My Favorite Musicals

My mother brought me up in a home full of music. Records albums, radio, television, and movies. The first musical I ever went to see in the theater was probably Fantasia by Walt Disney. Fantasia apparently was frightening to smaller children and I was one of them. I loved coloring books of the movie but the only thing I remember of it at the theater was being scared while watching one of the musical scenes where the screen was all solid colored and silhouettes danced while the orchestra played.
The first real musical I chose to see at a theater was The Sound of Music when it first came out. From that time until this, it has been my all time favorite movie musical.

Even before the Sound of Music was ever made, I knew the words and music to The King and I, and My Fair Lady. I never got to see either of those until I was an adult, however. South Pacific was one of my mother's favorite musicals and I listened to the original soundtrack from that many times growing up. Singing in the Rain was another musical I grew up watching on television. My mother also brought me up watching Fred Astaire's many movies no matter who his dancing partner was at the time. My mom also loved Nelson Eddy's movies however I never really did enjoy those as much as the others.

This lens is about the best of the best, and about my favorite movie musicals. I can't put them in any specific order because I love them all. However there are some I love more than others. After The Sound of Music, there is Oliver, and then Annie. Many movie musicals, such as Annie, were originally Broadway plays before they were made as films. Annie not only was a Broadway play and a film, it was filmed twice. The second film version was slightly different than the first and also had different actors and actresses. Personally, I prefer the first version. Robert Preston and Shirley Jones, along with Buddy Hackett, starred in another of my favorite movie musicals, The Music Man. They are all so wonderful, it's hard to say which ones I like more than the others. I hope you enjoy this lens and if you have something to say about musicals you love, please make sure to comment.

This is a long lens so please use the Table of Contents if you would rather skip ahead to see if your favorites are on my list.