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The Incomparable INGA SWENSON guest stars as Nora Bayes and performs one of Bayes signature numbers, “Has Anybody Here Seen Kelly?”, in this sequence from ZIEGFELD: The Man and His Women, the only film appearance which gave her the opportunity to showcase her considerable musical talents. Ms. Swenson made her Broadway debut in New Faces of 56, followed by The First Gentleman, costarring Walter Slezak, for which she received a Theatre World Award and a Variety Critics Poll Award, received a Tony Award nomination and won The London Theatre Critics Award as Best Actress for her iconic starring role as Lizzie in Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidts 110 In The Shade, and a Tony-nomination for Baker Street. Her films include Advise & Consent, The Miracle Worker, The Betsy, television appearances include Richard Rodgers Androcles And The Lion, and she is perhaps best known to TV fans as housekeeper Gretchen Kraus on Benson.
ZIEGFELD: The Man and His Women was a giant undertaking for television. The multi-million dollar three-hour move, which had its US television premiere on May 21, 1978, as part of NBC TVs Sunday night Big Event series, is the longest musical ever filmed for television. [The original 150-minute version was subsequently seen on Showtime, and an edited 100-minute version, retaining most of the musical sequences, has been aired in recent years on The Encore Channel].
Headlining as Florenz Ziegfeld was Paul Shenar who began his career on Broadway [Tartuffe, Six Characters In Search of An Author, and Variety Critics-nominee for Tiny Alice and The Three Sisters ], a founding member, actor, dire ctor and teacher with William Balls famed American Conservatory Theatre for more than 10 years, who had gained acclaim as Orson Welles, in the TV movie The Night That Panicked America. Starring as \"His Women\" were Samantha Eggar [Oscar nominee, Golden Globe/Cannes Film Festival winner for The Collector] as the staunch and lovely Billie Burke; Barbara Parkins, who became a 60s icon from her starring roles as Betty Harrington Anderson in Peyton Place [1964] on television and Ann Wells in the cult classic film Valley of the Dolls [1965], as the fragile, heart-breaking Anna Held [Parkins has often said that the role is her favorite, because it gave her the opportunity to showcase her singing and dancing talents, as well as her acting]; Broadways Pamela Peadon [Celebration, On The Town, Irene, Rodgers & Hart], who was currently receiving acclaim as Cassie in the Los Angeles production of A Chorus Line, as beloved 20s icon Marilyn Miller; Valerie Perrine [Oscar and Golden Globe nominee, Cannes Film Festival/New York Film Critics Award winner for Lenny] as the artistically challenged Lillian Lorraine, who became a Ziegfeld star despite her lack of talent. Broadway, film, and TV notables who guest starred as20Ziegfeld stars also includes Broadways Ron Husmann [Tony nominee and Theatre World Award winner for Tenderloin, All American, Lovely Ladies, Kind Gentlemen, Irene], as Bayes husband and on stage partner, Jack Norworth, made his feature debut in Love Has Many Faces, his vast TV appearances include The Hallmark Hall of Fame [The Music of Richard Rodgers, 1961, et cetera], The Gershwin Years, Days of Our Lives [Tony Merritt], opposite Bernadette Peters in Once Upon a Mattress [1972]; Broadways Walter Willison [Tony Award nominee and Theatre World Award winner for Richard Rodgers Two By Two, Norman, Is That You?, Pippin, Mass, Wild and Wonderful, Grand Hotel] who had recently starred as Dr. Calvin Campbell in the hit NBC Saturday morning series McDuff, The Talking Dog when cast as Frank Carter, the famed Ziegfeld star who introduced Irving Berlins classic A Pretty Girl is Like a Melody; Catherine Jacoby as Fanny Brice [a role she was familiar with, having recently played the famed diva in Donn Ardens spectacular Hallelujah, Hollywood at the original MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas].
Conceived by Oscar-nominated Executive Producer Mike J. Frankovich, Produced and Directed by Emmy-winner Buzz Kulik, written by Emmy Award-winning Joanna Lee, the Production was supervised by Ziegfelds daughter, Patricia Ziegfeld Stephenson. ZIEGFELD received a Golden Globe nomination as Best Motion Picture Made for Television, eight Emmy Award nominations, and won two 1978 Emmy Awards.
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