Gertrude Lawrence but when he proved to be unenthused by the suggestion, Lawrence sent the book to Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. Rodgers initially demurred because he felt Lawrence's vocal range was limited and she had a tendency to sing flat. But he realised the story had strong potential, and the two men agreed to write what ultimately became "The King and I". It opened on Broadway in March 1951, and ultimately, Lawrence won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance. Her triumph was short-lived; her health deteriorated rapidly, forcing her to miss numerous performances until
Rodgers and Hammerstein named after Rodgers. "Forbes" named Rodgers and Hammerstein second on its list of top-earning dead celebrities in 2009 at $235 million. In 2010, the original film arrangements of the team's music were restored and performed at the Proms concerts in London's Royal Albert Hall by the John Wilson Orchestra. Rodgers and Hammerstein appeared on live telecasts several times. They were guests on the very first broadcast of "Toast of the Town", the original name of "The Ed Sullivan Show", when it debuted on CBS in June 1948. In 1954, they appeared on a memorable TV musical special, "". They were