George M!

George M! is a Broadway musical based on the life of George M. Cohan, the biggest Broadway star of his day known as “The Man Who Owned Broadway.” The book for the musical was written by Michael Stewart, John Pascal, and Francine Pascal. Music and lyrics were, of course, by George M. Cohan himself, with revisions for the musical by Cohan’s daughter, Mary Cohan.

After eight previews, the Broadway production, produced by Emanuel Azenberg and directed and choreographed by Joe Layton, opened on April 10, 1968 at the Palace Theatre, where it ran for 433 performances. The cast included Joel Grey as George M. Cohan, Bernadette Peters, Jamie Donnelly, and Betty Ann Grove.

The story covers the late 1880s until 1937 and focuses on Cohan’s life and show business career from his early days in vaudeville to his later success as a Broadway singer, dancer, composer, lyricist, theatre director and producer. The show includes such Cohan hit songs as “Give My Regards To Broadway”, “You’re A Grand Old Flag”, and “Yankee Doodle Dandy.”