RARE! "Oklahoma!" Rodgers and Hammerstein Hand Signed Program Todd Mueller COA

Description

Up for auction a
RARE! "Oklahoma!" Rodgers and Hammerstein Hand Signed Program. This Program is also signed by Bill Hayes.
This item is certified authentic by Todd Mueller Autographs and comes with their Certificate of Authenticity.
ES-2460G
Richard Charles Rodgers
(June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American
composer
, known largely for his work in musical theater. With 43 Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers was one of the most significant American composers of the 20th century, and his compositions had a significant impact on popular music. He is best known for his songwriting partnerships with the lyricist
Lorenz Hart
, with whom he wrote several musicals throughout the 1920s and 1930s, including
Pal Joey
,
A Connecticut Yankee
,
On Your Toes
and
Babes in Arms
;
and
Oscar Hammerstein II
, with whom he wrote musicals through the 1940s and 1950s such as
Oklahoma!
,
Carousel
,
South Pacific
,
The King and I
, and
The Sound of Music
. His collaborations with Hammerstein, in particular, are celebrated for bringing the Broadway musical to a new maturity by telling stories that were focused around characters and drama rather than the light-hearted entertainment that the genre was known for beforehand. Rodgers was the first person to win all of what are considered the top American entertainment awards in theater, film, recording, and television – a
Tony
, an
Oscar
, a
Grammy
, and an
Emmy
— now known collectively as an
EGOT
. In addition, he was awarded a
Pulitzer Prize
, making him one of only two people to receive all five awards (
Marvin Hamlisch
is the other). In 1978, Rodgers was awarded
The Kennedy Center Honors
for his lifetime achievement in the arts.
Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II
(
/ˈhæmərstaɪn/
; July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was an American lyricist,
librettist
, theatrical producer, and (usually uncredited) director in the musical theater for almost 40 years. He won eight
Tony Awards
and two
Academy Awards for Best Original Song
. Many of his songs are standard repertoire for vocalists and
jazz musicians
. He co-wrote 850 songs. He is best known for his collaborations with composer
Richard Rodgers
, as the duo
Rodgers and Hammerstein
, whose musicals include
Oklahoma!
,
Carousel
,
South Pacific
,
The King and I
, and
The Sound of Music
. Described by
Stephen Sondheim
as an "experimental playwright," Hammerstein helped bring the American musical to new maturity by popularizing musicals that focused on stories and character rather than the lighthearted entertainment that the musical had been known for beforehand. He also collaborated with
Jerome Kern
(with whom he wrote
Show Boat
),
Vincent Youmans
,
Rudolf Friml
,
Richard A. Whiting
, and
Sigmund Romberg
.
William "Bill" Foster Hayes III
(born June 5, 1925) is an American actor and a
Billboard
#1 recording artist, as his song “
The Ballad of Davy Crockett
“ hit the top of the charts in the spring of 1955. Following a successful career as a musician which began in the late 1940s, he began to focus on dramatic acting parts in the late 1960s, which led him to be cast in a role that gained him additional fame to a younger generation. This new chapter in his career began in 1970 when he originated
the character of Doug Williams
on NBC's
Days of Our Lives
, which he continues to play regularly to date on the serial.