D'Oyly Carte Opera Company be released from the partnership on several occasions. Nevertheless, they coaxed eight comic operas out of Gilbert and Sullivan in the 1880s. When "Princess Ida" closed after a comparatively short run of nine months, for the first time in the partnership's history, the next opera was not ready. To make matters worse, Gilbert suggested a plot in which people fell in love against their wills after taking a magic lozenge – a scenario that Sullivan had previously rejected, and he now rejected the "lozenge plot" again. Gilbert eventually came up with a new idea and began work in May 1884.
Gilbert J. Sullivan the Jefferson Scholars Foundation maintains an endowed scholarship in the name of Ann Vernon and Gilbert J. Sullivan. Other organizations honor Sullivan's memory. The Gilbert J. Sullivan Distinguished Service Award, awarded "to an individual whose tireless efforts, selfless dedication, and continuing support have contributed in a significant way to the success of the Virginia Glee Club," is named in honor of Sullivan's efforts to ensure the Virginia Glee Club's continued existence when it separated from the McIntire Department of Music in the late 1980s. Gilbert J. Sullivan Gilbert J. "Gilly" Sullivan (born July 5, 1928 in Fredericksburg, VA, died January