Gannett News Service
Audrey Hepburn and Rex Harrison charmed moviegoers in the classic 1964 movie "My Fair Lady."

Gannett News Service
Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta changed their looks for each other in the 1978 musical "Grease."

'Fair' play

Story of 'My Fair Lady' is told again and again in film, on stage

ROSS RAIHALA, THE OLYMPIAN

Originally published Friday, February 15, 2002

It should come as little surprise that the story of "My Fair Lady" is an enduring one, as it dates back not only to George Bernard Shaw's "Pygmalion" but all the way to Greek myth.

A popular screenwriting course offered by Scriptmag.com conservatively estimates that at least 100 films have borrowed from the "Pygmalion" story.

In 1916, Shaw published "Pygmalion," which tells of upper-crust Brit Henry Higgins' attempt to transform lowly flower seller Eliza Doolittle into a high-society woman. Shaw drew from the Greek myth of Pygmalion, a sculptor who created such a beautiful statue the gods brought it to life.

Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe upped the romance and set the tale to music for "My Fair Lady," which opened on Broadway in 1956 and hit the silver screen eight years later.

The original Broadway stint of "My Fair Lady" ran for 2,717 performances over the course of nearly seven years. Until "Fiddler on the Roof," it was the longest-running show of all time.

In 1965, Warner Bros. estimated the film, stage and recorded versions of the musical had already brought in a gross revenue that topped $800 million.

A national touring version of "My Fair Lady" stops in Olympia on Monday night. Tickets, however, are sold out.

Those feeling lucky are advised to check with The Washington Center's box office, as last-minute cancellations may lead to freed-up seats.

But those who simply want to relive the story that Roger Ebert once called "the best stage musical of all time and one of the most loved romances" are advised to hit the video store.

Here's a list of some films that draw inspiration from "Pygmalion" -- both direct descendants of the story as well as those that simply lift the concept of transformation and the romance that might just follow.

- "Pygmalion" (1939): Of all the filmed versions of Shaw's play, co-directors Anthony Asquith and Leslie Howard probably captured it best. That's because Shaw himself wrote additional dialogue to ease the story's transition from the stage to the screen and won an Oscar in the process.

For the most part a comedy, "Pygmalion" does not end on the romantic high note so loved by "My Fair Lady" fans. For that reason alone, it's probably the best of this lot.

- "Cinderella" (1950): Another classic tale on its own, "Cinderella" touches on "Pygmalion" in its story of a neglected stepdaughter who is magically transformed into a princess.

Disney's animated version remains one of the most-loved family films of all time and actually holds up to multiple adulthood viewings.

- "My Fair Lady" (1964): After its smashing Broadway run -- which included nine Tony Awards in 1957, including Best Musical -- it was only a matter of time before Lerner and Loewe's musical "Pygmalion" traveled to Hollywood.

Audrey Hepburn and Rex Harrison starred as Doolittle and Higgins under the direction of George Cukor, the man who was responsible for such other classics as "The Women," "The Philadelphia Story," "Born Yesterday" and "A Star Is Born."

"Wouldn't It Be Loverly" and "I Could Have Danced All Night" are among the many now-standards of the film, although those aren't Hepburn's vocals you hear -- Marni Nixon provided the singing voice of Doolittle. (The DVD version, however, features some restored Hepburn vocal turns.)

The film swept the Academy Awards the following year, picking up statues for Best Director, Best Film, Best Actor (for Harrison) and Best Musical Score among them.

- "Grease" (1978): In order to attract the attention bad boy Danny Zuko (John Travolta), Sandy Olsen (Olivia Newton-John) trades her pink sweaters and poodle skirts for high heels and black leather. Meanwhile, in a "Gift of the Magi" twist, Danny attempts to become a jock.

The much-despised 1982 sequel flipped the script as bookish Michael Carrington (Maxwell Caulfield) becomes a mysterious motorcycle stud to catch the eye of fast-and-easy Stephanie Zinone (Michelle Pfeiffer). It is probably showing on VH1 right now.

- "Can't Buy Me Love" (1987): The Washington Post condemned this teen comedy as "a bland parody of pubescent pain." Patrick Dempsey stars as a nerd who pays a cheerleader $1,000 to date him for a month, with hopes he'll make inroads with the cool kids. Lessons about being conceited are learned in the process.

Another flick of the era, "Just One of the Guys," featured a somewhat similar story of a girl who poses as a boy in order to be taken seriously as a journalist(!), while the particularly offensive "Soul Man" starred C. Thomas Howell as a student who pretends to be black in order to get a minority scholarship. Oh those '80s -- so wacky!

- "Pretty Woman" (1990): Julia Roberts kicked off her "Love Is Nice" career path with this absurdly popular fairy tale about a Hooker With A Heart Of Gold who, uh, hooks up with a Wealthy Businessman Who Has Forgotten How To Love played by Richard Gere.

- "Waiting for Guffman" (1996): "My Fair Lady" is referred to in dozens of other films, from "A View to a Kill" to "Grumpier Old Men."

This excellent Christopher Guest comedy contains one of the funniest of such references. It occurs in a nearly throwaway, yet hilarious, scene in which lead character Corky St. Clair reveals he's been working on a Cockney accent. "Ow awe oooh?" is his take on "How are you?" All that, plus it's got Parker Posey.

- "She's All That" (1999): The most blatant "Pygmalion" revision in years sees Freddie Prinze Jr. attempt to reshape bespectacled Rachael Leigh Cook as a prom-ready hottie.

At the time, a critic for The Onion's AV Club wrote: "it should look hilariously dated in a matter of minutes." And, what do you know, he was right.

Ross Raihala covers music and entertainment for The Olympian and can be reached at 360-754-5406 or OlyRoss@aol.com.

'My Fair Lady'

- What: A touring version of the Lerner and Loewe musical.

- When: 7:30 p.m. Feb. 18.

- Where: The Washington Center for the Performing Arts, 512 Washington St. S.E., Olympia.

- Tickets: Sold out, although interested parties can contact The Washington Center box office at 360-753-8586 to check for possible last-minute cancellations that would free up seats.

The Olympian Copyright 2002

back to Feature of the Week index