Has anyone noticed a strange similarity between Mayor Shin in the "Music Man" and Mike Pence. On the surface they seem nothing alike, and one is far more seductive than the other.. But when they open their mouths they both betray a vacuum between their ears.
Yah. That's a great performanc by Robert Preston. There are so many great lines! -- "Is there a dime novel hidden in the corn crib'", "...a nicotine stain on his index finger". I think this particular Meredith Wilson musical perfectly capture our nostalgic picture of small town, midwest america of an earlier era. Today, when in parts of Canada, I feel I'm being swept back in a time machine to that same lost period. But it is not yet lost in Canada! Every American should see this musical on stage, or the movie version. Both are a wonderful, hyper-real depiction of an earlier time in our country. Musical theater is often just a silly, entertaining escape from reality. This Wilson musical and Sondheim's much later musicals go further. They both depend on hyper-realism to reveal ourselves in flattering and not so flattering ways.. If we lived through the eras depicted, we readily identify with these musicals. If we are too young to have done that, we are still treated to a marvelous and entertaining, history lesson. The Contrast between Wilson's mid 19th Century America as depicted in "The Music Man" and the America depicted in Sondheim's more musically complex, post mid-Century musicals such as "Follies," or his masterpiece "Company", could hardly be greater. The former depicts a charming naivete we indulged ourselves in; the latter a much less comfortable reality of the present time. I have commented before here that the Trump administration is rife with musical theater material. I am more certain than ever that it is coming. Just a matter of time. And there will be a starring role for Mike Pence's character: "Well, Susan, Donald Trump and I will always protect the American People." It will be filled with characters like penis challenged "little Marco", "Overrated Generals", "Lying Rex Tillerson", "Retarded Senator Sessions," "Lucy-Goosey Lindsey," "Moscow Mitch", and a chorus of singing"Losers" from the Press Corp, and dancing Russian Intelligence Officers with their leader, a minuscule Vladimir Putin in pink tights.