph Bunker
Mr. Dietenhofer Charles R. Burrows
Mrs. Lippincott Jessie Graham
Marge Diamond Myra Hampton
Miss Crackenwald Mary Hubbard
Mr. Prince Thomas Meegan
Annie Beatrice Moreland
Lil Corey Antoinette Perry
Mrs. Smallridge Lavinia Shannon
Miss Stack Ann Winslow
Lula Emma Wise

Reception

[edit]

The play received positive reviews from critics.[6]A 1924 review inTimesaid of Ferber and Kaufman, "they very nearly did a masterpiece. The play is amusing, deeply touching in spots, but overshoots the mark by a too tenacious realism."[7]Stark Young wrote in a review forThe New York Times,"The whole tone of the play is constantly funny, loving and tragic altogether. The long gap between the generations of these people, the lack of any idea that might bring them closer to each other: the barren mediocrity of their lives, their good intentions, their good hearts, their stupid interests, and most of all the dumbness of human beings toward each other no matter what they feel, these are the themes that are woven into the texture of the piece."[8]

Adaptations

[edit]

Famous Players–Laskyadapted the play as asilent filmin 1925 under the titleWelcome Home,directed byJames Cruze.[9]

Warner Brothersdid two sound film adaptations. In 1932,Archie MayodirectedThe Expert,starringChic Sale.In 1939,Terry O. MorsedirectedNo Place to Go,starringDennis Morgan.

References

[edit]
  1. ^Ferber, Edna (1924).Old Man Minick. A Short Story. By Edna Ferber. Minick. A Play Based on the Short Story. By E. Ferber and George S. Kaufman, Etc.London – viaGoogle Books.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  2. ^Hischak, Thomas S. (2009).Broadway Plays and Musicals: Descriptions and Essential Facts of More Than 14,000 Shows through 2007.McFarland. p.301.ISBN978-0-7864-5309-2.
  3. ^abMeredith 1974,p.228.
  4. ^"Old Man Minickan Unusual Play ".The Hartford Courant.September 7, 1924. p. 3.1 – viaNewspapers.com.
  5. ^"Minick".Internet Broadway Database.RetrievedJanuary 11,2023.
  6. ^Meredith 1974,p.229.
  7. ^"New Plays".Time.October 6, 1924 – via EBSCOhost.
  8. ^Young, Stark (September 25, 1924). "The Play".New York Times.ProQuest103350919
  9. ^Hall, Mourdant (May 18, 1925). "Minick".New York Times.ProQuest103477269

Works cited

[edit]
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Minick&oldid=1217797380"