The musical was based on the 1957 play
A Hole in the Head by
Arnold Schulman which ran for 156 performances and had been turned into a
1959 Frank Capra movie with
Frank Sinatra. Music and lyrics were by Walter Marks who had written the music for
Bajour. Arthur Storch signed to direct. The story originally involved a single father looking after his son in Miami whose married brother wants to take custody of the son; the father has a brief romance with a widow.
Steve Lawrence was interested in playing the father, and Lawrence's wife
Eydie Gorme was going to play the widow. It was the first time they appeared in a Broadway show together, although two years previous Lawrence had starred in
What Makes Sammy Run?. Gorme wanted to play a lead role, and the part of the brother was turned into a woman, the father's sister-in-law. The show had a huge advance order of ticket sales - over $1 million - due to the popularity of its stars. Production was problematic, and Arnold Schulman left the show. The producers tried to replace him with Mike Stewart; instead Ernest Kinoy was hired. There was a large number of previews (43) as various choreographers and book writers were bought to help the production. Rehearsals started 14 August 1967. The previews for
Golden Rainbow began at the
Forrest Theatre in Philadelphia on November 28, 1967, moving to its location in New York City at the
Shubert Theatre on Broadway on December 27, 1967. The musical officially opened on February 4, 1968 at the Shubert, where it played until November 17, 1968. On November 19, 1968, its run resumed at the
George Abbott Theatre on Broadway, where
Golden Rainbow played until it closed on January 11, 1969, after 43 previews and 383 performances. ==Awards==