The Royal Family
Encyclopedia
The Royal Family is a play written by George S. Kaufman
and Edna Ferber
. Its premiere on Broadway was at the Selwyn Theatre on 28 December 1927, where it ran for 345 performances to close in October 1928.
The story is a parody of the Barrymore family
actors, with particular aim taken at John Barrymore
and Ethel Barrymore
. The character
Tony Cavendish, a heavy-drinking womanizer
, represents John Barrymore
. Julie Cavendish is the prima donna Broadway
star Ethel Barrymore
. Ethel Barrymore was offended and her critical comments were quoted by the press; however John Barrymore saw the production in Los Angeles and was amused, and congratulated Fredric March
on his performance as Tony Cavendish. (Otto Kruger
had played the role on Broadway.)
. The film was directed by George Cukor
and Cyril Gardner
and stars Ina Claire
and Fredric March
. Several live television adaptions were produced, including one in 1954, with Fredric March reprising his role as Tony, Helen Hayes
as Fanny, and Claudette Colbert
as Julie.
Awards
George S. Kaufman
George Simon Kaufman was an American playwright, theatre director and producer, humorist, and drama critic. In addition to comedies and political satire, he wrote several musicals, notably for the Marx Brothers...
and Edna Ferber
Edna Ferber
Edna Ferber was an American novelist, short story writer and playwright. Her novels were especially popular and included the Pulitzer Prize-winning So Big , Show Boat , and Giant .-Early years:Ferber was born August 15, 1885, in Kalamazoo, Michigan,...
. Its premiere on Broadway was at the Selwyn Theatre on 28 December 1927, where it ran for 345 performances to close in October 1928.
Plot summary
Characters- Julie Cavendish - Fanny's daughter
- Tony Cavendish - Fanny's son
- Gwen Cavendish - Fanny's granddaughter
- Herbert Dean - Fanny's brother
- Kitty Dean - Fanny's sister-in-law
- Fanny Cavendish - Cavendish Family Matriarch
- Oscar Wolfe - Cavendish Family's Long-time Agent
- Gilmore Marshall - Julie's Love Interest
- Perry Stewart - Gwen's Fiancee
The story is a parody of the Barrymore family
Barrymore family
The Barrymore family is an American acting family.The Barrymores are also the inspiration of a Broadway and West End play called The Royal Family....
actors, with particular aim taken at John Barrymore
John Barrymore
John Sidney Blyth , better known as John Barrymore, was an acclaimed American actor. He first gained fame as a handsome stage actor in light comedy, then high drama and culminating in groundbreaking portrayals in Shakespearean plays Hamlet and Richard III...
and Ethel Barrymore
Ethel Barrymore
Ethel Barrymore was an American actress and a member of the Barrymore family of actors.-Early life:Ethel Barrymore was born Ethel Mae Blythe in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the second child of the actors Maurice Barrymore and Georgiana Drew...
. The character
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
Tony Cavendish, a heavy-drinking womanizer
Promiscuity
In humans, promiscuity refers to less discriminating casual sex with many sexual partners. The term carries a moral or religious judgement and is viewed in the context of the mainstream social ideal for sexual activity to take place within exclusive committed relationships...
, represents John Barrymore
John Barrymore
John Sidney Blyth , better known as John Barrymore, was an acclaimed American actor. He first gained fame as a handsome stage actor in light comedy, then high drama and culminating in groundbreaking portrayals in Shakespearean plays Hamlet and Richard III...
. Julie Cavendish is the prima donna Broadway
Broadway 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...
star Ethel Barrymore
Ethel Barrymore
Ethel Barrymore was an American actress and a member of the Barrymore family of actors.-Early life:Ethel Barrymore was born Ethel Mae Blythe in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the second child of the actors Maurice Barrymore and Georgiana Drew...
. Ethel Barrymore was offended and her critical comments were quoted by the press; however John Barrymore saw the production in Los Angeles and was amused, and congratulated Fredric March
Fredric March
Fredric March was an American stage and film actor. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1932 for Dr. Jekyll and Mr...
on his performance as Tony Cavendish. (Otto Kruger
Otto Kruger
Otto Kruger was an American actor who began his career in 1915. His career was most prolific during the 1930s and 1940s.-Career:...
had played the role on Broadway.)
Productions
- In England, Noel CowardNoël CowardSir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
directed the West EndWest End theatreWest End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
version of the play in 1934, with a cast that included Laurence OlivierLaurence OlivierLaurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright...
as Tony.
- Before moving to Broadway, the play had successful out-of-town try-outs in NewarkNewark, New JerseyNewark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
and Atlantic City.
- The Royal Family opened one day after the revolutionary musical Show BoatShow BoatShow Boat is a musical in two acts with music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. It was originally produced in New York in 1927 and in London in 1928, and was based on the 1926 novel of the same name by Edna Ferber. The plot chronicles the lives of those living and working...
, based on Ferber's novel of the same titleShow Boat (novel)Show Boat is a 1926 novel by American author and dramatist Edna Ferber. It chronicles the lives of three generations of performers on the Cotton Blossom, a floating theater that travels between small towns on the banks of the Mississippi, from the 1880s to the 1920s...
.
- Edna FerberEdna FerberEdna Ferber was an American novelist, short story writer and playwright. Her novels were especially popular and included the Pulitzer Prize-winning So Big , Show Boat , and Giant .-Early years:Ferber was born August 15, 1885, in Kalamazoo, Michigan,...
herself acted in The Royal Family at the Maplewood Theater in 1940, in a production staged by Cheryl CrawfordCheryl CrawfordCheryl Crawford was an American theatre producer and director.Born in Akron, Ohio, Crawford majored in drama at Smith College. Following graduation, she moved to New York City and enrolled at the Theatre Guild's school...
- A revival of the comedy was one of the highlights of the 1975-76 season on Broadway. Directed by Ellis RabbEllis RabbEllis Rabb was an American actor and director who in 1959 formed the Association of Producing Artists, a theatre company that brought new works and noteworthy revivals to Broadway and to regional theatres...
, it starred Rosemary HarrisRosemary HarrisRosemary Ann Harris is an English actress and a member of the American Theatre Hall of Fame. Throughout her career she has been nominated for an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award and has won a Golden Globe, an Emmy, a Tony Award, an Obie, and five Drama Desk Awards.-Early life:Harris was born in...
as Julie Cavendish, George GrizzardGeorge GrizzardGeorge Cooper Grizzard, Jr. was an American actor of film and stage. He appeared in more than 40 films, dozens of television programs and a number of Broadway plays.-Life and career:...
as Tony, and Eva Le GallienneEva Le GallienneEva Le Gallienne was a well-known actress, producer, and director, during the first half of the 20th century.-Early life and early career:...
as the theatrical matriarch, Fanny. It won Rabb the 1976 Tony AwardTony AwardThe Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
for best director. The production was later telecast on PBS, with Rabb replacing Grizzard as Tony, and this version is now on DVDDVDA DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
.
- The play was revived as part of Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre's 2001-02 season with Amy MortonAmy MortonAmy Morton is an American actress best known for her work in theatre. A member of Steppenwolf Theater's core group of actors since 1997, Morton has spent most of her career working in the Chicago theater scene. She made her Broadway debut starring opposite Gary Sinise as Nurse Ratched in the Tony...
and Rondi ReedRondi ReedRondi Reed is an American stage actress, singer and performer.-Career:Reed has been a member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Chicago, Illinois, for 30 years, appearing in 51 productions with the company....
in the cast.
- Another revival ran from September to December 2009 at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre. It starred Rosemary HarrisRosemary HarrisRosemary Ann Harris is an English actress and a member of the American Theatre Hall of Fame. Throughout her career she has been nominated for an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award and has won a Golden Globe, an Emmy, a Tony Award, an Obie, and five Drama Desk Awards.-Early life:Harris was born in...
as Fanny, Jan MaxwellJan MaxwellJan Maxwell is an American stage and television actress. She is a four-time Tony Award nominee.-Biography:She is the daughter of former First District Judge Ralph B. Maxwell and Elizabeth Maxwell, a lawyer for the EPA. She attended West Fargo High School, West Fargo, North Dakota and Moorhead...
as Julie Cavendish, and Ana GasteyerAna GasteyerAna Kristina Gasteyer is an American actress of stage, film, and television. She is best known for her comedic roles when she was a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1996 to 2002.-Early life:...
as Kitty Dean.
Adaptations
The play was adapted in 1930 by Herman Mankiewicz for the film The Royal Family of Broadway released by Paramount PicturesParamount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
. The film was directed by George Cukor
George Cukor
George Dewey Cukor was an American film director. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO and later MGM, where he directed What Price Hollywood? , A Bill of Divorcement , Dinner at Eight , Little Women , David Copperfield , Romeo and Juliet and...
and Cyril Gardner
Cyril Gardner
Cyril Gardner was a French-born actor, film director, editor and screenwriter.-Selected filmography:Director* Declassee * Grumpy * The Royal Family of Broadway * Reckless Living...
and stars Ina Claire
Ina Claire
Ina Claire was an American stage and film actress.-Career:Born Ina Fagan in 1893 in Washington, D.C., Claire began her career appearing in vaudeville...
and Fredric March
Fredric March
Fredric March was an American stage and film actor. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1932 for Dr. Jekyll and Mr...
. Several live television adaptions were produced, including one in 1954, with Fredric March reprising his role as Tony, Helen Hayes
Helen Hayes
Helen Hayes Brown was an American actress whose career spanned almost 70 years. She eventually garnered the nickname "First Lady of the American Theatre" and was one of twelve people who have won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony Award...
as Fanny, and Claudette Colbert
Claudette Colbert
Claudette Colbert was a French-born American-based actress of stage and film.Born in Paris, France and raised in New York City, Colbert began her career in Broadway productions during the 1920s, progressing to film with the advent of talking pictures...
as Julie.
Awards and nominations
Awards
- 1975 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a PlayDrama Desk Award for Outstanding RevivalThe Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival is presented by the Drama Desk, a committee of New York City theatre critics, writers, and editors. It honors the Broadway, off-Broadway, off-off-Broadway, or legitimate not-for-profit theater revival of a production previously staged in New York City.It...