History Daily - Funny Girl Opens on Broadway

Episode Date: March 26, 2025

March 26, 1964. New musical Funny Girl opens on Broadway, confirming leading lady Barbra Streisand as a superstar of stage and screen. Support the show! Join Into History for ad-free listening and more.History Daily is a co-production of Airship and Noiser.Go to HistoryDaily.com for more history, daily.

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it's on a matter sure so much co-stom work It's March 26th, 1964, at the Winter Garden Theater in New York City. 22-year-old Barbara Streisand walks back and forth across her dressing room, focusing on her breathing, trying to calm her nerves.

It's opening night of Funny Girl, a musical based on the life of American actress and singer Fannie Bryce. Funny Girl isn't Barbara's first time on Broadway, but it is her debut in a leading role. Her heartbeat quickens as a stage hand peers in, and tells Barbara there's only two minutes until curtain. Barbara again tries to collect herself and then heads out into the hallway. But she stopped when someone grabs her arm. A makeup artist has a horrified look on her face. While Barbara has been fidgeting in her dressing room, she smudged her eyeliner.

As other cast members hurry past, the makeup artist holds Barbara's head still and gives her one last quick touch-up. Barbara then rushes after the other performers to the stage. Reaching the wings, she pauses, takes yet another deep. breath and waits for her cue. Where when her moment comes and Barbara walks out to thunderous applause, all trace of her nerves evaporates, and she launches into a first-night performance that will be talked about for years to come. Barbara Streisand will win the praise of critics and theater-goers alike as Funny Girl proves an instant Broadway hit. Barbara will go on to perform as Fannie Bryce hundreds of times in New York and in London's West End, and she'll even reprise the

role in an award-winning Hollywood adaptation of the play. Barbara Streisand was already building a name for herself, but funny girl, rockets her to stardom after her first performance in the musical on March 26, 1964. From Noiser and Airship, I'm Lindsay Graham, and this is History Daily. History is made every day. On this podcast, every day, we tell the true stories of the people and events that shaped our world. Today is March 26, 1964. Funny Girl opens on Broadway. It's 1949 at an elementary school in Brooklyn, New York, 15 years before Barbara Streisand's first performance in Funny Girl.

A seven-year-old Barbara clutches her churning stomach as she stands beside the school's stage. At home, Barbara loves to sing, but today is the first time she's performed in front of an audience. But that's not the only reason why Barbara's stomach is doing somersaults. She spent all yesterday sick in bed, and she should probably still be out of school today. but Barbara's determined not to miss this chance. She gazes out at the parents and students who have gathered in the hall for today's special assembly until Barbara eventually spots her mother's face. She gives Barbara a reassuring smile.

And then a teacher announces Barbara's name. Barbara self-consciously shuffles onto stage and looks around the packed room. The eyes of everyone are fixed on her. She takes a deep breath and begins to sing. Barbara is always happiest when she's singing, and it's an escape she desperately needs. Barbara's father died when she was only a year old, and the loss of his schoolteacher's salary

plunged the stricant family into poverty. Barbara's mother tried to pay the bills by training as a bookkeeper, but she struggled to earn enough money to make ends meet. Times were often tough, but the family found some relief in music. Barbara's mother was a talented singer, and she encouraged Barbara to practice and train her voice. After all, singing was a hobby

that didn't require any expensive, equipment. After Barbara's stage debut in the school assembly, she continues to practice and takes every opportunity she can to sing and perform. In high school, Barbara joins the freshman chorus, teaming up to sing with others for the first time. There, Barbara discovers the joy of performing as part of a wider cast, especially alongside another talented student with a great voice, the future pop star, Neil Diamond. Soon Neil and Barbara are sharing most of the singing group's leading parts between them. But though Barbara and Neal and Neal, or close friends, she doesn't have any romantic feelings toward him.

She saves those for another classmate, one who doesn't attend the freshman chorus at all. Instead, the young Bobby Fisher spends most of his time hunched over a chessboard. He's already on his way to becoming one of the greatest chess players of all time. But Barbara Streisand is soon departing on her own extraordinary journey as well. After graduating high school in 1959, Barbara signs a lease for an apartment on 48th Street in the heart of New York's theater district. It's a bold move because Barbara is still only 16, and her show business experience is limited to school, plays, weddings,

and a few walk-on parts in local amateur productions. But Barbara is determined to pursue her dream of becoming a Broadway star. Barbara takes on low-paying work while she auditions for any part she can, but she finds it tough to earn a break in the competitive theater industry. After a few months, she's out of cash and gives up her apartment. She starts sleeping on friends' couches, and her mother tells her that she should give up on a career in show business, get a real job instead. But Barbara isn't prepared to throw in the towel just yet. She's encouraged by every morsel of praise that casting directors give her no matter how small.

And when Barbara's boyfriend spots that a nightclub is holding a talent contest, Barbara decides to enter. At this talent show, Barbara sings two numbers and both leave the audience in enraptured silence until the end when they break out and thunder of someone. applause. The reaction of the crowd is all the judges need to hear. Barbara is crowned the winner of the talent contest, and she's invited back to become one of the club's regular singers. Soon after this, another nightclub signs up Barbara to perform. They pay her $125 a week five times the average women's wage in 1960. Now that she has a regular paycheck, Barbara realizes that she does have a future in show business after all, but perhaps as a singer, not as an actor. Over the next six months, Barbara steadily refines her act.

Critics are soon comparing her to establish stars like Julie Garland, with one reviewer even predicting that by the time she's 30, Barbara will have rewritten the record books. These words will prove prophetic, because within a decade, Barbara won't just be a nightclub singer in New York. She'll be a star of stage and screen who's famous all around the world. The idea of the joctuismus' Antigua from

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All the good. Do we're ho as well. It's November 16th, 1961, at the Blue Angel nightclub in New York, a year after Barbara Streisand won a nightclub talent contest. Now 19 years old, Barbara takes to the stage and blinks in the bright lights. The Blue Angel is a step above the usual venues where Barbara performs. It's an upscale nightclub that attracts many of New York's trend centers. Barbara's been hired for a week-long run,

but at tonight's opening show, there's only one person in the audience she's performing. for. A few weeks ago, Barbara discovered that a new musical was coming to Broadway. I Can Get It For You Wholesale is based on a 1937 novel and has been adapted for the stage by renowned playwright Arthur Lawrence. When Barbara read the novel, she loved it and her dreams of being a Broadway star were suddenly rekindled. Earlier today, she auditioned for the role and now Arthur Lawrence has come to see her sing on stage. Barbara hopes it's a positive sign and like the rest of the audience, Arthur is captivated by Barbara's nightclub set. And a few days later, Barbara gets the call she's been hoping for.

She's been cast in the part of Miss Marmolstein, a supporting role in the musical. Barbara's experience on I Can Get It For You Wholesale is everything she dreamed it would be. The show opens to rave reviews from critics, and Barbara secures a nomination for Best Actress in the prestigious Tony Awards. She even ends up in a romantic relationship

with the show's lead, Elliot Gould. And when the final curtain falls at the end of the end of, of a nine-month run, Barbara has completed 300 performances of the musical. She's no longer a nightclub singer. She is a Broadway star. Over the next few months, Barbara becomes an in-demand celebrity, and that brings new opportunities for her to show off her talents. She appears on the Ed Sullivan show alongside the singer Liberacee, one of the biggest stars in America. He is so taken with Barbara that he invites her to open for him at his long-running Las Vegas show. Barbara then records a solo album,

which reaches the top 10 in the charts and wins three Grammy Awards. But despite her growing success off the stage, Barbara still considers theater to be her first love. And thanks to her growing profile, there's no shortage of producers wanting her to star on their shows. In 1963, she's asked to audition for the lead in Funny Girl, a new musical based on the life of comedian Fannie Bricie. Funny Girl has been developed by Fannie's son-in-law, Ray Stark, but it's had a troubled journey to the stage. Ray has tried several different ways to tell Fannie's story. He's spent tens of thousands of dollars commissioning a biography, only to be unhappy with the results. He also tried to develop a screenplay, but 11 different writers failed to produce a script that Ray deemed good enough.

He finally decided to adapt Fannie's life into a stage musical, but then struggled to find a leading lady. But when Barbara sings for Ray, he realizes that she is perfect for the role, and he hires her on the spot. But even though Funny Girl has secured its lead, it's still far from ready. Over the next few months, several directors and composers will come and go. And when Funny Girl begins an out-of-town tryout in Boston, Massachusetts to identify and fix any issues before the show is performed on Broadway, audiences are left unimpressed. They think the show is too long. So the producers cut 30 minutes and then stage another test run in Philadelphia.

But it's still too long. Another five songs are cut and the director is replaced, but now the clock is ticking. Funny Girl's Broadway debut has already been postponed five times, and the bosses at the Winter Garden Theater are starting to put pressure on Ray Stark. Either Funny Girl opens on Broadway soon, or it'll lose its slot. But after only a few more adjustments, Ray declares that he's satisfied. Funny Girl is finally ready for its Broadway debut. It opens on March 26, 1964, and the extra time, spent on perfecting the show soon proves its worth. The reaction from the audience on opening

night is ecstatic. Barbara and her fellow cast take 23 curtain calls before heading off for a party. They're still celebrating when the morning papers hit the newsstands full of praise for the show and especially Barbara's performance. Barbara will continue to play Fannie Bryce for the next two years in New York and London before finally leaving Funny Girl in July of 1966. But even then, her time with Fannie Bryce won't be over. Two years later, she'll reprise the role one final time. Funny Girl the musical made her a Broadway star. But Funny Girl, the movie, will take Barbara Streisand to new Hollywood Heights.

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Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles California five years after Funny Girl opened

on Broadway 26-year-old Barbara Strison sits alongside Hollywood's biggest

Stars at the 41 Academy Awards Legendary actress Ingrid

Bergman has just walked onto stage with an envelope in her hand, and Barbara tries her best to remain calm for the cameras. But that's a tall order, because tonight could be the biggest moment of Barbara's career so far. After Funny Girl opened on Broadway to critical acclaim, producer Ray Stark revisited his idea of turning his mother-in-law's life into a movie. The success of the Broadway show

meant there was intense competition among Hollywood Studios to secure the rights to the musical, but Ray had one condition. He insisted that he would always. only allow Funny Girl to be adapted into a movie if Barbara Streisand retained the lead role. Thankfully for Ray, the studios were eager to cast her, and Barbara was delighted to add a Hollywood movie to her resume. Funny Girl was released in theaters in September, 1968, and was a box office hit with audiences. And now, Barbara's hoping that the Academy liked it, too. She's been

nominated for Best Actress, alongside the likes of Vanessa Redgrave and Catherine Hepburn. The entire theater holds its breath as Ingrid Bergman tears open the envelope. She pauses, frowning at the cart inside. Then when she finally starts to speak, her voice is hesitant. The winner, it's a tie. The winners are Catherine Hapard, in Lion in the Winter, and Barbara Streis. This is only the third time in Oscar history that an award has been shared. But Barbara doesn't mind. She'll get plenty of opportunities to add other solo awards to her collection. In her long career, she'll go on to win another Oscar,

as well as 10 Grammys, nine Golden Globes, five Emmys and four Peabody Awards, a storied career that got its biggest boost when Barbara Streisand debuted in the lead of Funny Girl when it opened on Broadway on March 26, 1964. Next on History Daily, March 27, 1912. As a gesture of friendship between two nations once at odds, Japan presents the United States a gift of 3,000 cherry trees.

From Noiser and Airship, this is History Daily, hosted, edited and executive produced by me, Lindsay Graham. Audio editing by Christian Paragon, sound design by Gabriel Gould, supervising sound designer Matthew Filler, music by Thron. This episode is written and research by Rob Scrague, edited by Scott Reeves, managing producer Emily Byrd. Executive producers are William Simpson for Airship and Pascal Hughes for Noiser. In the middle, pickunoita pester, whoimata, when his valetone who's quite quite

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