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Guys and Dolls

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The Broadway musical GUYS AND DOLLS is based on two Damon Runyan stories, ""The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" and "Blood Pressure." It also borrows characters and elements of his "Pick the Winner." The hit stageshow had 1200 performances in first run and won a Best Musical Tony.

Four main cast members reprised their roles for MGM's 1955 film: Vivian Blaine (Miss Adelaide), Stubby Kaye (Nicely-Nicely Johnson), B.S. Pully (Big Jule) and Johnny Silver (Benny Southstreet). This was diminutive Silver's screen debut. He had an extensive TV career and was a baker in the piefight scene of Blake Edwards' THE GREAT RACE (1965).

Stubby Kaye (born Bernard Katzin) also recreated his LI'L ABNER Broadway role in a 1959 motion picture. He was 'Shouter' in CAT BALLOU (1965) and for one season hosted an ABC-TV Saturday morning kids show called SHENANIGANS (1964). Despite substantial girth, Stubby lived to age 79.

Gravelly bass-voiced B.S. Pully was the Xmas tree salesman in A TREE GROWS IN BROOKLYN (1945) and appeared again with Sinatra in Frank Capra's A HOLE IN THE HEAD (1959). Pully had a second career as a risqué stand-up comic. His LP entitled FAIRY TALES "for Adults Only" was popular in its day.

GUYS AND DOLLS is the story of Nathan Detroit's (Frank Sinatra) dispossessed floating crapgame and his G-note "sucker bet" that Sky Masterson (Marlon Brando) won't be able to convince missionary Sgt. Sarah Brown (Jean Simmns) to accompany him to Havana. If Nathan wins, he's richer by a grand and can pay a garage owner for the use of his storeroom.

If he loses the wager, Sister Sara will be out of town and the game can float right into her mission. Either way Detroit stands to win, if not for his longtime girlfriend, Miss Adelaide. She made Nathan swear to give up gambling, a vow he has no more intention of keeping than he does a 14 year promise to marry the showgirl. Meanwhile, dapper Sky tries all he can to ingratiate himself with straitlaced Sister Sara, but he doesn't seem to be making any progress.

In typical Broadway style, there's several show-stopping numbers here: "Adelaide's Lament," "Luck Be a Lady," the title song and "Sit Down You're Rockin' the Boat," delivered grandly by Mr. Kaye. Other cast members: Robert Keith (Lt. Brannigan) and Sheldon Leonard (Harry the Horse).