Annie
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Annie is a musical based upon the popular Harold Gray comic strip Little Orphan Annie. The music is by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin, and the book by Thomas Meehan. Famous songs from the musical include "Tomorrow" and "It's A Hard Knock Life".
The story deals with a 11-year-old orphan girl named Annie, who is chosen to spend two weeks with billionaire Oliver "Daddy" Warbucks. Though cold and aloof at first, Warbucks comes to like the girl and eventually wants to adopt her. But Annie believes her parents are still alive. Warbucks then publicly announces that he will give a cash reward to her real parents. This prompts a plot to kidnap the girl by the cruel orphanage manager Miss Hannigan, Hannigan's brother Rooster, and his girfriend Lily St. Regis.
The original Broadway production opened at the Alvin Theatre on April 21, 1977 and ran for 2,377 performances. It starred Andrea McArdle as Annie, Reid Shelton as Daddy Warbucks, and Dorothy Loudon as Miss Hannigan. It was nominated for 11 Tony Awards and won 7, including Best Musical, Best Score, and Best Book.
The film version, made in 1982 by Columbia Pictures, starred Aileen Quinn as Annie, Albert Finney as Daddy Warbucks, Carol Burnett as Miss Hannigan, Bernadette Peters as Lily, Ann Reinking as Grace, and Tim Curry as Rooster. It was directed by John Huston, his first and only film musical. The film's reviews ranged from positive to extremely hostile, and in spite of a $57 million US box office take (making it 10th highest grossing film of the year), the film still did not turn a profit on its theatrical release.
A sequel to the 1982 film, Annie: A Royal Adventure! was made for television in 1995. The sequel starred Ashley Johnson, Joan Collins, George Hearn and Ian McDiarmid and involves an evil noblewoman's plot to blow up Buckingham Palace.
Two stage sequels later appeared, Annie II: Miss Hannigan's Revenge in 1990 and Annie Warbucks in 1993, and neither one was a huge hit.
A made-for-TV movie version appeared in 1999 starring Kathy Bates and Victor Garber. It was produced by The Walt Disney Company and received mixed reviews but high ratings.
A Broadway revival in 1997 starred Nell Carter as Miss Hannigan, but controversy surrounded the casting of the titular character. The original girl cast in the role, Joanna Pacitti, was replaced, and public sympathy went towards her. This incident, coupled with the rather mixed at best reviews the new staging garnered, doomed it to a short run.