Anyone who knows anything about me knows I am a huge baseball fan, that of all baseball, but most especially the New York Yankees. What you may not know is that, as a teen in the 1950s, I was also a big Broadway musical fan. Living near the upstate New York city of Rochester, the excitement of New York City and Broadway shows was appealing to me. Not being able to go there myself, I followed every musical that opened on Broadway, buying the record album and learning all the words to all the songs.
Damn Yankees really appealed to me, from the perspective of both my interests, musicals and baseball. THe play opened on Broadway in 1955. I don’t really remember most of the original actors, except for Ray Walston and Gwen Verdon. And, of course, the music.
The following year, the traveling road show of Damn Yankees came to the Auditorium Theater, a Performing arts theater in Rochester, New York, and my uncle took me to see the play for my birthday. The memory remains a special one for me.
Damn Yankees was made into a movie in 1958, with Ray Walston and Gwen Verdon recreating their Broadway play characters for the movie. The movie also starred Tab Hunter as young Joe Hardy.
Movie Synopsis
Damn Yankees was a musical comedy based on the book “The Year the Yankees Lost the Pennant” (which adapts the Faust theme of a deal with the devil to the world of American baseball in the 1950s. This was a time when the New York Yankees dominated Major League Baseball and the storyline centers on the New York Yankees and the Washington Senators baseball teams.
Joe Boyd is a middle-aged fan of the unsuccessful Washington Senators baseball team. When he sees his team lose once again, he declares he would sell his soul to the devil to see his team beat the Yankees. Of course, the devil appears, disguised as the suave conman, Applegate (Ray Walston). He promises Joe he can restore Joe’s youth and make him a ball player who can win the pennant for the Senators. Joe agrees, but insists on an escape clause - if he leaves the team the day before the last game of the season, he can return to who he was with his wife Meg, instead of having his soul belong to the devil.
Joe becomes young Joe Hardy (Tab Hunter), a talented ball player with tremendous home runs and game-saving catches. Joe leads the Senators on a long winning streak into contention for the pennant. But he misses Meg and keeps sneaking back home to get a glimpse of her.
Applegate gets worried that Joe could leave before the end of the season and ruin his plans, so he tries to entice him away from thoughts of Meg by bringing in his demonic right-hand girl, Lola (Gwen Verdon), a seductress. But Joe loves his wife and Lola fails.
Summary
By the end of the season, the Senators are on the verge of overtaking the Yankees when Applegate tries one more time to ruin everything. Check out the full write up of the plot of Damn Yankees here on Wikipedia.
I watched this movie on Friendly TV for free. You can also view it for free on Tubi, or buy the movie on Amazon Prime Video.
*Reviewer’s note: I had not heard the music to Damn Yankees in more years than I care to admit, yet I was delighted to discover that I still remembered all the words to songs such as Whatever Lola Wants (Lola Gets) and (You Gotta Have) Heart. A fun memory trip back in time.
*Damn Yankees Movie Review written by Wednesday Elf
I have heard about the play and movie my entire life, but after reading your review, I realize I have never seen either. Time to change that because now I want to know what happens to Joe. No matter how much we love baseball and winning, it wouldn't be worth your soul.
ReplyDeleteNo it wouldn't. But Ray Walston (later known on TV as My Favorite Martian) made a very charming devil. It was fun to remember my enjoyment of this movie and its music by getting to watch it again on TV. Thanks for visiting my movie review, Mouse.
DeleteOh, Elfness, I remember the movie from my youth! I always loved the song Whatever Lola Wants. Ray Walston and Gwen Verdon were more wonderful , and Tab Hunter was, well, eye candy, lol. What a fun trip down memory lane! Now I need to watch it again.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Margaret. I really enjoyed re-discovering this movie and getting to watch it again after so many years. Having seen both the movie (twice, now) and the stage play by the Broadway Road Company, it remains a special story to me.
ReplyDeleteI have not heard of this movie. Being a new immigrant in the early 1960's baseball was not on my radar yet. It sounds like an interesting movie though and one that I would enjoy now. Thanks for putting it out here for me!
ReplyDeleteYou are welcome, Olivia. Reviewing older movies is often the only way some of us will learn about them.
DeleteI watched ions ago as well. Time to revisit a few classics. Mom and I used to watch old movies together (that weren't that old when I was younger of course).
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean, Barbara. I was a teenager when I first saw this play, then later the movie. Thanks for your visit to my movie review. :)
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