ABSTRACT
For Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein, the 1950s were framed by two blockbuster hits: The King and I and The Sound of Music. In the summer of 1950, both of their wives wanted them to read a novel, Anna and the King of Siam, by Margaret Landon. The novel had been based on Anna Leonowens's autobiography; in the 1860s, she had been governess to the children of King Mongkut of Siam. Rodgers and Hammerstein were not so sure. Besides fearing they could not evoke the proper exotic atmosphere, they had never before written a star vehicle. And, to make things worse, Gertrude Lawrence was not a very good singer. The songs played an important role in defining the characters, such as the bittersweet "Hello, Young Lovers", in which the widowed Anna recollects those long-ago days when she first fell in love. One of the many Sound of Music songs that delighted audiences was the showstopper "Do-Re-Mi".
