The Letters of Cole Porter
Page 36
[signed:] Cole
Further treatments to his right leg and further pain led to the trip being put back even further to the middle of May:
28 April 1948: Cole Porter to Sam Stark19
Dear Sam: –
Thank you for your letter of April 23rd.
I have put off my departure on account of my leg, which has been bad. The result is that I intend to arrive now at Los Angeles on May 17th. I shall keep you posted as this date is entirely dependent upon my leg.
Love,
[signed] Cole
P. S. – The Vert’es* book, which will arrive shortly, is really a present from Linda – and a second hand [sic] present. A Parisian banker sent it to Linda when she was ill, and you will notice that it is autographed by Vert’es. If you don’t like it, throw it in the ocean.20
By May, Porter and Spewack were making significant progress with Kiss Me, Kate. The New York Times speculated that Alfred Drake, who starred in the original production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! on Broadway in 1943, was lined up to be the male lead: ‘Mr. Drake . . . has been approached to appear in the musical on which Cole Porter and Bella Spewack are working for next season . . . That Mr. Drake has a contract until 1949 with “Joy to the World” and that his preference is for straight roles doesn’t deter anyone on Broadway, where Cassandra and Pollyanna sit side by side.’21
In the next letter to Stark, Porter reveals that he had already completed most of the score for Kiss Me, Kate by early May, confirming that casting did not inspire the composition of this score. Although some of these songs were discarded before the show reached Broadway, it is an interesting insight into Porter’s productivity that he managed to write sixteen songs within about two or so months. And although he jokingly writes to Stark that ‘most of the music is so simple that it sounds as if it had been written by an idiot child’, the quality and stylistic range of Porter’s songs for Kate are unusual, proving that his health wasn’t an insurmountable obstacle to his creativity, notwithstanding his comments in this letter:
4 May 1948: Cole Porter to Sam Stark22
Dear Sam: –
Linda and I were fascinated by the clippings about the Baroness.* Thank you a lot. Also, thank you for enclosing Robert [Bray]’s note and the article about his beard.
Yesterday, I had a blood transfusion, and I feel like a boxer. But now that it is nearly over, I must admit that this leg business has been going on for nearly six weeks, and for the last three weeks, it has been complete agony, as an ulcer and an abscess, due to the bump that Peppy [Porter’s dog] gave me when he ran the length of the hall and jumped on me in his charming enthusiasm, appeared close together and just over a large nerve center. This started all the nerves in my leg raising terrific hell, and the pain has been so great that drugs had practically no effect. Also, due to the bump, a part of my shin bone was exposed and the surface was cracked. The skin around this exposed bone is gradually re-covering it, and will, within a few weeks, cover it entirely. But I have learned my lesson and from now on, will always wear a guard on my right leg. Enough of this.
I believe I am now set for the trip to the Coast. I leave here on Friday, May 14th, and stay the night in Chicago. I have given up going to Indiana because the Doctor thinks it would be too much for me. Therefor [sic], I have asked my mother to come up to Chicago and be with me while I am there.
I leave Chicago Saturday, May 15th, at 3:50 P.M. Chicago time (Daylight Saving) via TWA Constellation, Flight No. 95, and arrive in Los Angeles same day, at 9:10 P.M., California time (Daylight Saving) – Los Angeles airport.
Do you think you could still meet me and come back to Brentwood for the night and perhaps even stay over Sunday with me?
The servants are being notified, so that Max will be at the Airport to take care of my luggage – so please don’t arrive in a Bekins van.
My show is very exciting. I have already written sixteen songs and only have about five more to do. I believe you will like this score as most of the music is so simple that it sounds as if it had been written by an idiot child.
Linda is on the crest of the wave, and it is such a joy to see her bouncing around again.
Great love from us both,
[signed:] Cole
In the event, Porter arrived in Los Angeles on Friday 14 May for his trip, and was met by Stark.* On 20 May, MGM’s The Pirate was released at the Radio City Music Hall.23 Consistent with other reviewers, Thomas Pryor’s round-up in the New York Times of the week’s new films described it in mixed terms as ‘a big, colorful show which moves haltingly at times but is rescued by the dazzling terpsichorean acrobatics provided by Gene Kelly. Judy Garland gives capable assistance, and the Cole Porter score is lively’.24
Over the summer, Kiss Me, Kate became the main focus of Porter’s activities. A gossip column in the New York Times on 23 May noted that ‘The usual reliable source says that besides Alfred Drake, Marion Bell† and Carol Bruce‡ are contenders for roles in the Cole Porter-Bella Spewack musical, “Kiss Me, Kate.”’25 A few days later, a further Times column announced that ‘a telephoning reporter caught Alfred Drake yesterday in the act of reading the script [to Lerner and Weill’s Love Life]. Attach no significance to that, for Mr. Drake reads a lot of scripts. Another now under his consideration is the Cole Porter-Bella Spewack musical, “Kiss Me Kate.”’26
Alongside the casting decisions, there was tension in the background regarding authorship of the book. Sam and Bella Spewack had long functioned as a team in their work for theatre and film, including the movies My Favorite Wife (1940) and Week-end at the Waldorf (1945). They had previously collaborated with Porter on Leave it to Me!, but Bella worked alone with Porter in the early stages of Kiss Me, Kate. The following telegram sees Porter trying to bring Sam into the project officially, apparently as a reflection of the unofficial guidance he was already giving:
16 June 1948: Cole Porter to Sam Spewack27
BELLA WRITES ME THAT YOU DON’T WANT TO TAKE ANY CREDIT FOR THE BOOK. I BEG YOU TO RECONSIDER THIS DUE TO ALL THE CONTRIBUTIONS YOU HAVE MADE. ALSO IT WILL MAKE OUR PUBLIC MUCH HAPPIER TO READ QUOTE BOOK BY SAM AND BELLA SPEWACK UNQUOTE WILL YOU DO THIS GREAT FAVOR FOR ME ALL MY BEST REGARDS DEAR SAM = COLE=
But it was many months before Sam became the official co-author of the book of Kiss Me, Kate. The following letter reveals the truth about the casting situation: contrary to the claims in the New York Times, there were no candidates for Fred/Petruchio and the main possibilities for Kate/Lilli were two relative unknowns, Ruth Warrick and Patricia Morison, as well as the operatic soprano Dorothy Kirsten. Porter’s preference is clear from the message to Spewack, which also mentions the director John (Jack) C. Wilson:
16 June 1948: Cole Porter to Bella Spewack28
Bella, Bellissima!
If Jack Wilson has not read you my reply regarding book changes, please ask him to do so.
There are two girls here working like maniacs for the Kate part, 1) Ruth Warwick* [sic] & 2) Patricia Morison.† I don’t believe Warwick [sic] can sing the part even if she studies all summer because singing is not her vocation. She is an amateur when she sings. But she is lovely & could undoubtably [sic] act the part beautifully. She is a young, not too young, Ruth Chatterton.‡
Pat Morison is, to me, a much more interesting possibility. Apart from her voice which is a high mezzo, she looks like Lynn Fontanne & Kate. As I wired Jack [Wilson], she is working with Constance Collier on the Kate part. I feel strongly that this is our girl. So much so that I believe we might over night, create a great new star.
I can picture you putting your hat over your face & squirming in despair as I write you this but this Morison girl is the one. There is also a girl called Adele Robbins for the Lois-Bianca part who has the bounce which you require but she has very little experience. She is, however, worth seeing.
So I suggest that you fly out rather soon and examine these three girls. And with Jack.
As far as the Fred-Petruchio part goes, there is
n’t even an applicant.
In case Jack has not told you, I have written a sock song for the two gangsters.* I indicated that they could sing this song for their exit on page 2-6-29 of your book. But now, on further consideration, I think it might ruin the rest of the scene. So I suggest that they enter after the scene is finished, in front of the curtain & sing it just before we go into the final Shrew scene.
Also I have made a song out of the latter part of Kate’s final speech beginning with “I am ashamed that women are so simple.” (She can slide into this.) I have altered the beautiful words slightly but you will approve when you hear the song. This leads at once into a lively finale. You should write me always when there are book complications. In that way it will be easier for me to back you for I have great respect for your great talent and experience.
Dorothy Kirsten† came out here yesterday. I agree with all of you that she could never play the part. On top of this, the only two songs that interested her were 1) Were Thine That Special Face and 2) I Am Ashamed. She was right. The other numbers for the part are musical comedy in spite of the colaratura [sic] passages in the first act finale & the 2nd act Shrew finale which can be adjusted to the girl we pick.
My love to you, dearest Bella & to your Sam.
Your devoted
Cole
Aside from the comments on the casting ideas and the progress of songs such as ‘Brush Up Your Shakespeare’ and ‘I Am Ashamed That Women Are So Simple’, of note in this letter is Porter’s encouragement that Spewack write to him with any ‘book complications’. Porter was aware of a potential conflict with Wilson and seems keen in this letter to maintain a strong collaboration with his fellow writer.
In fact, that sentiment was to come into play immediately, as Porter sent Spewack a copy of the following letter he wrote to Wilson about proposed changes to the book:
16 June 1948: Copy (sent to Bella Spewack) of a letter from Cole Porter to John C. Wilson29
Dear Bella:
The following is a copy of the letter I sent to Jack Wilson regarding changes in the script:
“First, in regard to revisions of the first act. I have studied them very carefully and this is my decision. I think all sensible revisions that are made for economy’s sake are excellent. As to cutting out Bella’s scenes, where Kate is dressed as a boy, I think this is a good idea if you won’t lose a lot of comedy by doing so and also if it won’t mean that Were Thine That Special Face will be kicked around in different bad spots in the second act and finally cut out of the show, as most people think this is the best number in the show.
With regard to the second act, I can’t, for the life of me, figure out how I can make a number out of the “This is the moon if I say it is the moon” scene. If you all insist that I attempt this I must have explicit instructions. How much of the scene do you want incorporated in the number? Do you want the number to be literally Shakespeare’s words or do you want me to alter them for the sake of rhyme etc.? Personally, I much prefer Bella’s first scene in the second act, where Petruchio appears before the curtain and tells the audience that Kate is not able to ride the mule to incorporating the original Shakespeare singing, and if you think it could be strong enough to go in next to closing I don’t agree with you.
Also, I have already taken care of that next to closing spot. I had been looking for that spot for weeks, as I always have had one of those low comedy numbers in practically all my shows, just before the final scene. The number I have written should be sung by the two gunmen just before their final exit, on page 29 of Bella’s original second act.
The number is titled Brush up your Shakespeare. It’s [sic] music is reminiscent of East Side, West Side, i.e., the typical Bowery song of the 1900’s, and I firmly believe it will tie up the show into a beautiful knot. The lyrics are a series of gags and I am almost sure that it will be a show-stopper and everyone that I have played it to is crazy about it.
No doubt Bella will kill herself when she hears that I have written a number for the gangsters, but it is the type of song that any two vaudeville mugs could put over.”
Love,
Cole
He wrote again the following day, in the form of a telegram, assuring Spewack of his support for her work:
[17 June 1948]: Cole Porter to Bella Spewack30
DEAR BELLA. I WROTE YOU LAST NIGHT ASKING YOU TO LOOK AT LETTER WHICH I WROTE TO JACK WILSON REGARDING BOOK CHANGES. ON SECOND CONSIDERATION I AM MAILING YOU A COPY OF THAT LETTER TODAY SO YOU WONT [SIC] HAVE TO ASK JACK FOR IT. YOUR LETTER ARRIVED THIS MORNING. I SHALL LOOK UP MARACCI* AT ONCE. PAT MORISON IS STUDYING KATE PART WITH CONSTANCE COLLIER. I CANNOT TELL YOU HOW DELIGHTED I AM THAT YOU ARE COMING OUT HERE JULY FIRST[.] STICK TO YOUR GUNS ABOUT YOUR WONDERFUL BOOK AND I SHALL ALWAYS BACK YOU[.] GREAT LOVE = COLE
Porter refers in the telegram to the English stage and screen actress Constance Collier (1878–1955), who appeared in the films Stage Door (1937) and Rope (1948). Collier had become a noted voice coach in the early sound era of Hollywood, and Morison (Porter’s first choice for the role of Lilli/Kate) went for lessons to prepare for the role. Porter reported to Bella Spewack in a telegram:
19 June 1948: Cole Porter to Bella Spewack31
CONSTANCE COLLIER THINKS YOUR SCRIPT IS ONE OF THE FINEST SHE HAS SEEN IN YEARS[.] SHE SAYS IT IS A MASTERFUL JOB[.] I AM QUOTING HER LITERALLY[.] SHOW THIS WIRE TO THE BOYS[.] LOVE = COLE
A few days later, Porter wired Spewack again:32
24 June 1948: Cole Porter to Bella Spewack33
I SUGGEST THAT YOU DELAY YOUR VISIT HERE[.] WRITING YOU DETAILS ON SATURDAY[.] LOVE = COLE
The reason may have been connected with an important backer’s audition for the musical, which took place that weekend, according to the New York Times: ‘The Cullmans (Howard and Marguerite),* whose interest in a new show invariably coincides with success for the theatrical venture, are backing their high opinion of “Kiss Me Kate,” the forthcoming Cole Porter-Bella Spewack musical, to the extent of $15,000. The Broadway “angels” appraised the musical as [sic] its first audition held over the weekend. Rehearsals are scheduled to start on Sept. 15 under the directorial supervision of John C. Wilson. Lemuel Ayers, co-producer of the entertainment with Arnold Saint Subber, is providing the scenery and costumes. Robert Russell Bennett will do the orchestrations. A choreographer has still to be signed. The guess is that “Kate” will be arriving in New York in November.’34
Work on Kiss Me, Kate continued over the summer. Two curious reports in the New York Times in late July even suggested that Porter had moved on to thinking about his next project. On 17 July an article claimed that ‘Cole Porter and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. have been working quietly for the last month on an idea for a musical with a modern setting which they hope to have in shape for the cameras sometime next year. The only details available now are that Fairbanks will play one of the starring roles, that the photography will be in Technicolor and that the production will be made independently by the Fairbanks Company.’35 A week later, the New York Times revealed more details:
The news that Douglas Fairbanks Jr. is planning to star in a musical most likely came as a surprise to constant moviegoers . . . The actor cleared that up the other day, however, by flatly stating that he did not consider himself either a singer or a dancer. At the moment all he and Cole Porter, who will write the score, have is “an amusing idea, with a certain amount of fantasy, which can be told nicely in terms of a musical” . . . They are keeping the plot secret until it is all worked out lest someone else walk off with it, but Mr. Fairbanks elaborated to this extent: “In my role the action will be done almost like a dance, or perhaps I might even say vice versa. The songs will develop from the story and what their exact number will be we don’t know yet. But,” he added, “there won’t be any elaborate production numbers. This will be a musical done strictly in movie terms, and we believe we’ve really got something different.” Plans are to start production after the first of the year under the
banner of the Fairbanks company.36
However, the project never came into being and Porter, still in California,* focused on Kiss Me, Kate once more. By the middle of August, Harold Lang† had been hired to play Bill/Lucentio, but the show still lacked a choreographer.‡ The final choice, Hanya Holm,§ was approached by Saint Subber on 30 August, and she appears to have accepted quickly, signing her contract on 30 September.37
In early September, Porter went on a long motor trip with Robert Bray from Los Angeles to North Dakota and Chicago. The next three letters to Stark reveal details of that trip, the planned production schedule for Kiss Me, Kate, and disagreements with Bill Haines over the rental of his house at 416 North Rockingham, where Porter lived in California from 1943 onwards:
8 September 1948: Cole Porter to Sam Stark38
Dear Sammie: –
First, let me tell you again what a blessing those two thermoses were on the trip. They saved our lives many times.
Second, I must thank you for the delightful bottles of wine that you put in the basket for us. They always came in most handy.
Third, my gratitude for the book-bag.
The whole trip was a howling success, and I was very sad when it suddenly finished in Chicago. Robert will tell you all about it when he returns. By the way, I gave him the book-bag with the key to it and thermos case to return to you.
These are the plans: We go into rehearsal on November 1st, and open in Boston during the first week in December. We play there for three weeks and possibly another week in Philadelphia; and then open in New York. So reserve your Christmas holidays.
Whatever happened to Bobby?*
Love,
[signed:] Cole
29 September 1948: Cole Porter to Sam Stark39
Dear Sammie: –
I settled the case with Haines† out of court, at the following figures: I have the house definitely until October of 1952, plus three yearly options after that date; but, during these three optional years, Haines has the right to sell the house, in which case I would have to leave within two months. I am also paying $1750.00 towards his lawyer’s fees.