RIP Robert Morse
When I read that Robert Morse had died at the age of 90, my first thought was “Drat!” My second thought was, “How could he be 90? Impossible!” Because to me Robert Morse always looked like a kid.
Morse rose to fame as the lead in the Broadway musical “How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.” He also starred in the film version, although I never saw him in either except in video clips. This one, which is a song he sings to himself in a mirror, perfectly captures his impish (the adjective that’s so often used to describe him) verve and humor, and that gappy grin with the dimples. The guy can really sing, too:
(For a more recent revival and comparison featuring Matthew Broderick, who in my opinion can’t hold a candle to Morse, see this beginning at 00:40).
However, I have very strong memories of seeing Morse on stage before that, in a musical practically no one knows anymore called “Take Me Along.” It was a musical version of Eugene O’Neill’s “Ah Wilderness,” and I had to look it up to see the year: 1959. Wow. It starred Jackie Gleason, who had been a big TV personality as Ralph Kramden (a show I used to watch), as well as Walter Pidgeon. But to me, and to most of the audience, the real star was Morse, who lent it tremendous energy and comic earnestness as the family’s teenage boy, although he was close to thirty at the time. Every number he did stopped the show. Morse’s talent beamed out into the audience with wattage that couldn’t be denied.
Alas, there are no clips of him in that production. But here he reminisces about the experience:
A completely and utterly unique actor.
I first saw him in The Matchmaker (1958), with Shirley Booth and Shirley MacLaine. This is the Thornton Wilder play that got turned into Hello Dolly. Oddly enough, there was a British TV production with the same role played by Felicity Kendal in male drag.
tcrosse,
“Hello Dolly” predates even Wilder:
Not surprised Morse played a teen-ager at 30. He came across as incredibly youthful. Sort of like Bob Denver. A perpetual teen.
Sorry to hear of his passing, but 90 years. And a very full life!
Great song from a fun musical sung by a great actor.
I’m sure I’m not the first person to think a bit of Jerry Lewis when watching Morse perform. Is it coincidence, or did Morse take on some of Lewis’ demeanor when Martin and Lewis became the biggest act in the history of show business?
“Take Me Along” was a family favorite! I’m still moved when I listen to Walter Pidgeon
sing “Staying Young”.
He was a Korean War USN vet, too. He was so good at playing loveable weasels. Good Bye, Mr. Morse, you will be missed.
Shame, but at least it was a full life. And for whatever our differences on this vale of tears and the passing struggles of mortality, we have a few things that unite us. This is one of them.
Rest in Peace.
My wife and I were fans of the series Mad Men, and it wasn’t until a couple of seasons or more had gone by that a clip popped up before or after an episode with a little bit about Robert Morse’s history. OMG, that Robert Morse!
So we watched the film “How to Succeed …” shortly after that. I remember him from my childhood probably because of that film, but I’m sure a couple other things as well. Perhaps, Where Were You When the Lights Went Out? (1968).
He was the best at that youthful style of comedic acting. Rick Moranis did a great deal of that type of acting, but not as well IMO.
Great video clip. Loved Holland Taylor in “Two and a Half Men.” (Holland? That’s an odd one.)
He also played Truman Capote in Tru.
I saw How to Succeed on tv when I was about 10 years old and I thought it was great. From that one viewing since we are talking about the time before home VCRs even. I remembered the songs and his character for years finally buying it on VHS when I was around 30. The gap in his teeth was on target for the character. Great show, Great Actor.
Morse was in an Alfred Hitchcock episode where he convinced a man to kill his wife’s lover in a duel since an old California law said it wasn’t murder.
After the duel, the judge ruled he had to take care of the man’s child who happened to be Morse’ character.
I never saw Morse or the movie, but our HS did a production of “How to Succeed..” and I love the show.
Memoir of a Musical Miracle Max –
Our leading man was a perfect fit for the role, but he had trouble staying on pitch during his solos. Not a good thing.
The “orchestra” was a lone pianist, recruited from a not-too-distant college by our director, as they were buddies while in school.
I was his page turner.
In the middle of one song, the pianist suddenly lifted his fingers from the keyboard and cocked his ear toward the stage. He shifted his hands down note by note, clearly matching the pitches in his mind to what he was hearing from the singer, then resumed playing in the new key, transposing the score on the fly for the rest of the song.
I was probably the only one in the auditorium who noticed.
Boy, Ozzy Man, Robert Morse and Ralph Kramden.
You are a champion!
Don’t forget the “remake” — more of a reconception, I suppose — with an early Michael J. Fox, Helen Slater, and Richard Jordan:
The Secret of My Success (1987)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093936
It’s quite good.
Pay careful attention during the opening titles for a dismayingly young looking ingenue named “Cindy Crawford” crossing the street.