{"product_id":"the-complete-lyrics-of-oscar-hammerstein-ii-isbn-9780375413582","title":"The Complete Lyrics of Oscar Hammerstein II","description":"From every “beautiful mornin’” to “some enchanted evening,” the songs of Oscar Hammerstein II are part of our daily lives, his words part of our national fabric.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBorn into a theatrical dynasty headed by his grandfather and namesake, Oscar Hammerstein II breathed new life into the moribund art form of operetta by writing lyrics and libretti for such classics as \u003ci\u003eRose-Marie\u003c\/i\u003e (music by Rudolf Friml), \u003ci\u003eThe Desert Song \u003c\/i\u003e(Sigmund Romberg), \u003ci\u003eThe New Moon \u003c\/i\u003e(Romberg) and \u003ci\u003eSong of the Flame\u003c\/i\u003e (George Gershwin). Hammerstein and Jerome Kern wrote eight musicals together, including \u003ci\u003eSweet Adeline, Music in the Air\u003c\/i\u003e, and their masterpiece, \u003ci\u003eShow Boat\u003c\/i\u003e. The vibrant \u003ci\u003eCarmen Jones\u003c\/i\u003e was Hammerstein’s all-black adaptation of the tragic opera by Georges Bizet.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn 1943, Hammerstein, pioneer in the field of operetta, joined forces with Richard Rodgers, who had for the previous twenty-five years taken great strides in the field of musical comedy with \u003ci\u003ehis\u003c\/i\u003e longtime writing partner, Lorenz Hart. The first Rodgers and Hammerstein work, \u003ci\u003eOklahoma!\u003c\/i\u003e, merged the two styles into a completely new genre—the musical play—and simultaneously launched the most successful partnership in American musical theater. Over the next seventeen years, Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote eight more Broadway musicals: \u003ci\u003eCarousel, Allegro, South Pacific, The King and I, Me and Juliet, Pipe Dream, Flower Drum Song,\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Sound of Music.\u003c\/i\u003e They also wrote a movie musical \u003ci\u003e(State Fair)\u003c\/i\u003e and one for television \u003ci\u003e(Cinderella)\u003c\/i\u003e. Collectively their works have earned dozens of awards, including Pulitzers, Tonys, Oscars, Grammys, and Emmys.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThroughout his career, Hammerstein created works of lyrical beauty and universal feeling, and he continually strove—sometimes against fashion—to seek out the good and beautiful in the world. “I know the world is filled with troubles and many injustices,” he once said. “But reality is as beautiful as it is ugly . . . I just couldn’t write anything without hope in it.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAll of his lyrics are here—850, more than a quarter published for the first time—in this sixth book in the indispensable Complete Lyrics series that has also brought us the lyrics of Cole Porter, Lorenz Hart, Ira Gershwin, Irving Berlin, and Frank Loesser. From the young scribe’s earliest attempts to the old master’s final lyric—“Edelweiss”—we can see, read, and, yes, sing the words of a theatrical and lyrical genius.“Unexpected trivia is only one of the many pleasures of this book. Another is the chance to trace clearly and in detail the development of a remarkable artist across a 40-year career . . . No one [with even the slightest interest in how words are married to music] should fail to read and treasure this collection of the lyrics of one of the supreme masters of musical theater.”\u003cbr\u003e—John Steele Gordon, \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“If a faulty memory trips up your shower-stall crooning, you need a copy of \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Complete Lyrics of Oscar Hammerstein II\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e . . . Amy Asch spent seven years tracking down every song written by Hammerstein (1895-1960) and determining the definitive lyric. For musical theater lovers, it's a treasure chest of old favorites and unexpected gems.”\u003cbr\u003e—Tom Beer, \u003ci\u003eNewsday\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A show-music fan’s delight.”\u003cbr\u003e—Minneapolis\u003ci\u003e Star Tribune\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A fabulous testament to Hammerstein’s genius. Lavishly illustrated and scrupulously researched, this is a treasure for anyone who cares about 20th Century American poetry, theater and film.”\u003cbr\u003e—Keith Runyon, Louisville\u003ci\u003e Courier-Journal\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“From his earliest efforts to ‘The South of Music,’ this incredible collection is nothing less than a celebration of American theatrical genius.”\u003cbr\u003e—Larry Cox, The \u003ci\u003eTucson Citizen\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“An astounding collection . . . remarkable.”\u003cbr\u003e—Matthew Murray, BroadwayStars.com\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Complete Lyrics of Oscar Hammerstein II\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e is, like its subject—and unlike its hero—a musical in its own right.”\u003cbr\u003e—Daniel Elkind, \u003ci\u003eThe Jewish Forward\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Anyone with a glancing interest in theater will be familiar with a few immortal phrases from “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’ ” or “Some Enchanted Evening.” But this hefty, handsome volume reveals anew the breadth, range and sheer fecundity of a central figure—maybe the central figure—in the evolution of the American musical theater. Hammerstein wrote revue songs, operettas, musical comedies and of course the musical plays, with Richard Rodgers, that changed the face of Broadway forever and are so crucial to the musical canon. The book contains 850 lyrics, a quarter previously unpublished, with deeply researched notes and commentary by Ms. Asch that add color and context, although the limpid poetry of Hammerstein’s best lyrics needs little of either to shine.”\u003cbr\u003e–Charles Isherwood, \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Hammerstein drew on patterns that had existed long before [his] birth: a sentimental love of the land; a passion for social justice, predicated on faith in the innate goodness of ordinary folk; a canny awareness of the comedy inherent in the basic human tropes of man and woman, parent and child, boss and underling; and an earnest reverence for the mysteries of life. Hammerstein combined these familiar elements into something new, producing works that swept the world, entered the vernacular, and lodged permanently in the public mind. . . . In \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Complete Lyrics\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e, \u003c\/i\u003eedited with painstaking thoroughness by Amy Asch, Hammerstein found ideas that even people unimaginably remote from Broadway’s sensibility could share.”\u003cbr\u003e–Michael Feingold, \u003ci\u003eThe Village Voice\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Oscar Hammerstein flew on a bright cloud of music for his entire career . . . Everyone has a line of Hammerstein’s washing around in the back of his brain.\u003cbr\u003e[Hammerstein] expanded the boundaries of the American theater song, past the narrow urban wit of the rhymesters. When he worked with Sigmund Romberg, the old goulash-peddler would run through the lyric and at the end say only: ‘It fits.’ Hammerstein came to see that that perfunctory acknowledgement was, in fact, high praise–that that was the most important thing about any lyric. It might also be poetry, but first it had to ‘fit.’ Hammerstein’s words always fit.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e–\u003c\/i\u003eMark Steyn,\u003ci\u003e The New Criterion\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Catnip for people who love musicals . . . I just love this book.”\u003cbr\u003e–Bill Goldstein (NYTimes.com)\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“This one requires some heavy lifting. It's an oversize, 422-page beaut that would make a knockout gift for any lover of Broadway show tunes and classic American pop. The sheer number of songs he wrote is staggering. Lyrics divorced from the music can be a disservice, but Hammerstein was a poet, one of those rare ones with a sense of humor, so you don't even have to know the music to appreciate his clever writing. The familiar lyrics, from such classics as ‘South Pacific,’ ‘The King and I’ and ‘Show Boat’ will have you singing them as you read.”\u003cbr\u003e–\u003ci\u003eThe Seattle Times\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“In some ways, \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Complete Lyrics of Oscar Hammerstein II\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e defeats the purpose of coffee-table books. It’s all about the word. Despite the historical images, one wants to linger over the obscure shows from the early 20th century, then luxuriate in the emotional potency of Hammerstein’s collaborations with Richard Rodgers, particularly ‘Oklahoma!’ ‘Carousel,’ ‘The King and I’ and the recently recovered ‘South Pacific.’ How his sensibility evolved from the Columbia University student show through ‘The Sound of Music’ is made much clearer through this volume.”\u003cbr\u003e–Michael Barnes, \u003ci\u003eAustin-American Statesman\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“The lavish format remains the same . . . In all, there are 850 sets of lyrics in this book that, like its series mates, belongs in every collected concerned with musical theater.”\u003cbr\u003e–\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“The latest entry in Knopf’s superb ‘Complete Lyrics series’ supersedes any previous collection of Hammerstein’s lyrics . . . ”\u003cbr\u003e–\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“To list even a fraction of Hammerstein’s most popular songs is to recall some of the century’s most potent contributions to pop culture . . . Reading through the Hammerstein collection may compel you to rummage through your vintage recordings or perhaps start downloading its iTune counterparts. . . . Wandering through the 422 pages of \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Complete Lyrics\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003eallows us the discovery of details that either remind of felicitous moments or offer fresh revelations. These fascinating, exhaustive books are filled with the kind of historical detail, photos, and trivia that make aficionados swoon.”\u003cbr\u003e–Michael Adams, \u003ci\u003eOpen Letters Monthly\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“This book is something wonderful.”\u003cbr\u003e–Peter Filichia, TheaterMania\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“A stunning catalog. Without question, \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Complete Lyrics of Oscar Hammerstein II\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e is \u003cu\u003ethe\u003c\/u\u003e gift book of the season, whether for yourself or for a musical theatre friend.” \u003cbr\u003e–Max Preeo, editor of \u003ci\u003eShow Music Magazine\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A stoutly elegant compilation.”\u003cbr\u003e–\u003ci\u003eBookpage\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003eAmy Asch, \u003c\/b\u003ean archivist and researcher, worked on \u003ci\u003eThe Complete Lyrics of Irving Berlin \u003c\/i\u003eand an expanded edition of \u003ci\u003eThe Complete Lyrics of Lorenz Hart\u003c\/i\u003e. She contributed to the PBS documentary \u003ci\u003eBroadway: The American Musical\u003c\/i\u003e and prepared the catalog of works for the estate of the composer Jonathan Larson \u003ci\u003e(Rent)\u003c\/i\u003e. Currently an editor of the \u003ci\u003ePlaybill Broadway Yearbook,\u003c\/i\u003e she lives in New York City.Songs of 1916–1925\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eShakespeare Up-to-Date\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOscar Hammerstein II’s first known lyric was a tercentenary tribute to the Bard (d. 1616) interpolated into The Peace Pirates, the Columbia University Varsity Show of 1916.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMusic probably by Ray Perkins. Published in a limited edition piano-vocal score. Introduced by principals and chorus.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eVERSE 1\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn my youthful college days \u003cbr\u003eI read all of Shakespeare’s plays \u003cbr\u003eFrom \u003ci\u003eHenry VIII to Taming of the Shrew\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003cbr\u003eI’ve seen almost ev’ry one \u003cbr\u003eOf the plays that Shaw has done, \u003cbr\u003eAnd can’t find much resemblance in the two. \u003cbr\u003eBut strange to say I had an awful dream the other night. \u003cbr\u003eI woke to see this weird unusual sight:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eREFRAIN 1\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOh there was Romeo and Imogen parading around the room. \u003cbr\u003eLady Macbeth was getting married with Hamlet as the groom. \u003cbr\u003eThen Juliet and Lear were playing cards \u003cbr\u003eWhile Portia was keeping score. \u003cbr\u003eNow this may all seem wrong to you \u003cbr\u003eBut I’m sure it would be true \u003cbr\u003eIf George Bernard Shaw had but written \u003cbr\u003eSome of Bill Shakespeare’s plays.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eVERSE 2\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOnce a friend remarked to me, \u003cbr\u003eHow great would the profit be \u003cbr\u003eTo put some music to Bill Shakespeare’s shows. \u003cbr\u003eI have hunted all around, \u003cbr\u003eThere’s a man that I have found \u003cbr\u003eCould do the job as ev’rybody knows. \u003cbr\u003eJust fancy George M. Cohan in a music comedy \u003cbr\u003eFor this is how his stunt would doubtless be:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eREFRAIN 2\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHenry VIII would wave a flag and sing “Hooray for the U.S.A.” \u003cbr\u003eShylock would seek his pound of flesh in a patriotic way. \u003cbr\u003eThen Cleopatra might be seen in tights \u003cbr\u003eOr dancing with Romeo. \u003cbr\u003eNow this may all seem wrong to you \u003cbr\u003eBut I’m sure it would be true \u003cbr\u003eIf George Cohan had ever produced \u003cbr\u003eSome of Bill Shakespeare’s plays.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eHome, James (1917)\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNew York run: Hotel Astor, Grand Ballroom; opened March 28, 1917; 5 performances. A musical comedy in two acts, presented by the Columbia University Players under the management of Charles Steiner, class of ’17. Book and lyrics by Herman A. Axelrod, ’15, and Oscar Hammerstein II, ’18L. Music by Robert K. Lippmann, ’19. Additional music and lyrics by Kenneth S. Webb, ’06; Roy Webb, ’10; M. S. Wolff, ’15; Robert A. Simon, ’18; Frank Padwe, ’16; Edgar Wolfe, ’20; Cyril S. Laub, ’18; and G. M. Watts, ’17. Staged under the direction of Kenneth S. Webb. Orchestra under the direction of Roy Webb, ’10. Orchestrations by Roy Webb.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMajor roles: John D. Beals Jr., ’17 (Gideon Guiness); Randolph M. Saville, ’18 (Steve Guiness, his son); James D. Herbert, ’19 (the Red Rose Girl); Phillip B. Leavitt, ’18 (Marion Gay, Steve’s sweetheart); Ormond V. Gould, ’17 (Lucius Vodka, a mysterious personage); Oscar Hammerstein II, ’18L (Armand Dubonnet, head waiter at Roget’s); H. William Hanemann, ’17 (Emma Guiness, Gideon’s better 99\/100); Louis C. Owens Jr., ’20 (Vivienne, her daughter).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eExcept as detailed below, the lyrics were preserved in a lavish program-libretto and in a smaller pamphlet of lyrics. The program advertises a vocal score, but none of the music is known to survive. A song list published in the \u003ci\u003eColumbia Daily Spectator\u003c\/i\u003e, March 9, 1917, includes the title “What’s This Old World Coming To?” by Axelrod, Hammerstein and Lippmann, to be performed in act two by the character Lucius Vodka; that song has not been found.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHammerstein played the leading comic role in the show, and after one of the matinees he received congratulations from fraternity brother Mortimer Rodgers and Rodgers’ musical younger brother, Richard.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eACT ONE OPENING CHORUS\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLyric by Oscar Hammerstein II and Herman Axelrod. Introduced by the ensemble.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eEnsemble:\u003cbr\u003ePeople think we’re bank directors \u003cbr\u003eJust because we dine at Rector’s. \u003cbr\u003eBut from eight o’clock till five, \u003cbr\u003eWe just have to keep alive \u003cbr\u003eBehind a ribbon counter. \u003cbr\u003eEvery day when work is over, \u003cbr\u003eWe start out each one a rover, \u003cbr\u003eDancing till the break of day, \u003cbr\u003eTrying hard to look blasé In a careful, careless way.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGirls:\u003cbr\u003eWe are ladies of the chorus. \u003cbr\u003eTired businessmen adore us. \u003cbr\u003eWe hate auto rides and pearls, \u003cbr\u003eFor we’re just hard-working girls. \u003cbr\u003eWe are martyrs to the cause of art.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eComedy Group:\u003cbr\u003eOur little group of serious thinkers \u003cbr\u003eAlways investigates and tinkers, \u003cbr\u003eIn our inimitable way \u003cbr\u003eWith the problems of the day. \u003cbr\u003eCubist art and verse that’s free, \u003cbr\u003eSurely are the things we Find most interesting, \u003cbr\u003eOh, yes, we do. \u003cbr\u003eWe’re the ones who set the craze \u003cbr\u003eDining in red-ink cafes \u003cbr\u003eUntil the lights go out.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAll:\u003cbr\u003eStick around, this is going to be some show. \u003cbr\u003eWe’ve seen all the rehearsals and we know. \u003cbr\u003eScenery quite disturbin’ \u003cbr\u003eDone by our own Urban. \u003cbr\u003eThe cast and the chorus are chock full of pep and go. \u003cbr\u003eEvery song has a tuneful melody, \u003cbr\u003eSparkling with originality. \u003cbr\u003eAs for the whole libretto and the lyricizing, \u003cbr\u003eThere’s no use to start a- criticizing, \u003cbr\u003eIf you don’t believe it, wait and see!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eMarion\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLyric by Oscar Hammerstein II and Herman Axelrod. Introduced by Randolph M. Saville (Steve) and chorus.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eVERSE 1\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGirlies by hundreds I’ve oft met before \u003cbr\u003eAnd they’ve made no impression on me. \u003cbr\u003eThose who were pretty had nobody home \u003cbr\u003eAnd the bright ones were plain as could be. \u003cbr\u003eSome girls were shy But I passed them all by, \u003cbr\u003eAnd I shunned all the wise dames too, \u003cbr\u003e’Cause each little peach had her own little flaw; \u003cbr\u003eBut I’m glad I persisted \u003cbr\u003eFor I found there existed \u003cbr\u003eThe one and the only she!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eREFRAIN\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMarion, oh, won’t you marry me? \u003cbr\u003eYou’re the only girl I’ve found. \u003cbr\u003eMarion, now please don’t carry on, \u003cbr\u003eFor I’m hopelessly smitten \u003cbr\u003eAnd weak as a kitten, \u003cbr\u003eWhenever you’re around. \u003cbr\u003eAll the rest are merely also-rans; \u003cbr\u003eThere’s but one that I can see. \u003cbr\u003eWon’t you please stop your tarryin’, \u003cbr\u003eDear little Marion, \u003cbr\u003eAnd think of marryin’ me?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eVERSE 2\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhere is the play of today that’s completed \u003cbr\u003eWithout some love interest to blend? \u003cbr\u003eDon’t be so slow, dear, \u003cbr\u003eYou may as well know, dear, \u003cbr\u003eYou’ll be in my arms at the end. \u003cbr\u003eFirst you may dally, \u003cbr\u003eBut at the finale \u003cbr\u003eI’ll call you my blushing bride. \u003cbr\u003e’Cause if you were not, \u003cbr\u003eIt would spoil all the plot. \u003cbr\u003eAnd a good leading lady Is never old-maidy, \u003cbr\u003eSo let’s get the license now.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eREPEAT REFRAIN\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePlankety Plank\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLyric by Oscar Hammerstein II and Herman Axelrod. Introduced by Randolph M. Saville (Steve), Phillip B. Leavitt* (Marion), and the Mandolin Club.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eVERSE 1\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA wee mandolin and a big guitar \u003cbr\u003eWere thrown together by chance. \u003cbr\u003e’Twas way downtown in a music store \u003cbr\u003eThey started their own romance. \u003cbr\u003eThe great big guitar told the mandolin \u003cbr\u003eThere was never an instrument cuter. \u003cbr\u003eWhen he stole a kiss, she \u003cbr\u003eCoyly told him that he\u003cbr\u003eWas a suitor \u003cbr\u003eToo ardent to suit her.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eREFRAIN\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Plunkety-plunkety plunk, plunk?” \u003cbr\u003eThat’s how he worded his plea. \u003cbr\u003e“Planky-planky plankety, planky plank,” \u003cbr\u003eShe’d answer, “Not for me.” \u003cbr\u003e“See how you’re pulling my heart strings?” \u003cbr\u003e“Plankety, planky, plank.” \u003cbr\u003eThen at last his persistence \u003cbr\u003eBroke down her resistance, \u003cbr\u003eAnd so \u003cbr\u003e’Tis said \u003cbr\u003eThey went \u003cbr\u003eAnd wed, \u003cbr\u003eAnd now they are both in tune.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eVERSE 2\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe wee mandolin and the big guitar \u003cbr\u003eHave learned how to harmonize. \u003cbr\u003eHe accompanies her every place she goes; \u003cbr\u003eHe knows he has won a prize. \u003cbr\u003eHe thrills as she trills in her rhythmic way \u003cbr\u003eFor indeed they are never quite quiet. \u003cbr\u003eThey have no cause to brood O’er the high cost of food, \u003cbr\u003eWith their music and love for a diet.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eREPEAT REFRAIN\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e* Phil Leavitt, who played the “heroine” of Home, James, is best remembered for his role in introducing Richard Rodgers to Lorenz Hart. He also performed “There’s Always Room for One More,” the first song with words by Hammerstein and music by Rodgers.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePoor Armand\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLyric by Oscar Hammerstein II and Herman Axelrod. Introduced by Oscar Hammerstein II (Armand). \u003ci\u003eThe New York Herald\u003c\/i\u003e called Hammerstein “funmaker in extraordinary as Armand Dubonnet, maître d’hôtel, who breaks into society as a supposed comte.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI was very young at the time, \u003cbr\u003eThe spring was in the air, \u003cbr\u003eThat is the season when a young man’s fancy \u003cbr\u003eTurns to thoughts that cause a lot of trouble. \u003cbr\u003eShe was a wispy, fairy-like thing, \u003cbr\u003eClad in her gossamer gingham. \u003cbr\u003eOut into the country, we’d take long walks. \u003cbr\u003eOh—the bull! How I’d fling him. \u003cbr\u003eBut one fateful day, I proposed to her. \u003cbr\u003eShe coldly looked at me and said: \u003cbr\u003e“Grande passion is out of fashion, my dear Armand. \u003cbr\u003eIt could never turn my head, \u003cbr\u003eYou are nice boy and I like you, \u003cbr\u003eYou are chivalrous—and all that sort of rot. \u003cbr\u003eBut we could never tie the lover’s knot, \u003cbr\u003eFor we are lovers—not!”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eII\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThen I met another girl, \u003cbr\u003eA ravishing vision of beauty! \u003cbr\u003eShe had that golden hair and deep blue eyes \u003cbr\u003eThat told of a nature \u003cbr\u003eThat was proud—though Swedish. \u003cbr\u003eShe was a cook in a beanery lunch, \u003cbr\u003eAnd I was only a waiter. \u003cbr\u003eBut oh—the French pancakes that she could make! \u003cbr\u003eHow I loved her cooking! \u003cbr\u003eBut one day I looked through the kitchen door, \u003cbr\u003eBehol’ the sight that met my eye, \u003cbr\u003eSitting in my chair was a great big fat policeman. \u003cbr\u003eOh—I almost want to cry, \u003cbr\u003eI break in the door \u003cbr\u003eI say—“What does this mean?” \u003cbr\u003eShe—“Armand, no more French pancake for you.” \u003cbr\u003eThis cop—he was Irish too, \u003cbr\u003eAnd for him she make the Irish stew!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIII\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThere was charming, chic ’Toinette, \u003cbr\u003eShe was my fourth or fifth affaire. \u003cbr\u003eI thought she’d care, \u003cbr\u003eBut she became a barber’s bride. \u003cbr\u003eThere was Julie—roguish Jou-Jou, \u003cbr\u003eSweet Marie and piquant Lulu, \u003cbr\u003eFluffy frou-frou swiftly flitting from my side. \u003cbr\u003eI was always a girl’s first love, \u003cbr\u003eNever anybody’s last. \u003cbr\u003eEach said I was the first that ever kissed her, \u003cbr\u003eBut it mattered not what I did, \u003cbr\u003eShe decided very fast \u003cbr\u003eThat to me she would be \u003cbr\u003eJust a sister. \u003cbr\u003eHere’s a letter from the last one: \u003cbr\u003e“Dearest Armand, \u003cbr\u003eI can’t forget last night, just when you left me.” \u003cbr\u003eOh, it was very nice. \u003cbr\u003e“And how is my little papoose?”— \u003cbr\u003eShe always calls me that— \u003cbr\u003e“And, Armand, dear, do you think \u003cbr\u003eThat my husband—?”!!!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eHome, James\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLyric by Oscar Hammerstein II and Herman Axelrod. Introduced by Randolph M. Saville (Steve), Phillip B. Leavitt (Marion), Ormond V. Gould (Vodka), and chorus.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eVERSE 1\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI want to be a star in moving pictures, \u003cbr\u003eLike Mary, Charlie, Douglas, and the other fixtures.* \u003cbr\u003eI will sell my autograph \u003cbr\u003eWritten on my photograph. \u003cbr\u003eMy personality \u003cbr\u003eWill make a hit for me, \u003cbr\u003eAnd I’ll be the talk of the town.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eREFRAIN\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eYou’ll see me twinkle, twinkle, twinkle as a movie star \u003cbr\u003eIn glaring lights, from dizzy heights. \u003cbr\u003eWhen once or twice you’ve seen \u003cbr\u003eMe shine upon the screen, \u003cbr\u003eI’ll be riding round the city in my limousine. \u003cbr\u003eAnd then I’ll never, never, never go to bed until \u003cbr\u003eThe clock strikes one, two, three or four o’clock. \u003cbr\u003eThen—“Home, James, drive me fast!” \u003cbr\u003eThat’s the existence for me.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eVerse 2\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI loved the dirty villain in the drama. \u003cbr\u003ePoor dear Mathilda, he near killed her with a hammer. \u003cbr\u003eHe used to hiss, “Where is the child?” \u003cbr\u003eBut now his manner’s meek and mild. \u003cbr\u003eNo more he’ll villainize. \u003cbr\u003eHis aim with custard pies \u003cbr\u003eHas made him Keystone Komedy King.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eREPEAT REFRAIN\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e* In the introduction to his anthology, Lyrics, Hammerstein gave the opening lines as “I want to be a star in moving pictures\/Like Chaplin, Pickford, Fairbanks, and the other fixtures” and commented: “Quite a rhyme! Like my two collaborators, I expected to make my living in another calling.”Foreword by Alice Hammerstein Mathias; Introduction by Ted Chapin","brand":"Knopf","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46301163290853,"sku":"NP9780375413582","price":65.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780375413582.jpg?v=1767738792","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/the-complete-lyrics-of-oscar-hammerstein-ii-isbn-9780375413582","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}