Will Forte Early career (1997-2001) Where did Forte start his career? He began taking classes at the Groundlings What did he do at the Groundlings? Groundlings in Los Angeles, an improvisational and sketch comedy troupe and school, while tutoring children to make ends What did he do after the Groundlings? successful foray into comedy was 101 Things to Definitely Not Do If You Want to Where did he perform that show? Get a Chick, a comic book he produced that details incompetent men. The comics landed him his first professional job writing for The Jenny McCarthy Show, How long did he write for The Jenny McCarthy Show? wonder what it would be like if I'd had a couple more years of experience before going there."
When did he write Get a Chick?
When did Will Forte write Get a Chick?
He began taking classes at the Groundlings in Los Angeles, an improvisational and sketch comedy troupe and school, while tutoring children to make ends meet. Forte's first successful foray into comedy was 101 Things to Definitely Not Do If You Want to Get a Chick, a comic book he produced that details incompetent men. The comics landed him his first professional job writing for The Jenny McCarthy Show, a short-lived variety show starring Jenny McCarthy. Shortly thereafter, he was asked to submit a packet to the Late Show with David Letterman and was told Letterman responded favorably to animation. After only nine months at Letterman, he was "let go" from the job. He recalled his stint on the program as unpleasant, noting that he did not have enough experience in writing. "What an honor to work at that show but I don't think I was fully mentally prepared. [...] I always wonder what it would be like if I'd had a couple more years of experience before going there."  Forte returned to Los Angeles and began performing with the Groundlings' Main Company, with Cheryl Hines, Jim Rash and Maya Rudolph. He tried stand-up comedy three times, mostly at open mic nights, but quit after being voted into the Main Company. He joined the writing teams of two failed sitcoms, including The Army Show and Action. Forte got jobs writing for 3rd Rock from the Sun and That '70s Show, two successful programs. He loved writing but had mostly given up on acting, aside from acting with the Groundlings. While performing with the troupe in 2001, he was spotted by Lorne Michaels, the creator of Saturday Night Live (SNL). Forte felt his confidence was higher than usual, as That '70s Show had been picked up for two more years. He was invited to audition for SNL, which he regarded as unexpected.  At his audition for SNL, he performed multiple original characters, including Tim Calhoun, a speed reader, a prison guard, in addition to impressions of singer Michael McDonald and actor Martin Sheen. His final character was an older piece from his days with the Groundlings, in which he portrays a gold-painted street performer who performs fellatio to pay for his face paint, which devolves into a song needlessly uttering the words "cock" and "face paint" dozens of times. He felt his time to shine as a performer was already over, as he was in his thirties when he auditioned. To his surprise, he was offered a chance to be on the show, but declined, opting instead for the financial stability of his work at That '70s Show. He felt working for SNL could not live up to the idealized version he had dreamed of, but he later realized he would be making a mistake. CANNOTANSWER
Get a Chick, a comic book he produced that details incompetent
Orville Willis Forte IV ( ; born June 17, 1970) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He is best known for being a cast member on Saturday Night Live (2002–2010) and for creating and starring in the sitcom The Last Man on Earth. For the series, he received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations: two for acting and one for writing.

After obtaining a history degree from the University of California, Los Angeles and becoming a financial broker like his father, Forte changed his career path to comedy and took classes with the improv group The Groundlings. He worked as a writer and producer on That '70s Show before joining Saturday Night Live. His most famous recurring character on the show led to a feature film adaptation, MacGruber (2010). He played various roles in comedy films before starring in the drama film Nebraska (2013). He has provided voice-work for Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs films (2009–2013), The Lego Movie films (2014–2019), My Life as a Courgette, Get Squirrely (2016), Luis & the Aliens (2018), The Willoughbys, and Scoob! (2020). He also voiced Eddy in Disney XD’s Lab Rats their smart home security system.

Early life
Orville Willis Forte IV was born in Alameda, California, on June 17, 1970, the son of artist and former schoolteacher Patricia C. (née Stivers) and financial broker Orville Willis "Reb" Forte III. He was raised in Moraga before moving to Lafayette at age 13. He went by "Billy" in his early years until he was teased at school for it also being a girl's name, at which point he decided he would from then on be known as "Will". Forte describes himself as having been a "really happy little boy" whose parents were "wonderful" and created a "very loving environment". He was interested in comedy from a young age, growing up idolizing comedians Peter Sellers, David Letterman, and Steve Martin, as well as the sketch-comedy television series Saturday Night Live. He often pranked his parents, and would record himself performing imaginary radio shows. He did not aim to be a comedian, however, and initially wanted to become a football player.

Forte was "a laid-back teen with a lot of friends" and a member of the varsity football and swim teams at Acalanes High School, from which he graduated in 1988. He was voted "Best Personality" by his graduating class and served as freshman class president. He had no ambitions for a television or film career, though his mother noticed a "creative streak" in him. Following high school, he attended the University of California, Los Angeles, where he was a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity and completed a degree in history. Planning to follow his father, he became a financial broker at Smith Barney Shearson in Beverly Hills, but felt "miserable" there. He co-wrote a feature-length script while there, and later said that he discovered he loved writing "more than anything [he] had ever done in [his] life". He had been encouraged to attempt comedy during his years at university, and he decided to change his career path to do so.

Career

Forte began taking classes at the Groundlings in Los Angeles, an improvisational and sketch comedy troupe and school, while tutoring children to make ends meet. Forte's first successful foray into comedy was 101 Things to Definitely Not Do If You Want to Get a Chick, a comic book he produced that details incompetent men. The comics landed him his first professional job writing for The Jenny McCarthy Show, a short-lived variety show starring Jenny McCarthy. Shortly thereafter, he was asked to submit a packet to the Late Show with David Letterman and was told Letterman responded favorably to animation. After only nine months at Letterman, he was "let go" from the job. He recalled his stint on the program as unpleasant, noting that he did not have enough experience in writing. "What an honor to work at that show but I don't think I was fully mentally prepared. [...] I always wonder what it would be like if I’d had a couple more years of experience before going there."

Forte returned to Los Angeles and began performing with the Groundlings' Main Company, with Cheryl Hines, Jim Rash and Maya Rudolph. He tried stand-up comedy three times, mostly at open mic nights, but quit after being voted into the Main Company. He joined the writing teams of two failed sitcoms, including The Army Show and Action. Forte got jobs writing for 3rd Rock from the Sun and That '70s Show, two successful programs. He loved writing and had mostly given up on acting, aside from acting with the Groundlings. While performing with the troupe in 2001, he was spotted by Lorne Michaels, the creator of Saturday Night Live (SNL). Forte felt his confidence was higher than usual, as That '70s Show had been picked up for two more years. He was invited to audition for SNL, which he regarded as unexpected.

At his audition for SNL, he performed multiple original characters, including Tim Calhoun, a speed reader, a prison guard, in addition to impressions of singer Michael McDonald and actor Martin Sheen. His final character was an older piece from his days with the Groundlings, in which he portrays a gold-painted street performer who performs fellatio to pay for his face paint, which devolves into a song needlessly uttering the words "cock" and "face paint" dozens of times. He felt his time to shine as a performer was already over, as he was in his thirties when he auditioned. To his surprise, he was offered a chance to be on the show, but declined, opting instead for the financial stability of his work at That '70s Show. He felt working for SNL could not live up to the idealized version he had dreamed of, but he later realized he would be making a mistake.

After Will Ferrell left Saturday Night Live the following spring, Forte joined the cast, premiering at the beginning of the show's twenty-eighth season in the fall. He was promoted to repertory player after his first year. His early years on the program were characterized by stage fright and an inability to properly interpret sketches that he did not write himself. He had to "re-learn" how to perform after years as a writer, and later felt his natural tendency to "overthink" things improved his performance. He was particularly uncomfortable portraying President George W. Bush, as he felt he was not the best impressionist and it paled in comparison to Ferrell's impersonation of Bush. His only role was often Bush, leaving him no chance for more "absurd" pieces he favored. He was nearly fired from the program following his third season (2004–05), but after two three-week extensions to decide his fate, he was brought back. Forte estimated it took five seasons for him to feel fully comfortable performing on the show. He made his film debut in Around the World in 80 Days.

Forte's humor at SNL has been described as bizarre, and he became known for many "10-to-1" sketchespieces that were considered odd, placed at the very end of the show. Among these were a sketch titled "Potato Chip", in which Forte plays a NASA recruiter that warns a candidate (Jason Sudeikis) not to touch a bowl of potato chips on his desk, or his turn as Jeff Montgomery, a sex offender who dresses up as a sex offender for Halloween. He was also well known for his characters Tim Calhoun, Greg Stink, and the Falconer. Forte's favorite sketch on the show was one in which he played a motivational coach alongside football star Peyton Manning. He also co-starred with Andy Samberg in the first SNL Digital Short, "Lettuce". He often spent long hours crafting his sketches for the program, missing deadlines, but his pieces were often greeted warmly at table reads. During his time at the show, he co-starred in and wrote the 2007 film The Brothers Solomon. The film was originally a pilot for Carsey-Werner, and its creation was an extension of his agreement to terminate his contract to appear on SNL.

Forte's best-known character on SNL was MacGruber, a special operations agent who is tasked in each episode with deactivating a ticking bomb but becomes distracted by personal issues. The sketches were based on the television series MacGyver. It was created by the writer Jorma Taccone, who pitched the idea relentlessly to Forte. He was initially reluctant to commit to the sketch, deeming it too dumb, but accepted after persuasion from Taccone. The first sketch aired in January 2007, and led to multiple more segments in the following years. In 2009, the sketches were spun off into a series of commercials sponsored by Pepsi premiering during Super Bowl XLIII that featured the actor behind MacGyver, Richard Dean Anderson, as MacGruber's father. The advertisements led the character and sketches to receive a wider level of popularity. Following the success of the advertisements, creator Lorne Michaels approached Forte, Taccone, and writer John Solomon with the idea to produce a MacGruber film.

Regarding his experiences on SNL, Forte remarked, "Looking back, the experience is something I'll never forget. I still miss it, and I'll always miss it. That's my family." His celebrity impressions included George W. Bush, Tom DeLay, John Edwards, Timothy Geithner, Newt Gingrich, Chad Lowe, Zell Miller, David Petraeus, Harry Reid, Brian Williams and Hu Jintao.

In the summer of 2009, MacGruber was shot on a tight schedule for four weeks in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It was written while simultaneously producing the weekly episode of SNL, and the show's production process left the trio deprived of sleep. Forte was positive regarding the film, saying,  The film was released in May 2010 and received mixed reviews. It fared worse at the box office, where it failed to recoup its budget and was pulled from theaters after its third week. Forte found the failure tolerable, commenting, "When you make something that you’re really proud of and it doesn’t do well, you can live with it." The film has since seen more positive reception and has been dubbed a cult classic.

Forte left Saturday Night Live shortly before the beginning of the show's thirty-sixth season in 2010. He felt it the "right time to go," considering his eight-year tenure there, his expansion into film with MacGruber, and his age. In addition, his sister had just had kids and he wanted to move to the West Coast to be closer to them. He soon regretted the decision, calling the following year an "emotionally trying period," as he felt "devastated" that he would no longer be on the program. He assumed his shot at a film career was ruined, and he imagined that if acting did not work out, he would return to writing primarily. Following this, he entered what he has called a "lost period" and had small supporting roles, such as Rock of Ages, That's My Boy and The Watch, all of which were not successful.  The only commercial successful film he worked on was Grown Ups 2, where he made a cameo as a male cheerleader.  He also took a role as Paul L'astnamé, the cross-dressing boyfriend of Jenna Maroney on the critically acclaimed sitcom 30 Rock.

Forte took his first dramatic role for the 2013 film Run & Jump. Director Steph Green offered him the part, and Forte imagined it a "fun thing to try," though he noted that she had more confidence in him than he had himself. Later, he sent an audition tape to Alexander Payne for a role in his next film, Nebraska. He equated his casting in the film to his fear of joining SNL a decade prior, noting that he was "terrified" to begin working on it. He felt scared initially, but followed Bruce Dern's acting advice to "look for the truth" in each scene—in other words, "In every scene, you're just trying to play it as honestly and as real as you can."

Forte began work on The Last Man on Earth, a sitcom, with longtime collaborators Phil Lord and Christopher Miller in 2013. Though it was the duo's idea, Forte attached himself to the concept, crafting a treatment over a weekend. The series was pitched around Hollywood to positive responses and was picked up in 2014 by Fox. Forte serves as the series' creator, a writer, the lead role, and showrunner for the first season. He felt odd being in charge of its writing team (composed of longtime friends), and awkward at delegating tasks, so much so that he would end up doing the work himself. Being a showrunner "truly was an amount of work I never knew existed," he said, which involved him working a "minimum of 12 hours" daily. The series premiered in 2015 to positive responses, and was renewed for the next three seasons.

In 2016, Forte played Hulka, a low-level weed dealer, in the comedy Keanu, starring Jordan Peele and Keegan-Michael Key. In 2018, he starred as National Lampoon magazine co-founder and writer Doug Kenney in the Netflix biographical film A Futile and Stupid Gesture. The film was directed by David Wain and also features Domhnall Gleeson as co-founder Henry Beard. Forte voiced Shaggy Rogers in the Scooby-Doo film Scoob!.

In 2021 Will Forte began starring in Sweet Tooth, a Netflix Original Series produced by Robert Downey Jr. Additionally, he reprised his role as MacGruber in a TV series on Peacock.

Other work
Forte is a supporter of the camp Wampler's Kids and recorded a promotional piece at SNL with Will Ferrell. Forte was a childhood friend of founder Steven Wampler and previously the national spokesman for SciEyes, a non-profit organization created to support research, training and public education in stem cell biology and to further the field by recognizing and supporting its potential for creating new therapies for the treatment of blinding and debilitating eye diseases. He was a primary donor towards the establishment of a research fellowship for third-year medical students at Duke Medical Center. He serves on the Board of Directors of the National Policy and Advocacy Council on Homelessness.

Personal life
Forte resides in Santa Monica, California. He purchased his home there just two weeks before joining the cast of Saturday Night Live, which required him to move to New York City, and later admitted that "it was not the greatest timing". He dated his Last Man on Earth co-star January Jones in 2015. In 2019, he became engaged to Olivia Modling, whom he met in 2018. Their first child, a girl named Zoe, was born on February 15, 2021. He married Olivia Modling on July 31, 2021.

Forte's mother has visited every film set on which he has worked and made an appearance on a Mother's Day episode of SNL, in which he sang a song to her on Weekend Update. He also officiated his sister Michelle's wedding and filmed the birth of his niece and nephew.

Forte has discussed and joked about his OCD tendencies. He recounted listening to only one song in his office at SNL for an entire year because he wanted to challenge himself. During an interview with Larry King, he discussed his OCD as a challenge he had to overcome but not one he wished he did not have, as it is a part of his personality. In a February 2015 feature on him and his show The Last Man on Earth, the writer of the article said that Forte mentioned OCD often but it was not clear if he had ever been formally diagnosed, though Forte related how he and a former girlfriend had gone through an OCD questionnaire and it concluded that Forte "should immediately talk to someone about this".

Filmography

Film

Television

Music videos

Video games

Web

Crew work

Awards and nominations

References

Bibliography

External links

 
 Will Forte LiveJournal Community
 Will Forte shares his favorite NY places at ontheinside.info
 Interview with Will Forte at CollegeHumor
 

1970 births
Living people
20th-century American comedians
20th-century American male actors
21st-century American comedians
21st-century American male actors
American impressionists (entertainers)
American male comedians
American male film actors
American male screenwriters
American male television actors
American male television writers
American male voice actors
American sketch comedians
American television writers
Comedians from California
Male actors from the San Francisco Bay Area
People from Alameda, California
People from Lafayette, California
People from Moraga, California
Screenwriters from California
University of California, Los Angeles alumni
Wish You Were Here is a musical with a book by Arthur Kober and Joshua Logan and music and lyrics by Harold Rome. The musical was adapted from Kober's 1937 play, Having Wonderful Time, and revolves around a summer camp for adults.

Synopsis

Act I

The show opens with a P.A. announcement welcoming a busload of new guests to Camp Karefree, a two-week summer camp for adults in the Catskills. Camp host Lou Kandel gives the newcomers, mostly women, the rundown of the place; first, he introduces the waiters, mostly college men. Then he tells everyone the two rules - Camp Karefree cares for you, and when the lights flicker the girls go to the girls' side and the boys go to the boys' ("Camp Karefree Song").

Enter Teddy Stern, a young woman soon to be wed to a stuffy, older man: Herman Fabricant. Teddy has been crying uncontrollably since her engagement, so her doctor suggested she get some rest before the wedding. Teddy's friend Fay, a screwball blonde, meets her and takes her under her wing. Herman leaves. After he's gone, Teddy confesses she is having second thoughts about her marriage, that's why the doctor said she needed a change. With that, Fay takes Teddy's wedding ring - just for the time that they're at camp - so Teddy can have a real change. Fay introduces the now "single" Teddy to her friends ("There's Nothing Nicer Than People").   Teddy then meets Itchy Flexner, the social director who does it all: imitations, singing, dancing, and telling stories. He just loves to entertain ("Social Director"). He engages the entire camp with his talent. An announcement over the loudspeaker tells everyone to change for dinner. As she heads to her cabin, Teddy meets Pinky Harris - a dashing, womanizing fellow who takes an interest in her. After Teddy has changed for dinner, she notices Fay flirting with Harry "Muscles" Green - the new athletic director. It seems that Fay has her eye on every available man at Camp Karefree. She confesses that she just loves to flirt ("Shopping Around").  The scene shifts to the locker room for the waiters listlessly wipe the water glasses and reflect on what they have to do to put themselves through school ("Bright College Days"). Kandel enters and reminds the waiters that part of their job is to entertain the ladies - all of them, not just the pretty ones - by dancing and talking with them. Chick, a law student, is tired of being a waiter by day and gigolo by night - he wants to meet a real girl, not these eager beavers, as he calls them, at Camp Karefree. But, the boys remind him it's either socialize or get fired ("Mix and Mingle").  On the Social Hall Porch, the girls want to dance, but the men are playing poker. When the waiters arrive the girls rush inside excitedly to dance with them. Teddy, however, doesn't feel like dancing. She listens to the other girls speculate that tonight could be the night they fall in love, looks at her ring finger, and starts crying ("Could Be"). Chick casually enters and stands unaware of Teddy. Schmutz, one of Itchy's assistants, enters and tells Chick that he better start dancing because word has gotten back to Kandel that Chick wouldn't dance with one of the girls. Chick quickly convinces the reluctant Teddy to dance with him just as Kandel enters.   Inside the social hall, Itchy directs everyone in a get-acquainted dance ("Tripping the Light Fantastic"). At the end, ready to escort her home, Chick is still with Teddy and thanks her for getting him out of a tight spot. It's here that Pinky makes it very evident that he has designs on Teddy. In fact, he wants Itchy to help him survey the situation and see just how he can lure Teddy to him. Itchy agrees - on the condition Pinky get him a TV audition. Next, Muscles comes over and asks Itchy for advice on wooing a girl. Itchy is happy to oblige, until he finds out the girl is Fay who Itchy also wants! To Itchy's dismay, Muscles and Fay leave together. ("Social Director - Reprise").   Walking through the woods, Chick and Teddy hear the band playing the song Chick sang in the waiter's show last year. It's about a boy and a girl who met at camp, and the following season she didn't come back ("Wish You Were Here"). They run into Fay who had gone to Eagle Rock with Muscles, but was interrupted by a scheming Itchy. When she leaves, Chick explains that he can't get involved with Teddy - he's putting all his time and attention towards Law School. Teddy understands, she too can't get involved, though she doesn't tell Chick the reason why. Chick thinks this is perfect. Chick has trouble with the socializing part of his job, because all of the girls he is supposed to romance want long-term contacts. Since Teddy does not, he asks her if she will spend the next two weeks with him. She happily agrees. They dance the last dance of the evening together and go off to bed - alone ("Where Did the Night Go").   A week later, Muscles is exhausting everyone on the athletic field. Itchy has to cancel evening activities because everyone is too tired to show up. Kandel tells Itchy that if the social events don't pick up, Itchy will lose his job as social director. Meanwhile, Pinky tells Teddy he has just ordered a new formal dress in her size that is meant to be the prize for the Miss Karefree bathing beauty contest. He's one of the judges and wants her to enter. Teddy ignores this obvious pass and goes off with Chick.

Fay flirts with Muscles and Itchy gets increasingly jealous. Teddy and Chick return on Chick's bicycle and are greeted by the entire camp. Though they see their relationship as a friendship, everyone else sees a blossoming romance ("Certain Individuals"). Everyone leaves except for the spurned Itchy who watches Fay ride off on Muscles' shoulders. Itchy decides that he has got to get some new social ideas that will excite the girls. He decides to have a candlelight evening in the social hall. He figures that will be so romantic that all the girls will forget Muscles and his sports events. Unfortunately, his plan backfires when the Social Hall catches fire. Kandel is so mad at Itchy that he demotes him to Boat House Boy and puts Muscles in charge of all social events.   The next day Chick takes Teddy out to Eagle Rock, yelling at Pinky to stay away from her. When Teddy asks what has come over him, Chick reveals that he loves Teddy. He proposes marriage, and imagines how his friends would react to their going out together to museums and cultural events ("They Won't Know Me"). Teddy tells Chick that not only is she already engaged, she meant to get married next week. Even though she, too, loves Chick she can't call off the wedding. Rather than talk anymore about it, they go back to the camp.   Back at the boathouse, we find Itchy has been demoted to Boat Boy. Teddy and Chick return from Eagle Rock and Chick confronts Fay about Teddy's engagement. She confesses that she knew all along that Teddy was engaged and gives Teddy her ring back. The girls enter in their bathing suits - ready for the Miss Camp Karefree Contest. Gussie, one of the available girls rushes forward and shows Chick that she has no ring on her finger. He asks her out and plans on cheering for her in the contest. Teddy, hurt, decides that she too will enter the contest, in retaliation. Pinky is thrilled to have the chance to put the moves on Teddy ("Summer Afternoon").  Pinky naturally picks Teddy to win the contest. He shows her the gorgeous new dress. In return, she gives him a kiss, and in a jealous fit, Chick pushes Pinky into the pool. Kandel has Chick restrained and threatens to fire him. Pinky delights in watching this happen to Chick and laughs. Teddy, upset at seeing Chick humiliated, pushes Pinky into the pool. Nevertheless, Chick still leaves with Gussie and Teddy watches them go, crying.

Act II

The act opens the evening after the beauty contest with the camp sitting around a campfire ("Where Did the Night Go? - Reprise"). Fay returns to tell Pinky that Teddy won't meet him. She's too ashamed of the way things have gone. Teddy's been talking to her mother in New York, and Fay suspects that Herman may be back to pick Teddy up soon. Pinky thinks if Teddy hears them having fun, she'll come join them. Itchy performs a rousing number that he hopes will both draw out Teddy and win Fay back ("Don Jose").

Unfortunately, Fay ends up kissing Muscles at the end of the song. Itchy has a jealous fight with Muscles over Fay. She breaks up the fight. Chick returns to apologize to Pinky though there still is a great deal of tension between the two of them. Fay passes drinks to around to the fighting men and tells them just to get along for tonight ("Everybody Love Everybody"). When Teddy's name is called over the P.A. to come and get her long-distance call, Pinky convinces Chick to sing to Teddy. Swallowing his drink, he does ("Wish You Were Here" ). Teddy enters the scene and sees Chick though the two don't speak. Gussie quickly laps up Chick when he finishes singing and Pinky tries to get Teddy drunk and take her back to his cabin. Before anything more happens, it starts raining and everyone runs for cover.   Teddy stops by Pinky's cabin ostensibly to pick up an umbrella, but he has other ideas. He spikes Teddy's drink and attempts to take advantage of her ("Relax"). Itchy comes over to talk with Pinky and a panicked Teddy hides in the bathroom while Pinky attempts to get rid of Itchy. By the time Itchy leaves, Teddy has emerged from the bathroom with an empty glass wearing the sexy dress she won in the beauty contest. Chick enters the bunk with Teddy's engagement ring, and finding her there, attempts to force the ring on her finger. If she's engaged, she should act like it. She tells him to mind his own business. He puts the ring on the night table and leaves. Pinky prepares to take her to bed; unfortunately, while he's in the bathroom getting changed, she falls asleep. Pinky, not knowing what else to do, slips the engagement ring on Teddy's hand.   The next morning outside the social hall, Herman has come to bring Teddy home. No one seems to know where Teddy is, and Herman is not too happy about this. Itchy and Marvin also bemoan the fact that their girlfriends are nowhere to be found. They then realize that the girls have spent the whole night dancing to Be-Bop records in the music library. Fay and some of the other kids enter dancing like "cool cats" ("Where Did the Night Go? - Be-bop Version").   Muscles takes the guests off to play basketball, and Teddy enters, finding Herman. It appears that even though nothing happened between Teddy and Pinky, Pinky is out accepting congratulations for his conquest. Even though Herman shouldn't accept Teddy's behavior, he is ready to forgive and forget. He wants to take Teddy back to New York where the two can get married. Her goes to get the car.   Itchy returns to tell everyone that he's been fired form his job as Boat Boy, too. He forgot to tie up the boats last night during the storm and they all floated away. Teddy spots Chick escorting a new girl to her cabin and informs him that she's leaving. He's aloof, but polite. Itchy, overhearing the conversation, chastises Teddy for not putting up a fight. Chick doesn't even know the truth about what happened between her and Pinky. Itchy wants her to go over to the big camp basketball game and make Pinky, the referee, tell the truth. Teddy is flattered that Itchy cares so much. His kind words really give her a lift. And she returns the sentiment in kind ("Flattery"). She agrees to go to the game.  In the game, the camp team (led by Muscles) plays the waiter team (led by Chick). Itchy arrives and disrupts the game so badly that Muscles declares the game officially over. Teddy confronts Pinky and asks him why he's telling everyone she succumbed to him last night. He claims that he did no such thing; however, the rest of the camp is having a great time insinuating that Teddy is now a loose woman. Pinky resists because he doesn't want to tarnish his reputation, but Fay gets him to tell the truth. Herman hears this and is relieved. Teddy gives a kiss to Chick and gets in the car and leaves with Herman. It's obvious that she doesn't want to go, but Chick does nothing to stop her.   Muscles, frustrated with the interruption of his game, quits on the spot. Kandel panics! Who's going to run the camp? Itchy, of course! Itchy immediately organizes everyone to dance. Suddenly, Herman re-enters with two suitcases, which he lays down. Teddy runs to Chick and falls into his arms. Before Herman goes, however, he gives Chick the engagement ring, which Chick slips on Teddy's finger ("Wish You Were Here - Reprise").

Songs

Act 1
"Camp Karefree" – Lou Kandel, Waiters and Ensemble
"Goodbye Love" – Teddy Stern, Fay Fromkin and Girls
"Social Director" – Itchy Flexner and Ensemble
"Shopping Around" – Fay Fromkin
"Bright College Days" – Waiters
"Mix and Mingle" – Chick Miller and Waiters
"Could Be" – Teddy Stern and Girls
"Tripping the Light Fantastic" – Ensemble
"(Ballad of a) Social Director" (Reprise)- Itchy Flexner and 
"Where Did the Night Go?" – Chick Miller, Teddy Stern and Ensemble
"Certain Individuals" – Fay Fromkin and Ensemble
"They Won't Know Me" – Chick Miller
"Summer Afternoon" – Pinky Harris and Ensemble

Act 2
"Where Did the Night Go?" (Reprise) – Eli and Ensemble 
"Don Jose (of Far Rockaway)" – Itchy Flexner and Ensemble
"Everybody Love Everybody" – Fay Fromkin and Ensemble
"Wish You Were Here" – Chick Miller and Waiters
"Relax" – Pinky Harris and Teddy Stern
"Where Did the Night Go?" (Be-Bop Version)- Fay Fromkin and Ensemble
"Flattery" – Teddy Stern and Itchy Flexner 
"Finale" – Entire Company

Productions
The Broadway production opened at the Imperial Theatre on June 25, 1952 and closed on November 28, 1953 after 598 performances. Directed and choreographed by Logan, uncredited show doctoring was by Jerome Robbins, with scenic and lighting design by Jo Mielziner. The cast included Patricia Marand as Teddy Stern, Jack Cassidy as Chick Miller, Phyllis Newman as Sarah, Larry Blyden, Harry Clark as Herman Fabricant, Florence Henderson, Reid Shelton, Tom Tryon, Sheila Bond as Fay Fromkin, John Perkins as Harry "Muscles" Green, Sidney Armus (as Itchy Flexner), and  Paul Valentine.  (Original cast member George Lenz is the grandfather of One Tree Hill actress Bethany Joy Lenz.)

The elaborate set included a fully functional swimming pool.

The West End production opened on October 10, 1953 at the London Casino, where it ran for 282 performances.

The Equity Library Theatre (New York City) off-off-Broadway revival ran in May 1987.

The York Theatre Company Musicals in Mufti series presented their concert version of the show in January 2000.

Recordings
The original Broadway cast album was released by RCA Victor. Stage Door Records re-issued the Broadway original cast recording in 2008. Sepia Records re-issued the London cast album in 2004 (Sepia 1030).

Eddie Fisher recorded the title song, and it reached No. 1 on the charts.

Response
Ken Bloom, in his book The Routledge Guide to Broadway wrote that the initial reviews were not positive, and the creative people worked on strengthening the book. As good word-of-mouth built an audience, some critics returned to review the show again, and it had a long run.

According to Cecil Michener Smith and Glenn Litton (in their book Musical Comedy in America), the original "warmth and unpretentiousness" of the original play were lost in the "monumental stage spectacle. Their new wonder featured a center-stage swimming pool and every other extravagance for which they could invent an excuse:a basketball game... a fire...and a rain storm."  The critics, "even the dispassionate ones, growled their disgust."  In addition to rewriting the book, they brought Jerome Robbins in to "restage the dances and add a new ballet" and Rome added a new song.

In 1952, the original Broadway cast performed on The Ed Sullivan Show which, at the time, was known as Toast of the Town. This appearance by the cast played a major role in the show's ultimate success. An excerpt from the book, A Really Big Show: A Visual History of the Ed Sullivan Show notes:  "The musical comedy, Wish You Were Here, was dead in the summer humidity until the producer sent its stars to rescue it on Sullivan. Ed even had one of the show's first sets constructed to accommodate those stars: A replica of a swimming pool, with mirrors to simulate depth. The next day, lines formed early at the theater, the closing notice came down, and Wish You Were Here lasted 587 additional performances"  (eleven performances had already taken place).

Wish You Were Here launched the show business career of Florence Henderson who is best known to the world as Carol Brady (the matriarch) on the long-running ABC-TV sitcom The Brady Bunch. In her chorus role as "The New Girl" (which she originated), Henderson had but one line to deliver. That one line, which started it all for her, was: "Can I see the game?"

Awards and nominations
Sheila Bond won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. Abe Kurnit won the Tony Award for Best Stage Technician (a retired category).

References

External links
 Internet Broadway Database listing
 Broadway Cast Recording Reissue
Guide to Musical Theatre plot and production notes
 Wish You Were Here at the Music Theatre International website

1952 musicals
Broadway musicals
Musicals based on plays
Fiction about summer camps
Tony Award-winning musicals Fred Carter (born June 22, 1938) is an American comic book artist known for the work he did on Jack Chick's tracts which promote Protestant fundamentalism.

Early life and education

Carter studied at the American Academy of Art in Chicago.

Work

Carter uses richly detailed shading in his art. He worked anonymously for Chick Publications from 1972 till 1980 when Chick acknowledged Carter's work in an issue of his newsletter Battle Cry. The two collaborated on Chick's 2001 film The Light of the World, presenting Bible stories through oil paintings by Carter.

References

External links

Carter bio at Christian Comics International

1938 births
Living people
American artists
African-American Christians
African-American comics creators
American comics creators
21st-century African-American people
20th-century African-American people