ONCE UPON A MATTRESS (1964)

"I'm SHY:" Carol Burnet as Winifred the Woebegone

ONCE UPON A MATTRESS (1964 television presentation from the Broadway show.)  Directed by Joe Layton and Dave Geisel. Music by Mary Rodgers. Lyrics by Marshall Barer. 

Recently I saw a revival of the old Broadway hit Once Upon a Mattress --which made Carol Burnett (of Eunice) a major star -- at City Center in Manhattan with Sutton Foster in the lead. I remember seeing the TV adaptation of the show when I was a kid and decided to look for it on youtube -- and there it was (along with a 1973 color version also starring Burnett). Now I have to say Sutton Who? Burnett with her comic genius owns this role -- Princess Winifred the Woebegone -- no matter who else plays it in the future. She is marvelous and very funny. 

Joseph Bova with Burnett

Burnett is backed up by a very talented cast. As the queen, Jane White is bitchy perfection. (White was actually African-American, the daughter of the founder of the NAACP, and it's wonderful that the TV network didn't insist on hiring someone Caucasian to replace her.) Also transferred from the Broadway production was Joseph Bova as Prince Dauntless the Drab. I'm not certain if the others were on Broadway, but they consist of Shani Wallis as Lady Larken, Bill Hayes in fine voice as the Minstrel, Jack Gilford [A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum] as the mostly silent king, Jack Fletcher as the wizard, and Elliott Gould [Stolen: One Husband]  -- yes the man can sing and dance, too -- as the court jester. 

Jack Gilford and Elliott Gould

The only real quibble I have is that this version drops three of the best songs, two love duets for the minstrel and Lady Larken, and the show-stopping "Happily Ever After" number. Fortunately we've got Hayes and Wallis singing "Normandy," Burnett exuberantly performing the knock-out number "Shy," the queen planning Winifred's defeat in "Sensitivity," and Gould doing a splendid turn with "Soft Shoes." There is also a brief duet for the prince and Winifred that is not on the cast album and which I found on an additional youtube clip. Another change from Broadway is that the young lovers are secretly married in this, whereas in the stage show they are not -- and Larken is pregnant. That's a no-no for TV in the sixties!

Verdict: All in all this is delightful with a simply wonderful Burnett. ***1/4.

ONCE UPON A MATTRESS (1972)

Carol Burnett sings "Shy"

ONCE UPON A MATTRESS (1972 TV adaptation). Directed by Ron Field and Dave Powers. Music by Mary Rodgers. Lyrics by Marshall Barer.

Having done a black and white TV adaptation of her Broadway triumph, Carol Burnett decided to do it again -- this time in color -- about a decade later. Jack Gilford and Jane White reprise their roles as the king and queen, Bernadette Peters and Ron Husmann play the young lovers, Wally Cox is the jester, Ken Berry is Prince Dauntless, and Lyle Waggoner is the wizard, Sir Studley. At first you might think that Burnett is a little off her game, having lost that sort of gauche quality that she had before she became so famous, but then she digs into her showstopper "Happily Ever After" (left out of the earlier version) and brings the house down. She's sensational. 

Jane White and Ken Berry

However, she almost has to take a back seat to Jane White, who is even better than she was in the first version, and who is given a little more to do, such as being flirtatious with Sir Studley. One of the love duets, "In a Little While," arguably the best song in the show, has been reinstated, and the lovers -- the gal is pregnant -- are once again unmarried, this being the swingin' seventies. Ken Berry reveals a pleasant singing voice and while not quite as good as Joseph Bova in the original telecast, works well with Burnett. Ron Husmann was a busy Broadway performer. 

Verdict: Another charming and tuneful adaptation. ***.