Mame
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- For the arcade emulator, see MAME. Mame is also another name for the coelacanth.
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The plot revolves around eccentric Mame Dennis, whose madcap life is disrupted when her deceased brother's son Patrick is entrusted to her care. Rather than bow to convention, Mame introduces the boy to her free-wheeling lifestyle, instilling in him her favorite credo - "Life is a banquet, and most poor sons-of-bitches are starving to death."
The musical's book was written by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee - adapted from their play Auntie Mame, based on Patrick Dennis' autobiographical novel - with lyrics and music by Jerry Herman. It originially opened at the Winter Garden Theater in New York in 1966 with Angela Lansbury, and ran for 1,508 performances. Also featured in the cast were Bea Arthur and Peggy Cass. The 1969 West End production in London starred Ginger Rogers. Lansbury also starred in the successful 1983 revival on Broadway.
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A film version was released in 1974. Starring Lucille Ball, Beatrice Arthur, Robert Preston, Bruce Davison, Kirby Furlong, Jane Connell, and Joyce Van Patten. Its screenplay was adapted by Paul Zindel, with direction by Gene Saks (Arthur's then husband). Released at a time when movie musicals were long out of fashion, it was a critical and commercial failure. Age and years of smoking had clearly taken a toll on Ball's singing voice. The very soft-focus closeups on Ball were a jarring contrast to the much clearer shots in the rest of what proved to be her final film.