Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II (; July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and (usually uncredited) director in the musical theater for almost 40 years.
These included playing first base on the baseball team, performing in the Varsity Show and becoming an active member of Pi Lambda Phi, a mostly Jewish fraternity. After his father's death, in June 1914, when he was 19, he participated in his first play with the Varsity Show, entitled On Your Way.
He attended the Church of the Divine Paternity, now the Fourth Universalist Society in the City of New York. Although Hammerstein's father managed the Victoria Theatre and was a producer of vaudeville shows, he was opposed to his son's desire to participate in the arts. Hammerstein attended Columbia University (1912–1916) and studied at Columbia Law School until 1917.
He was survived by his second wife, Dorothy, his three children, and two stepchildren. ==Personal life== Hammerstein married his first wife, Myra Finn, in 1917; the couple divorced in 1929.
It opened on Broadway in 1920.
In 1921 Hammerstein joined The Lambs club. Throughout the next forty years, Hammerstein teamed up with many other composers, including Jerome Kern, with whom Hammerstein enjoyed a highly successful collaboration.
In 1927, Kern and Hammerstein wrote their biggest hit based on Edna Ferber's bestselling eponymous novel, Show Boat, which is often revived, as it is considered one of the masterpieces of American musical theater.
He was survived by his second wife, Dorothy, his three children, and two stepchildren. ==Personal life== Hammerstein married his first wife, Myra Finn, in 1917; the couple divorced in 1929.
He married his second wife, the Australian-born Dorothy (Blanchard) Jacobson (1899–1987), in 1929.
The adaptation became the first Rodgers and Hammerstein collaboration, entitled Oklahoma!, which opened on Broadway in 1943.
Hammerstein also wrote the book and lyrics for Carmen Jones, an adaptation of Georges Bizet's opera Carmen, with an all-black cast that became a 1943 Broadway musical and a 1954 film, starring Dorothy Dandridge. ==Advocacy== An active advocate for writers' rights within the theater industry, Hammerstein was a member of the Dramatists Guild of America.
Rodgers and Hammerstein began writing together before the era of the Tonys: Oklahoma! opened in 1943 and Carousel in 1945, and the Tony Awards were not awarded until 1947.
They won a special Pulitzer Prize in 1944 for Oklahoma! and, with Joshua Logan, the annual Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1950 for South Pacific.
Rodgers and Hammerstein began writing together before the era of the Tonys: Oklahoma! opened in 1943 and Carousel in 1945, and the Tony Awards were not awarded until 1947.
Rodgers and Hammerstein began writing together before the era of the Tonys: Oklahoma! opened in 1943 and Carousel in 1945, and the Tony Awards were not awarded until 1947.
In 1950, the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein received The Hundred Year Association of New York's Gold Medal Award "in recognition of outstanding contributions to the City of New York." Hammerstein won eight Tony Awards, six for lyrics or book, and two as producer of the Best Musical (South Pacific and The Sound of Music).
They won a special Pulitzer Prize in 1944 for Oklahoma! and, with Joshua Logan, the annual Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1950 for South Pacific.
Hammerstein also wrote the book and lyrics for Carmen Jones, an adaptation of Georges Bizet's opera Carmen, with an all-black cast that became a 1943 Broadway musical and a 1954 film, starring Dorothy Dandridge. ==Advocacy== An active advocate for writers' rights within the theater industry, Hammerstein was a member of the Dramatists Guild of America.
In 1956, he was elected as the eleventh president of the nonprofit organization.
Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II (; July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and (usually uncredited) director in the musical theater for almost 40 years.
He continued his presidency at the Guild until 1960; he was succeeded by Alan Jay Lerner. ==Death== Hammerstein died of stomach cancer on August 23, 1960, at his home Highland Farm in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, aged 65, nine months after the opening of The Sound of Music on Broadway.
A memorial plaque was unveiled at Southwark Cathedral, England, on May 24, 1961.
After Hammerstein's death, The Sound of Music was adapted as a 1965 film, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture. The lights of Times Square were turned off for one minute, and London's West End lights were dimmed in recognition of his contribution to the musical.
The Oscar Hammerstein II Center for Theater Studies at Columbia University was established in 1981 with a $1 million gift from his family. == Legacy == His advice and work influenced Stephen Sondheim, a friend of the Hammerstein family from childhood.
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