Alfred Drake: Bell Telephone Hour 1959-1962 (DVD)

With special guests Patrice Munsel, Sally Ann Howes, Mindy Carson and Geneviève.

A legendary leading man of Broadway, Alfred Drake (1914-1992) rose to fame in 1943, when he created the role of Curly in Oklahoma! His rich baritone voice and elegant manner suited him perfectly for sophisticated musical comedies, and he went on to star in such Broadways hits as Kiss Me, Kate (1948) and Kismet (1953). Also highly regarded as a Shakespearean actor, Drake appeared opposite Katherine Hepburn in a 1957 production of Much Ado About Nothing, and as Claudius in the famed Broadway production of Hamlet starring Richard Burton. These appearances on the Bell Telephone Hour television series find Drake in top form, bringing charm and vocal lustre to a wide range of songs.

Color, 48 minutes, 4:3, All regions

Musicals based on Shakespeare, Twain, and Shaw (with Sally Ann Howes)
Tonight • So in Love • Wunderbar • My Heart Stood Still
I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face • I Could Have Danced All Night

Songs of the American Wars (with Mindy Carson and Geneviève)
Buttermilk Hill • The Tea Tax • Soldier, Oh Soldier, Won’t You Marry Me? • Lorena
Smiles • Roses of Picardy • La Madelon

Songs from Operettas
I’m Off to Chez Maxim • Blue Eyes

Songs from The Boys from Syracuse and Kiss Me, Kate (with Patrice Munsel)
Falling in Love with Love • You Have Cast Your Shadow on the Sea
This Can’t Be Love • I Hate Men
I’ve Come to Wive it Wealthily in Padua • Were Thine that Special Face
So In Love • Kiss Me, Kate

The Bell Telephone Hour Orchestra & Chorus
Donald Voorhees, conductor