Story of Broadway Legend to Air on PBS: 'Words and Music by Jerry Herman'

Story of Broadway Legend to Air on PBS: 'Words and Music by Jerry Herman'

Profiles the Creator of "Hello, Dolly!" "Mame" and "La Cage Aux Folles"

Premieres on WNET New York, Monday, December 31 at 10:00 pm

Premieres Nationwide on PBS, Tuesday, January 1 at 9:30 pm (check local listings)

TRENTON, N.J., Dec. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- "When they passed out talent," Broadway star Carol Channing says of composer and lyricist Jerry Herman, "Jerry stood in line twice." Herman wrote the words and music for some of Broadway's greatest musicals, including "Hello, Dolly!" "Mame" and "La Cage aux Folles." This new documentary by award-winning filmmaker Amber Edwards takes you backstage through insightful interviews, behind-the-scenes rehearsal sessions, rare photographs, and never-before-seen archival footage of original Broadway performances to create a warm, humorous, and moving portrait of a living theater legend. "Words and Music by Jerry Herman" premieres in the New York metro area on WNET New York, Monday, December 31 at 10:00 pm; and nationwide on PBS, Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 9:30 pm. (Check local listings.)

Five years in the making, this 90-minute special from NJN Public Television chronicles Herman's rapid rise from witty, topical off-Broadway revues during the 1950s, to his first Broadway hits in the 1960s ("Milk and Honey," followed quickly by the record-breaking Dolly and "Mame") through the less successful shows from the 1970s ("Dear World," "Mack & Mabel" and "The Grand Tour") to his triumphant return in 1983 with "La Cage aux Folles," which made social and political history.

The "supporting cast" features Carol Channing, Angela Lansbury, Charles Nelson Reilly, Marge Champion, Arthur Laurents, Charles Strouse, Fred Ebb, George Hearn, Phyllis Newman, Michael Feinstein, musical director Donald Pippin, singers Leslie Uggams and Jason Graae, author Francine Pascal, and historians Miles Kreuger and Ken Bloom. Archival motion picture footage includes Carol Channing and the original Broadway "Hello, Dolly!" company performing the title song; Angela Lansbury in the only known footage of "Mame" and "Dear World;" film of Jerry's 1955 college musical; and Robert Preston with a bevy of showgirls from "Mack & Mabel." The documentary is filled with music, with original cast recordings and live performances, while the piano underscoring is played by Jerry Herman himself.

Source: NJN Public Television

CONTACT: Arlene Carollo for NJN Public Television, +1-973-377-3300,
ACarolloZGF@optonline.net; or Charlie Siedenburg, +1-212-221-8466,
Charlie_Siedenburg@yahoo.com

NOTE TO EDITORS: DVD Screener available. Download high-resolution images and more information,

http://www.njn.net/television/jerryherman/pressroom

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