1917 Birthday of playwright , writer of numerous plays including and , but who is best known as librettist for musical classics and .
1926 A woman is mistaken for a divorce correspondent as 's play, , opens at the Cort Theatre in New York. The Blonde Sinner, taking place at a Long Island summer manor, is described as a "play with musical specialties." Among these specialties: several dances, including a Charleston.
1947 returns to his Broadway roots as he temporarily replaces in . Fay, playing the role of Elwood P. Dowd since the play opened, left the Broadway company to do the show out of town. Before and after performances, two policemen must be stationed outside the theatre in order to control crowds longing to see the Hollywood star of such films as The Philadelphia Story and It's a Wonderful Life. Three years later, Stewart stars in a film adaptation of the play, earning him an Academy Award nomination.
1969 is founded in Greenwich Village. During its 27 years of existence, the Off-Broadway stalwart plays host to many seminal playwrights and directors, including , , , and many more.
1996 A recast, restaged revival of 's opens at 's Criterion Theatre on Broadway. Originally scheduled to star under the direction of , just days before its previews the play was taken over by director and star .
1999 Television celebs (Friends) and (L.A. Law, The West Wing) star in the 's production of 's latest jazz-induced show, The Glimmer Brothers. The play by the Side Man scribe undergoes changes to its title (to Glimmer, Glimmer and Shine) and cast (Spencer intact) and opens May 24, 2001, Off-Broadway at the , following a run at Los Angeles' Mark Taper Forum.
2002 The solo comedy show airs on HBO from the Broadway Theatre.
2008 faces the Wild West in the U.S. premiere of 's Kicking a Dead Horse, which officially opens at .
More of Today's Birthdays: (1894-1973). (1896-1981). (1904-1991). (1915-2004). (1918-2007). (1922-2001). 1930-2014). Jane Lynch (b. 1960).
