Playbill Vault
Playbill Vault's Today in Theatre History: February 3
Happy birthday, Nathan Lane!
Nathan Lane in The Nance
Joan Marcus
1938 A grandfather holds off Death by chasing him up a tree in On Borrowed Time . The comedy was adapted by Paul Osborn from Lawrence Edward Watkin 's novel of the same title. Dudley Digges stars as Gramps, Peter Holden as his grandson, and Frank Conroy as the Grim Reaper.1951 Maureen Stapleton is a lonely widow pining for her dead husband in The Rose Tattoo . The Tennessee Williams work also stars Eli Wallach , Sal Mineo , and Martin Balsam . It runs 38 weeks.1956 Broadway musical comedy leading man Nathan Lane is born in Jersey City, New Jersey. He will go on to win Tony Awards for his performances as Max Bialystock in The Producers , Pseudolus in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum , and Roy Cohn in Angels in America and receive nominations for The Front Page , The Nance , and Guys and Dolls . He also collaborates with Stephen Sondheim on the musical The Frogs , and lends his voice to Timon the Meerkat in the animated Disney film The Lion King .1960 The Wrong Side of the Park might also be the wrong side of marriage in John Mortimer 's drama. Staged by Peter Hall at London's Cambridge Theatre, Margaret Leighton stars as a neurotic wife tormenting her husband (Richard Johnson ) with a fantasy of her deceased first spouse. It runs nearly 22 weeks.1976 Opening night for A Matter of Gravity starring Katharine Hepburn and Christopher Reeve . Enid Bagnold 's drama runs 79 performances at the Broadhurst Theatre. 1982 James Earl Jones stars as Othello at the Winter Garden Theatre opposite Christopher Plummer as Iago. The production was first seen the previous summer at the American Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford, Connecticut. Also in the cast are Dianne Wiest as Desdemona and Kelsey Grammer as Cassio. 2005 Pulitzer winner Donald Margulies ' Brooklyn Boy opens on Broadway at the Biltmore Theatre. Adam Arkin , Polly Draper , and Ari Graynor star in the drama about a man who returns to his childhood neighborhood after becoming a famous novelist.2012 Ben Gazzara , an intense actor of stage and film who created the role of Brick in Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof , dies at age 81. He received Tony nominations for his performances in A Hatful of Rain , Hughie / Duet , and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? .More of Today's Birthdays: James A. Michener (1907-1997). Robert Earl Jones (1910-2006). Bibi Osterwald (1920-2002). John Fiedler (1925-2005). Blythe Danner (b. 1943). Linda Eder (b. 1961). Geoffrey Nauffts (b. 1961). Ann Harada (b. 1964). Doug Besterman (b. 1965). Maura Tierney (b. 1965). Ashley Brown (b. 1982). Brandon Micheal Hall (b. 1993).
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Celebrating 3-Time Tony Award Winner Nathan Lane
Celebrating 3-Time Tony Award Winner Nathan Lane
47 PHOTOS
(Standing) Cara Buono, Frances Conroy, Kate Burton, and Nathan Lane (Sitting) Colin Stinton, Ann Talman, Henderson Forsythe, Jane Hoffman, and John Bedford-Lloyd in Some Americans Abroad
Nathan Lane and Peter Gallagher in Guys and Dolls
Walter Bobbie, Nathan Lane and J.K. Simmons in Guys and Dolls
Faith Prince and Nathan Lane in Guys and Dolls
Martha Swope
Nathan Lane in Laughter on the 23rd Floor
Mark Linn-Baker, John Slattery and Nathan Lane in Laughter on the 23rd Floor
Nathan Lane in Love! Valour! Compassion!
Ernie Sabella, Jim Stanek, Nathan Lane, and cast in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
Nathan Lane and Mark Linn-Baker in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
Leigh Zimmerman and Nathan Lane in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
Nathan Lane in The Man Who Came to Dinner
Nathan Lane in The Producers
Gary Beach, Matthew Broderick, Nathan Lane, and Roger Bart in The Producers
Paul Kolnik
Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick in The Producers .
Paul Kolnik
Nathan Lane and Burke Moses in The Frogs
Nathan Lane in The Frogs
Matthew Broderick, Nathan Lane, Jessica Stone and Olivia d'Abo in The Odd Couple
Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick in The Odd Couple
Nathan Lane in Butley
Pamela Gray and Nathan Lane in Butley
Nathan Lane and Dylan Baker in November
Nathan Lane and Ethan Phillips in November
Nathan Lane and Bill Irwin in Waiting for Godot
Bill Irwin and Nathan Lane in Waiting for Godot
Joan Marcus
Kevin Chamberlin, Terrence Mann and Nathan Lane in The Addams Family
Nathan Lane and cast in The Addams Family
Nathan Lane in The Addams Family
Brian Dennehy and Nathan Lane in The Iceman Cometh at Chicago's Goodman Theatre
Nathan Lane in The Iceman Cometh at Chicago's Goodman Theatre
Jonny Orsini and Nathan Lane in The Nance
Nathan Lane in The Nance
Joan Marcus
Nathan Lane and Lewis J. Stadlen in The Nance
Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick in It's Only a Play
Joan Marcus
Megan Mullally and Nathan Lane
Joan Marcus
Nathan Lane
Julieta Cervantes
John Slattery and Nathan Lane in a scene from The Front Page
Nathan Lane
Jason Bell
Nathan Lane and Nathan Stewart-Jarrett
Helen Maybanks
Nathan Lane
Helen Maybanks
Nathan Lane
Little Fang Photography
Nathan Lane
Julieta Cervantes
Nathan Lane
Nathan Lane
Julieta Cervantes
Nathan Lane
Julieta Cervantes
Kristine Nielsen and Nathan Lane
Nathan Lane and Kristine Nielsen
Kristine Nielsen and Nathan Lane