Applause

This may not be really good, but it is fascinating to see if only for a 'legendary' performance, that being of Lauren Bacall as Margo Channing. I never found Bacall the least bit sexy in film, and although she came along some in the late 1940s and 1950s, I always thought she was a near-A star with a B- talent. I recall the discerning but often nasty critic John Simon once stating that there were certain stars, Bacall being one of them, who were simply naturally 'big' personalities and were able to demonstrate that much better on the stage than on the screen. Well, she does that here, and in spades. You cannot watch Bacall in KEY LARGO or TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT and get any idea that she has a personality and 'largeness' of aspect so totally on exhibit in this film. That being said, several reviewers here have somewhat denigrated this TV performance of hers, but they should remember that it is a THEATER performance basically filmed for the small screen. (Bette Davis, in ALL ABOUT EVE, gave a THEATER performance on the screen and got away with it, but she always gave THEATER performances on the screen, somewhat in the manner that Eleanor Parker and Faye Dunaway also did, and they all got away with it, sometimes gloriously well.) As for the rest of the TV show, it is quite updated to include not only some language that would have been verboten on the screen in 1950, but also in changing the Thelma Ritter role to that of a gay man, having an entire scene take place in a gay club, and changing the critic played by George Sanders to a show producer played by Robert Mandan. The producer isn't nearly as nasty and caustic (and funny) as is the Sanders character, but he is in the same position as is the critic to help Eve's upcoming career, and in the end, he gets that particular girl (poor guy), while Margo goes off to the domestic life with a good, but not grainy enough (in comparison to Gary Merrill) Larry Hagman. The songs for this show were so-so at best, but quite effective in putting over why people dedicate their lives to the theater (actually, this is done better than in the movie) and also why Margo has done so. And as iconic as Davis may have been in the movie, she is a big part of a great ensemble, whereas in the musical, Margo is 80% of the show. Whatever the outcome, and it is pretty good, this viewing just moved me to think of all the great stage performances that have not been preserved - like Andrews in MY FAIR LADY, Merman in GYPSY, Alfred Drake in just about everything he did, March and Eldridge in LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT, etc., etc. Anyway, even as only a historical curiosity, this is well worth viewing.

Why Broadway, and Hollywood and Tv Fight to keep some of these American Gems off DVD or Tape bewilders me. This is all but forgotten by even the best memoried Baby Boomers. Well, digging through old tapes, I found this "APPLAUSE" STARRING: Lauren Bacall, Larry Hagman, et al.

Now WHO would not pay to see "APPLAUSE" with it's ORIGINAL LEADING STAR? "APPLAUSE" is great, even after 30 years tucked away on a shelf. This find made my day. From the brilliant writing adaptation of "All About Eve", to the effervescent score. This Musical retelling of the Bette Davis classic is overpoweringly Superb. Lauren Bacall at her best! The production was done true to the original. That alone is worth seeing it again. Even on tv. But, in a theatre, on a big screen would be even better.

"What is it that we're working for?, Applause, Applause..." Love those classic Musicals, or hate them, I think you'd all LOVE APPLAUSE! Now, let's get it released on DVD. I'd sell my soul to see the ORIGINAL "HELLO,DOLLY!" with Carol Channing on DVD. Perhaps if Hollywood stayed true to the original work, Musicals would have lasted as an art medium. If you ever get a chance to see this GEM, DON'T Pass it up!

This is absolutely the worst musical adaptation EVER with the most inadequate, atrocious, inept performance ever recorded by a major star. Lauren Bacall is soooooooooooooooooooooo bad in this it is not to be believed. She can't sing or act. I've seen better acting in my high school productions by almost everyone. That being said her performance is so bad that it must not be missed. Truly a howl - I have parties where I show this on TV and my friends and I sit there screeching with laughter and disbelief. One must see this to believe the travesty that APPLAUSE truly is. Bacall is like a drag queen doing bad drag. When she tries to croak the horrible tune "HURRAY BACK" it sounds like she is saying "HAIRY BACK". This adaptation has bought me endless hours of pleasure and laughter for all the wrong reasons. How Bacall ever won a Tony for this is beyond belief. I heard a story that Ethel Merman was sitting in the audience of this (or maybe WOMAN OF THE YEAR) and the minute Bacall opened her mouth to try to sing she screamed out "JESUS Christ" Don't know if this story is true or not but it is a great tale. Why Lucille Ball is derided in MAME and Lauren Bacall is praised in this totally bewilders me. While Lucy is no great MAME she is monumentally better than Bacall could ever hope to be and LUCY can ACT! Rent this, by this and get your hands on it - it is an unintentional comedic masterpiece!!!

APPLAUSE, the Broadway musical based on the classic ALL ABOUT EVE, was hastily filmed for television in 1973. The show first appeared on Broadway in 1970 and won Lauren Bacall a Tony Award for Best Lead Actress in a Musical. The story definitely lacks the bite of the original, obviously because it's a musical, but it's still the same story of Broadway star Margo Channing (Bacall) taking a star-struck fan (Penny Fuller) under her wing who pays her back by trying to take over her life. This production seems to have been thrown together in sort of a hap-hazard fashion and Bacall and company deserve better. The score by Lee Adams and Charles Strouse (BYE BYE BIRDIE) includes "But Alive", "The Best Night of My Life", "Backstage Babble", "One of a Kind", and the classic title tune. Bacall works hard at making Margo likable as does Larry Hagman as Bill Sampson, Margo's much younger boyfriend. A curio to be sure, but worth a look if you can find it.

I wanted to see this movie for years and finally found a copy this year. Well, the actual production left something to be desired. The sets seemed cramped, and the whole thing has kind of a thrown-together feeling to it, but that's easy enough to overlook. The musical was obviously a lot of fun to make and all of the actors seem to really be enjoying themselves.

Lauren Bacall shows her usual dramatic star-power, but (Tony Award or no Tony Award) the woman really can't sing. Fortunately, for her part at least, it really doesn't matter. She's a strong enough actress that she can put emotion behind the lyrics and it doesn't really matter if it matches the melody or not. Larry Hagman plays Bill - but he seems almost wasted, having very little to do until the end. Penny Fuller was a fairly good Eve, but she was definitely no Anne Baxter. Still, I doubt Anne Baxter could have sung as well as Fuller did. Her last number was very impressive.

The real surprise to me was English actress Debbie Bowen completely stopping the show with the title song "Applause." She nailed it. I never even knew she could sing, and she nearly steals the entire show with just that one number. Very impressive talent, too bad she seems to have disappeared from the entertainment world. She was the one to watch in this movie.

The rest of the supporting cast is mostly forgettable. The plot line is pretty faithful to "All About Eve" although the script does seem to nicey it up a little too much. Why did they get rid of one of the best characters in the movie - Addison DeWitt? George Sanders won the Oscar for that role, it was probably the most intelligent character in the whole story. For a long time the audience is kept sympathizing with Eve and hating Margo, which is not the way the story is supposed to go at all. The end is rather abrupt and doesn't really come across as satisfying. But the music alone is a great, great asset to this. It's worth watching if you can find it.