 HOW NOW, DOW JONES
Music by Elmer Bernstein; Lyrics by
Carolyn Leigh; Book by Max Shulman
(Originally entitled and score published as How Do I Do, I Love
You)
Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, Broadway - 7 December, 1967 (220 perfs)
Story:
New York Stock Exchange tour guide Cynthia Pike has just
explained the complicated world of high finance and joins friend Kate
Montgomery (the voice of Dow Jones). Kate complains that her fiancé,
Herbert, won't marry her until the Dow Jones Industrial Average tops
1,000. When Cynthia leaves, Kate is joined by champion loser Charlie
Mason who states he intends to commit suicide after he has drunk his
lunch. They exchange their tales of woe and decide to have night out
together. This, what turns out to be, a night-long affair restores some
hope but Kate rejects Charlie for a future of security instead of dreams.
Meanwhile, the owner of a brokerage firm, William Foster Wingate, plans
to sell more stock and hires Charlie to give his firm the "little-man"
image. Charlie hits it off with the rich widow set and hits the big-time
at last. When the girls meet again, Cynthia confides that she has agreed
to be Wingate's mistress. She is a little upset, however, because it would
seem he has forgotten about her. Kate explains her new problem - she has
fallen in love with Charlie, is engaged to Herbert and yet finds she is
expecting a baby - and the father is Charlie. When Kate learns that Charlie
has proposed to his childhood sweetheart, her current state of impending
motherhood causes a panic. As "The Voice of Dow Jones" she
announces that the Dow average has topped 1,000. Wingate realises that
Kate's report is untrue but wonders why. Herbert and Cynthia provide
the answer but the hoax is publicly discovered and the bottom then falls
out of the market.
The truth is seized on happily by Charlie as he thought Kate loved Herbert.
He finds Kate, and together with Cynthia, they persuade "A.K.",
Wall Street's shrewdest and most closely watched player, to buy. The
market fall is reversed and the future once again becomes bright - especially
for Charlie and Kate.
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Instrumentation
Violins, A,B,C,
Cello
Bass
1st Flute (2 db alto sax, clar)
1st Clar (1st alto sax)
Tenor sax (clar)
Bari sax (bass clar)
Trumpets I, II, III
Harp
Percussion I, II
Guitar
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