The plot of ‘Hello, Dolly’ originated in an 1835 English Play called “A Day Well Spent” by John Oxenford.
Johan Nestroy adapted the story again in 1842, and much later American playwright Thornton Wilder adapted it as ‘The Merchant of Yonkers’, and only after it flopped did he adapt it as ‘The Matchmaker’ which finally broke through and led to the perennial Broadway hit.
The Very First Film Released on VHS on
Hello Dolly was indeed the first film for home video in the US was released on VHS and betamax. It was released in the fall of 1977 by the Magnetic video corporation.
The last VHS release was “A History of Violence” many collectors now value original VHS copies of films a great deal with some reaching prices of over $400.
It Was Louis Armstrong’s Final Film
Armstrong only needed to be on set for one day for his work on the film.
His 1964 recording of the song however hit #1 in the charts. His version of this song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2001.
It May Have Been the End of the Big Budget Musical
The film adaptation was at the time the most expensive muscial ever made. It earned enough to be a top grossing film for that year.
Unfortunately (despite the earnings) the film could not recoup its costs and put an end to Hollywood’s tradition of the big budget musical.
A Record Holding Show
‘Hello, Dolly’ has claimed many unique records. It tied ‘South Pacific’ with 37 Tony awards (until ‘The Producers’ took the new record in 2001).
It was for a time the longest running show in Broadway history.
