St. Louis Woman

Legends say that Lena Horne declined the title role when the NAACP denounced the character's "easy virtue" as demeaning. The show went through a rocky tryout and a short Broadway run. Encores produced a concert in 1998 starring Vanessa Williams. The recording is uneven but it reminds us that the score is full of gems.

"Any Place I Hang My Hat is Home"
"I Had Myself a True Love"
"Come Rain Or Come Shine"
And Pearl Bailey's 11 o'clock number "It's A Woman's Prerogative"

Lil' Abner

So you have an established cartoon franchise. How do you compress them into one story? You can do an origin story, like Annie or Spiderman, or you can put the town in danger. The latter worked for The Simpsons Movie in 2007, its working for Spongebob the Musical in 2016 and in 1956 it fueled the plot for the musical adaptation of Lil'Abner.

The show ran for 693 performances and saved most of the original cast for the film. The show has received concert productions from Encores and Reprise but doesn't merit a full scale revival. Like Annie, the original comic is out of print. The show lacks heart and the Cold War satire has not aged well. The movie is worth catching for Stubby Kaye's performance and Michael Kidd's choreography.