Bye Bye Birdie (50th Anniversary Reunion)

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TCB-FAN
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Bye Bye Birdie (50th Anniversary Reunion)

Post by TCB-FAN »

The Elvis goes into the army themed movie Bye Bye Birdie is celebrating its 50th Anniversary this year. This film made a superstar of Ann-Margret and Bobby Rydell co-starred as her boyfriend. They recently reunited at a screening of the musical in California. During his current act, Bobby pays tribute to the film with a medley of songs from the film while clips of it are shown on screen.

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As they were in 1963 during the filming..........

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"If The Songs Don't Go Over With The Crowd, We Can Always Do A Medley Of Costumes."

Elvis A. Presley, 1970

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Re: Bye Bye Birdie Turns 50 !

Post by drjohncarpenter »

TCB-FAN wrote:The Elvis goes into the army themed movie Bye Bye Birdie is celebrating its 50th Anniversary this year. This film made a superstar of Ann-Margret and Bobby Rydell co-starred as her boyfriend. They recently reunited at a screening of the musical in California. During his current act, Bobby pays tribute to the film with a medley of songs from the film while clips of it are shown on screen.

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As they were in 1963 during the filming..........

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Oh, that Facebook!

"Bye Bye Birdie" actually celebrated its 50th anniversary in April 2010, having debuted on Broadway on April 4, 1960, the same day Elvis completed sessions for Elvis Is Back!

The Broadway musical was a smash, ran for a year and a half, got nominated for 8 Tony Awards and won 4.

Bye Bye Birdie | IBDB: The official source for Broadway Information
http://www.ibdb.com/production.php?id=2199

Both Dick Van Dyke and Paul Lynde reprised their stage roles in the 1963 film update, neither were pleased with all the changes.
Van Dyke was unhappy with the adaptation because the focus was shifted to Ann-Margret's character. He has stated that Birdie was "a romp'" on Broadway, but they "Hollywood-ized" the movie. "They made it a vehicle for Ann-Margret." Paul Lynde, who played Mr. MacAfee on stage and in the film, later quipped "They should have retitled it 'Hello, Ann-Margret!' They cut several of my and the other actors' best scenes and shot new ones for her so she could do her teenage-sex-bombshell act." Susan Watson, who created the role of Kim in the stage version, later said, "Anyone who likes the film didn't see the show."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bye_Bye_Birdie_%28musical%29#1963_film


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Re: Bye Bye Birdie (50th Anniversary Reunion)

Post by TCB-FAN »

I was referring to the movie, not the Broadway play....and yes..I love facebook :) It's an addiction that I just can't seem to kick out of.


"If The Songs Don't Go Over With The Crowd, We Can Always Do A Medley Of Costumes."

Elvis A. Presley, 1970


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Re: Bye Bye Birdie (50th Anniversary Reunion)

Post by elvis4life »

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Dick-Van-Dyke-Shares-Why-He-Doesnt-Like-the-BYE-BYE-BIRDIE-Movie-20250122

Dick Van Dyke Shares Why He Doesn't Like the BYE BYE BIRDIE Movie
Van Dyke won a Tony Award for his performance in the original Broadway production.

By: Josh Sharpe
Jan. 22, 2025

Dick Van Dyke is setting the record straight about Bye Bye Birdie. Despite reprising his Tony-winning performance as Albert Peterson in the 1963 film, the legendary performer isn't fond of the movie. In a recent interview on SiriusXM’s podcast “Where Everybody Knows Your Name," he called the movie a "drag," explaining that they couldn't replicate the magic of the stage version.

"The Ann-Margaret part was rather small on Broadway," he explained. "And they wrote special songs for her, and took other songs out, and it just changed the whole pitch of everything. Paul [Lynde] was really pissed all the time. But that was just his nature."

Among the songs cut for the movie were "An English Teacher," "What Did I Ever See in Him?" and "Baby, Talk to Me." Van Dyke's wife, Arlene Silver, who was also a guest on the podcast, noted that "a lot of people liked the movie" adding that it makes her laugh when people talk to him about the film because of how much he doesn't like it. Watch the interview clip below.



The original 1960 Tony Award-winning Broadway musical starred Dick Van Dyke as Albert Peterson (earning Van Dyke a Tony) and Chita Rivera as Rosie (earning Rivera a Tony nomination). The book was by Michael Stewart, lyrics by Lee Adams and music by Charles Strouse.

At 99 years old, Dick Van Dyke continues to remain one of the most popular and beloved performers in show business history. After winning a Tony for Bye Bye Birdie, he returned to the stage in the 1970s and 80s with national tours of The Music Man and Damn Yankees.

In 1961, his superstar status was solidified with the debut of The Dick Van Dyke Show on CBS, winning three Emmys® for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy over the course of its six-season run. On the big screen, he starred in Bye Bye Birdie and Mary Poppins (1964). Other films include Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968), The Comic (1969), Dick Tracy (1990), the Night At The Museum films, the HBO documentary If You're Not In The Obit, Eat Breakfast (2017), and Mary Poppins Returns (2018).

Photo: Monty Brinton/CBS ©2023 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.