Jimmy Shine
Encyclopedia
Jimmy Shine is an American
musical
with music
and lyrics
by John Sebastian
and a musical book by Murray Schisgal
. The plot of the musical centers on its title character who is a struggling artist in Greenwich Village
during the 1960s. Much of the story follows Jimmy's relationships with various women in his life and how he copes with love, sex, death, and rejection in relation to both himself and his art.
on December 5, 1968 at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre
where it closed on April 26, 1969 after 161 performances. The production starred Dustin Hoffman
in the title role, with Pamela Payton-Wright
as Constance Fry, Susan Sullivan
as Elizabeth Evans, Rose Gregorio
as Rosie Pitkin, Charles Siebert
as Michael Leon, Cleavon Little
as Lee Haines, Rue McClanahan
as Sally Weber, Barbara Cason
as Miss Green, Eli Mintz
as Mr. Lepke, Dorothy Emmerson
as Rita, Gale Dixon
as Millie, and Arnold Wilkerson
as Arnold. Hoffman won a Drama Desk Award
for Outstanding Performance for his role in the production.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
musical
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
with music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
and lyrics
Lyrics
Lyrics are a set of words that make up a song. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist or lyrist. The meaning of lyrics can either be explicit or implicit. Some lyrics are abstract, almost unintelligible, and, in such cases, their explication emphasizes form, articulation, meter, and symmetry of...
by John Sebastian
John Sebastian
John Benson Sebastian Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and autoharpist. He is best known as a founder of The Lovin' Spoonful, a band inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000...
and a musical book by Murray Schisgal
Murray Schisgal
Murray Schisgal is an American playwright and screenwriter.Native New Yorker Schisgal won his first recognition for the 1963 off-Broadway double-bill The Typists and The Tiger, which won him the Drama Desk Award. His 1965 Broadway debut, Luv, earned him Tony Award nominations for Best Play and...
. The plot of the musical centers on its title character who is a struggling artist in Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
during the 1960s. Much of the story follows Jimmy's relationships with various women in his life and how he copes with love, sex, death, and rejection in relation to both himself and his art.
Production history
Jimmy Shine opened on BroadwayBroadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
on December 5, 1968 at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre
Brooks Atkinson Theatre
The Brooks Atkinson Theatre is a Broadway theater located at 256 West 47th Street in Manhattan.Designed by architect Herbert J. Krapp, it was constructed as the Mansfield Theatre by the Chanin brothers in 1926. After 1933, the theatre fell into relative disuse until 1945, when Michael Myerberg...
where it closed on April 26, 1969 after 161 performances. The production starred Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Lee Hoffman is an American actor with a career in film, television, and theatre since 1960. He has been known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and vulnerable characters....
in the title role, with Pamela Payton-Wright
Pamela Payton-Wright
-Biography:Payton-Wright was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the daughter of Eleanor Ruth and Gordon Edgar Payton-Wright. She graduated from the Birmingham-Southern College in 1963. She began her television career in 1972 as Rhonda on Corky...
as Constance Fry, Susan Sullivan
Susan Sullivan
Susan Michaela Sullivan is an American actress, known for several notable roles on various television programs. Sullivan played the role of Lenore Curtin Delaney on the daytime soap opera, Another World ; waitress Lois Adams during the first season of the comedy It's a Living, Maggie Gioberti...
as Elizabeth Evans, Rose Gregorio
Rose Gregorio
Rose Gregorio is an American character actress. She began her career appearing mostly in theatre in Chicago and New York City during the 1950s and 1960s. During the 1970s she became more active in television and film, appearing mostly in supporting roles...
as Rosie Pitkin, Charles Siebert
Charles Siebert
Charles Siebert is an American actor and television director. As an actor he is best known for his role as Dr. Stanley Riverside II on Trapper John, M.D. which he portrayed from 1979-1986...
as Michael Leon, Cleavon Little
Cleavon Little
Cleavon Jake Little was an American film and theatre actor.Little was widely known for his lead role as Sheriff Bart in the 1974 Mel Brooks comedy Blazing Saddles. He also was the irreverent Dr...
as Lee Haines, Rue McClanahan
Rue McClanahan
Rue McClanahan was an American actress, best known for her roles on television as Vivian Harmon on Maude, Fran Crowley on Mama's Family, and Blanche Devereaux on The Golden Girls, for which she won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in 1987.-Early life:McClanahan was born Eddie Rue...
as Sally Weber, Barbara Cason
Barbara Cason
Barbara Cason was an American character actress. Born in Memphis, Tennessee, she began her career appearing in theatre and on local television in Memphis during the 1950s, where she notably co-founded and ran the Front St. Theatre.She relocated to New York City in 1967, becoming active in theatre...
as Miss Green, Eli Mintz
Eli Mintz
-Biography:Born as Edward Satz in Lwów, Poland , the son of a tailor, he began acting professionally as a child in the theatre, with his first performance being in a production of The Dybbuk. He immigrated to the United States in 1927 with the intent of pursuing a career as an actor...
as Mr. Lepke, Dorothy Emmerson
Dorothy Emmerson
Dorothy Emmerson is an American actress and singer who was active in the New York City theatre scene during the 1960s and 1970s. She first appeared in the ensembles of the original 1963 Vernon Duke musical Zenda and the 1965 Lincoln Center Revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Carousel...
as Rita, Gale Dixon
Gale Dixon
Gale Dixon is an American actress and singer who had a brief but active career in theatre, television, and film from the late 1960s through the mid 1970s. She made her Broadway debut in 1966 as Francine in Robert Fisher and Arthur Marx's The Impossible Years...
as Millie, and Arnold Wilkerson
Arnold Wilkerson
Arnold Wilkerson is an American actor and the creator and owner of the Little Pie Company in Manhattan, New York City. As an actor he is particularly known for portraying roles in the original productions of the musicals Hair, Jimmy Shine, and Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope.-Biography:Wilkerson was...
as Arnold. Hoffman won a Drama Desk Award
Drama Desk Award
The Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category...
for Outstanding Performance for his role in the production.