By Michael Buckley
13 Apr 2003

Other Shakespearean roles played by Sheridan include Hotspur in a 1992 Williamstown production of Henry IV and Brutus in Julius Caesar at Central Park's Delacorte in the summer of 2000. "I was very happy with that; my wife played Portia. My older son was four then, and was very much into the knives and blood [in the play]. Terrified, but he couldn't take his eyes off it. I had to prove to him that we were faking it. The company had a lot of fun with that."

He favorably recalls "Shannon's Deal," which was created by John Sayles. Scripts were by top-flight film writers, and noted jazz artists contributed to the score. Says Sheridan, "I don't think I've ever had a character that fit as well; it's probably the most interesting part I've played. It had humor, and I loved the cast [which included Elizabeth Pena and Miguel Ferrer]. But [network chief] Brandon Tartikoff left NBC, and that was that. We were mid-season replacements in '90 and '91, and basically played every night of the week [before ending its run]."

Looking back at "Chicago Hope," Sheridan observes, "There were some actors that I would really liked to have worked with more. Hector Elizondo and Adam Arkin were two guys I liked a lot. [Creator] David Kelley didn't stay. I liked his writing. He intimated that he might be leaving, but I didn't believe him. [Laughs] I was wrong. He wrote the first couple of episodes I did, and then left. The writing got a little scattered after that [and Sheridan moved on]."

In the 1999 TV-movie, "Ricky Nelson: Original Teen Idol," Sheridan portrayed Ozzie Nelson. "I loved the idea of this mild-mannered, avuncular presence on the television [sitcom], and this kind of little general in reality." In "The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet" (1952-66), Ozzie was always around the house. Did Sheridan ever figure out his occupation? "I have no idea," he says, with a laugh.

On "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," Jamey Sheridan's potential far exceeds the demands. However, he has no complaints: "The character I'm playing is very interesting to me, but there's not a whole lot of him [in the action]. Still, it's a good show."

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Michael Kantor is directing the six-hour series, "Broadway: The American Musical," which his company, Ghost Light Films, is co-producing with Thirteen/WNET. It's scheduled to debut on PBS in the fall of 2004. "I've always wanted to create a documentary on the history of Broadway," says Kantor. "Musical theatre is uniquely American; the musical started on Broadway."

The six hours will be divided, "generally chronologically," with the first part going from the late nineteenth century through the opening of Show Boat, and the final one covering from 1980 to the present. "It's shot on super-16mm film, and finished in high-definition television," notes Kantor."

Featured in the segments will be performances by numerous past stars, including Ethel Merman, Fanny Brice, Ethel Waters and Bert Williams, as well as clips ranging from The Ziegfeld Follies to The Lion King. There's also, says Kantor, "newly uncovered footage that I don't want to mention yet."

Thus far, Kantor has conducted 40 interviews, starting in 1996 with Al Hirschfeld. Among those to whom he's spoken are Carol Channing, Betty Comden and Adolph Green, John Kander and Fred Ebb, Jerry Herman, Stephen Sondheim, Joel Grey, John Raitt, June Havoc, Walter Matthau, Patricia Morison, Sheldon Harnick, Michael Kidd, Harold Prince, Tommy Tune, Arthur Laurents, Kitty Carlisle Hart, Jo Sullivan Loesser and Brendan Gill.

"We also have Doris Eaton Travis, the 90-something year old former Ziegfeld Follies girl, on the New Amsterdam stage—doing the same tap dance that she did there in the 1918 Follies. Right now, we're working on telling the story of Agnes de Mille. We're about to do interviews with Chita Rivera, Julie Andrews and Jerry Orbach, and we hope to get Barbra Streisand." Unfortunately, Kantor did not speak to Gwen Verdon, "but we can use footage from 'Steam Heat,' the documentary she did for Thirteen."

The aim, Kantor continues, "is not to just highlight famous performers and creators. We're placing things in historical and social contexts, and showing that Broadway has been a seminal part of American culture. We're showing how—in the Twenties—Broadway slang crossed over into the press, radio and early talking pictures, and how—20 years later—the early revue shows on television used Broadway performers.

There will be one narrator (not yet selected) for the six parts, and the goal is to use a different host for each hour, with the introductions being made from the stages of six Broadway theatres. The series will have a companion book, written by Kantor and Laurence Maslon, "and there are potential plans for a book by Max Wilk, targeting secondary-school students." Come the fall of 2004, "Broadway: The American Musical" promises to be a comprehensive and entertaining look at an American art form. Concludes Michael Kantor, "We want to reacquaint older audiences and introduce younger audiences to the glories of musical theatre."

David Horn, the series' Executive Producer (with Jac Venza) for Thirteen/WNET, observes, "It's a project that we've wanted to do for years. Alan Jay Lerner was writing a [similar] show when he died. It's been a long involved process in fund raising."

Though the exact telecast dates won't be decided before next spring, Horn believes that "Broadway: The American Musical" will likely "be shown over the course of three nights—two episodes a night. We want to make an event of it; you won't have to wait a week to see the next episode."

According to Horn, "All the scripts have been written, and a lot of interviews have been done. Most of the clip and music research has been done. There are rough cuts of two episodes ready for editing." For the final episode, says David Horn, "We're hoping to follow the creative process [of a show], from beginning to end. We're in negotiations with a couple of musicals that will be coming in next year."

Allowed to see part of episode three, I can report that the footage was a delight. It features sections on Cole Porter, Porgy and Bess, and This Is the Army. Brendan Gill comments on Porter; there are remarks by the original Porgy (Todd Duncan) and Bess (Anne Brown), and by Stephen Sondheim, who praises DuBose Heyward's lyrics and claims that the musical is his favorite.

Irving Berlin's daughter, Mary Ellin Barrett, recalls that the first premiere she attended was the opening night of This Is the Army (July 4, 1942), and the composer is seen singing "Oh, How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning" in a clip from the movie version. "Broadway: The American Musical" looks like a treat that's worth the wait.

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END QUIZ: In 1988, Jamey Sheridan's benefactors, Richard Kiley and Jason Robards, both won Emmys. Kiley was Lead Actor in a Series for "A Year in the Life," and Robards was Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Special for which of the following telecasts: a) "Inherit the Wind"; b) "Hughie"; c) "Ah, Wilderness!" (Answer: Next column, May 11)

The March 16 question was: Katharine Hepburn starred in a 1979 TV version of "The Corn Is Green." Who played Miss Moffat in an earlier presentation (1/8/56) on "The Hallmark Hall of Fame": a) Lynn Fontanne; b) Eva LaGallienne; c) Bette Davis? The answer is b.

—Michael Buckley also writes for TheaterMania.com and The Sondheim Review.

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