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Flower Drum Song is a 1961 American musical film directed by Henry Koster, adapted from the 1958 Broadway musical Flower Drum Song, written by the composer Richard Rodgers and the lyricist/librettist Oscar Hammerstein II, in turn based on the 1957 novel of the same name by the Chinese American author Chin Yang Lee.
The original Broadway production of "Flower Drum Song" opened at the Saint James Theater on December 1, 1958, ran for 600 performances and was nominated for the 1959 Tony Award (New York City) for the Best Musical. Miyoshi Umeki and Juanita Hall reprise their stage roles in the movie.
Flower Drum Song: Directed by Henry Koster. With Nancy Kwan, James Shigeta, Benson Fong, Jack Soo. A young woman arrives in San Francisco's Chinatown from Hong Kong with the intention of marrying a rakish nightclub owner, unaware he is involved with one of his singers.
- (3.7K)
- Comedy, Musical, Romance
- Henry Koster
- 1962-03-28
Flower Drum Song was the eighth musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on the 1957 novel, The Flower Drum Song, by Chinese-American author C. Y. Lee. It premiered on Broadway in 1958 and was then performed in the West End and on tour. It was adapted for a 1961 musical film.
- Chin Yang Lee
- 1957
- Check out how the original book was discovered: “[The author C.Y. Lee] had hoped to break into playwriting, but instead wrote a novel about Chinatown, The Flower Drum Song (originally titled Grant Avenue).
- Interesting note about the casting of the musical play: “The three producers [Meryle Secrest, Rodgers, Hammerstein and Fields] sought Chinese, or at least Asian, actors to fill the cast, an idea that was, at the time, considered “very risky”.
- Anna May Wong was supposed to play Madame Liang, but she died before the movie started filming. Source.
- Nancy Kwan was so beautiful and James Shigeta was so handsome. Kwan and Shigeta were easily the best things about the movie.
After a one-month out-of-town tryout at Boston’s Shubert Theatre, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Flower Drum Song premiered the first primarily Asian American cast to ever perform in a Broadway musical, including Pat Suzuki, Miyoshi Umeki, Jose Ahumada, Fumi Akimoto, Paula Chin and many others.
Aug 15, 2021 · Production: What we know about Flower Drum Song? Key Facts. Based on the Rodgers & Hammerstein musical/play. Filming Timeline . 2021 - August: The film was set to Development status.
