Lucky Guy (play)

Lucky Guy is a play by Nora Ephron that premiered in 2013, the year after her death. It was Ephron's final work and marked Tom Hanks's Broadway debut, in which he earned a Theatre World Award. It depicts the story of journalist Mike McAlary beginning in 1985 and ending with his death at the age of 41 in 1998. The plot covers the high points and tribulations of McAlary's career as he traverses the clubby atmosphere of the New York City tabloid industry in what some regard as its heyday. The play includes his near fatal automobile accident and devotes a large portion to his recovery.

Lucky Guy
Written byNora Ephron
Date premieredApril 1, 2013 (2013-04-01)
Place premieredBroadhurst Theatre, 235 West 44th Street, New York, New York, USA
SubjectMike McAlary journalist career

Originally conceived as a television film in 1999, the play spent years under revision before finally opening on Broadway in 2013. Regarded as an elegy, the story harkens back to the days of tabloid journalism prior to the 24-hour news reporting cycle. The production received six nominations for Tony Awards, winning two, including Courtney B. Vance for Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play. The play received considerable critical comment, partly because it was Ephron's last play and partly because of Hanks's debut. Critical reaction was generally warm to mixed, and the limited Broadway run was profitable.

Background and composition

Ephron first conceived of this story in 1999 as an HBO movie.[1] Ephron focused the story on the career of New York City tabloid columnist Mike McAlary from his early beginnings to his rise to stardom, when he received the 1998 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary for exposing police brutality against a Haitian immigrant named Abner Louima in Brooklyn's 70th precinct, and his death, eight months later, of cancer.[2][3][4] Ephron, who had been a New York Post reporter, had previously written about her own career in journalism in the novel I Remember Nothing.[5] She once wrote, "I can’t remember which came first—wanting to be a journalist or wanting to date a journalist"; she had a thing for journalists like McAlary.[6] Since McAlary died of cancer, Ephron had spent her six years with cancer by directing a film and writing two as well as writing two plays; Chris Jones of the Chicago Tribune speculates that Ephron chose this subject because she shared a bond with a journalist who "also did some of his best writing while battling cancer".[7]

Ephron began background interviews with McAlary's colleagues such as Jim Dwyer, in the months after McAlary's Christmas 1998 death.[8] In 2005, the film idea was floated again, but Ephron claimed she could not get her preferred leading actor.[8] It was not until 2011 that Ephron succeeded in attracting Hanks to the project.[9] Hanks had previously starred in Ephron's popular films, Sleepless in Seattle and You've Got Mail,[10] but he had last performed live in the theatre in 1979 for Riverside Shakespeare Company's production of The Mandrake.[11] The play is the final and posthumous work of Ephron, who died the year before its production.[2]

Gabriel Rotello blogged about McAlary in The Huffington Post after hearing about the play. He noted that McAlary represented a lot of things to a lot of people, but as the first openly gay columnist, Rotello viewed McAlary unfavorably. According to Rotello, McAlary was an aggressive journalist who had a reputation for reporting on corrupt cops and miscreants in New York City's crack era. He relied heavily on police sources, hanging out with then-New York City Police Commissioner William Bratton and his mouthpiece, John Miller. His career was built on high-level access rather than using street sources and fact-corroboration. He became prominent in the public eye in Spring 1994 when a black lesbian reported that she had been raped in broad daylight in Brooklyn's Prospect Park. The headline on McAlary's story read "Rape Hoax the Real Crime", with a story alleging that the woman had concocted the story for political purposes such as speaking at lesbian rallies. At the time, New York had recently endured the Tawana Brawley rape allegations, and gaybashing was at its apex. The police then revealed substantial evidence in support of the story and began investigating McAlary's source. Two weeks later McAlary affirmed his story, and the police backed off the investigation. Rotello, who was then with New York Newsday, got Miller on tape confirming that McAlary was begging his police contacts to back him up. McAlary lost credibility with the police and the gay community. Rotello concedes, however, that McAlary later had major success.[12]

Plot
Act I

Mike McAlary, from 1985 to 1993, bounds from one New York City newsroom to another as he achieves career success, covering such stories as the tainted Tylenol case and the Buddy Boys of the 7-7 scandal. His salary increases as he ascends from being a cub reporter to star crime reporter to star columnist.[13] In 1993, McAlary's suffers a near-fatal auto accident that leaves him physically impaired.[2][4]

Act II

McAlary recovers from the accident and writes two defining stories of his career: the Jane Doe rape case, during which he is sued for libel after his column questions the truthfulness of the victim, and the Abner Louima story, for which he wins the Pulitzer.[4] Eight months after he publishes the Louima story, on Christmas Day 1998, he succumbs to cancer at age 41.[4]

Themes

According to David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter, the play is an "elegy for an already remote era in journalism" that predates the current 24-hour news cycle and the "decimation of the newspaper business".[14] Joe Dziemianowicz of the New York Daily News wrote that the play is a "love letter to scruffy and scrappy New York City tabloids"[4] Nikhil Kumar of The Independent says that the play depicts "the heyday of the New York tabloids in the 80s, when the Daily News, the Post and the upstart Newsday lined up against each other".[13]

According to Richard Zoglin of Time, "Lucky Guy captures the hard-drinking, boys-club camaraderie, gets into the weeds of how reporters actually get people to talk, and shows us the rivalries and egos and dubious ethics that are all part of the package". In the end it is "a celebration of old-fashioned tabloid journalism in the heart of the city’s other great indigenous and endangered industry, Broadway theater."[15] When the play closed, its run was described by Mike Lupica as a "New York Story" in addition to being a sentimental depiction of newspaper journalism.[16]

Production history
Lucky Guy debuted at the Broadhurst Theatre on April 1, 2013

Ephron had approached her long-time friend Hanks to play McAlary in a film in 1999, but his distaste for tabloids dissuaded him from taking the role. When the two reacquainted while Hanks was promoting Larry Crowne in 2011, she informed him that she had converted the work into a play and that Hugh Jackman had even done a table read. Hanks asked for the latest version of the script and found that he liked McAlary's swagger in the new version.[9] In May 2012, Hanks was in negotiations for the role of McAlary, and George C. Wolfe was in line to direct.[17] Ephron met with Wolfe weekly and was producing new drafts for each meeting to sharpen McAlary's character.[9] She and Wolfe continued to mold the project up to her very last days.[18] When Ephron died in late June, producer Colin Callender confirmed that the play was greenlit as a tribute to Ephron, although it was no longer clear if Hanks or Wolfe would remain involved.[19] Wolfe was announced as the director, and Hanks was announced to play McAlary, in October 2012.[18]

Postmortem changes to the script were reviewed by journalist and Ephron's widower Nicholas Pileggi.[1] Maura Tierney and Courtney B. Vance were added to the cast, which included Hanks' former Bosom Buddies co-star Peter Scolari, on January 7, 2013.[20] The complete cast was announced on January 11.[21] Eventually, the production settled on a very basic shifting set design by David Rockwell.[14] McAlary had been portrayed previously in Dan Klores' The Wood, which played Off-Broadway in 2011.[18]

Previews for Lucky Guy began at the Broadhurst Theatre on March 1, 2013,[22] without an out-of-town tryout.[23] During previews, the play grossed an unusually high (for a non-musical) $1 million per week and by the time the play debuted it had stockpiled $10 million in advance ticket sales.[14] The play debuted on Broadway at the Broadhurst Theatre on April 1, 2013 after 33 previews. It was directed by Wolfe,[24] with Hanks starring as McAlary,[25][26] receiving $150,000 per week for his 12.5% share of the gross.[23] On May 2, 2013, it was announced that Lucky Guy had recouped its $3.6 million capitalization costs.[27] Although regular ticket prices for Lucky Guy started at $87 and went up to $152, the production was able to take advantage of the Broadway pricing strategy in which "premium" ticket prices fluctuate to balance supply and demand, and premium tickets ranged from $225 to $350, with standing-room only tickets also becoming popular.[23] Originally scheduled to run until June 16, 2013, the play was extended to July 3.[28][29] The run ended with a total of 33 previews and 104 regular performances. The show grossed $22,992,145 for an audience of 163,710 patrons in these 104 performances.[30]

Roles and original cast

Many of the play's characters are based on real people.[31] The following were the opening night credits.[26]

Critical reaction
Lucky Guy was Nora Ephron's final play.

Reviewers considered the play notable as Hanks' debut and Ephron's posthumous finale, and reactions were generally warm to mixed.[32] A glowing review was delivered by Ben Brantley of The New York Times: "Lucky Guy is both an elegy and a valentine to a vanishing world held dear in the collective imagination of New Yorkers, that of the rough-and-tumble of big-city newsrooms and scoop-hungry reporters."[33] Brantley also noted that the play was scripted "with a true fan’s glee and avidity".[33] New York Observer critic Rex Reed also enthused: "It’s a play that grabs you by the throat, makes you laugh and cry, holds you transfixed for two hours, paralyzes you from start to finish, and leaves you cheering."[2] New York Magazine critic Jesse Green similarly commented: "With an insider's devastating combination of repulsion and affection, Nora Ephron has written a most unlikely thing: a play about journalism, or really about telling stories, that is as rich and rough and elegiac and fun as the lost world it re-creates."[34]

A negative review by Michael Dale in Broadway World judged that the play suffers from a lack of focus and would be better served by focusing on either of the rape cases that brought McAlary notoriety or by deepening McAlary's character.[35] The review further commented that the supporting roles only serve "to move the narrative along or to dole out information about the lucky one".[35] Dale said that the casting of Hanks was sentimental rather than ideal and that even his best use of his everyman persona paled in comparison to the person he portrayed.[35] Entertainment Weekly critic Lisa Schwarzbaum gave the play a C+ grade noting that it is "a show rolling in good will and affection for the playwright", for the debut of Hanks, and for "the real-life story" of McAlary. She was disappointed, however, after two hours of "a dull, stalled play about a not-particularly-noteworthy mug with a flair for self-promotion".[36] A reviewer for Financial Times, writing about another piece, called Lucky Guy a "mediocre show".[37]

Tom Hanks (left) and Courtney B. Vance (right) received critical praise for their performances

A mixed review by Alexis Soloski in The Guardian called the play "a profane love letter to the lost, rollicking world of New York tabloid journalism. It is also a tribute to its real-life fallen son, the brash reporter Mike McAlary."[3] The portrayal of McAlary's relationship with his wife, however, lacked vibrance, and that the play does not demonstrate McAlary's skill at leveraging his sources.[3] Soloski also stated that the casting of the 56-year-old Hanks to depict the character from age 28 to age 41 was unusual,[3] but other critics stated that Hanks "looks the part".[4]

In The Hollywood Reporter, Rooney wrote that Ephron presents an "entertaining salute to the tabloid newspaper business" and "smartly enlists a garrulous crew of reporters and editors to serve as the oral-history vessel for her nostalgic look back".[14] Rooney judged that the play was "Directed with warmth and vitality by George C. Wolfe, it’s performed with relish by a dynamic cast of pros, piloted by an uncharacteristically rough-edged Tom Hanks."[14] Rooney described the play as unexceptional, cursory and simple, despite its intelligent writing, engrossing and often funny dialogue and commented that: "Brimming with testosterone and grit, it’s an unabashed celebration of male camaraderie, swaggering ambition and competitiveness."[14] Kumar, writing in The Independent, was disappointed in the play's depth and Hanks's acting,[13] but thought that Courtney B. Vance's portrayal of Hap Hairston, who was one of McAlary's editors was a highlight.[13]

Awards and nominations

The play received six Tony Awards nominations for the 67th Tony Awards to be held on June 9.[38][39] Courtney B. Vance won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play[40] The Best Lighting Design of a Play award went to Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer.[41] Tom Hanks received a Theatre World Award for Outstanding Broadway or Off-Broadway Debut Performance.[42]

The production received Drama League Award nominations for Outstanding Production of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Play and distinguished Performance Award nominations for both Tom Hanks and Courtney B. Vance.[43][44] The production received two Outer Critics Circle Award nominations, but did not win: Outstanding New Broadway Play and Outstanding Actor in a Play (Tom Hanks).[45] Hanks received the play's only Drama Desk nomination.[46]

Original Broadway production
Year Award Category Nominee Result
2013 Drama League Award Outstanding Production of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Play Nominated[44]
Distinguished Performance Award Tom Hanks Nominated[44]
Courtney B. Vance Nominated[44]
Outer Critics Circle Award Outstanding New Broadway Play Nominated[45]
Outstanding Actor in a Play Tom Hanks Nominated[45]
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Actor in a Play Tom Hanks Nominated[46]
Tony Award
(67th)		 Best Play Nominated[41]
Best Actor in a Play Tom Hanks Nominated[41]
Best Featured Actor in a Play Courtney B. Vance Won[41]
Best Direction of a Play George C. Wolfe Nominated[41]
Best Scenic Design of a Play David Rockwell Nominated[41]
Best Lighting Design of a Play Jules Fisher
Peggy Eisenhauer		 Won[41]
Theatre World Award Tom Hanks Won[42]

Notes
  1. Green, Jesse (April 1, 2013). "Theater Review: Lucky Guy and Nora Ephron's Love for Newsrooms". Vulture. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  2. Reed, Rex (April 2, 2013). "Last Words: Ephron's encore transcends both stage and story". New York Observer. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
  3. Soloski, Alexis (April 2, 2013). "Lucky Guy – review". The Guardian. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
  4. Dziemianowicz, Joe (April 1, 2013). "Theater review: 'Lucky Guy': Tom Hanks makes a colorful, driven journalist as Daily News Pulitzer Prize winner Mike McAlary". Daily News. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
  5. Hetrick, Adam (May 22, 2013). "Nora Ephron's Lucky Guy Will Be Licensed by Dramatists Play Service". Playbill. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  6. Als, Hilton (April 15, 2013). "Newsies: Nora Ephron on a tabloid hero". The New Yorker. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  7. Jones, Chris (April 4, 2013). "Nora Ephron, Roger Ebert: Because they could not stop for death". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  8. Dwyer, Jim (March 28, 2013). "From Tabloid Myth to Opening Night". The New York Times. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  9. Healy, Patrick (February 20, 2013). "Tom Hanks, Broadway's New Kid". The New York Times. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  10. Bahadur, Nina (April 5, 2013). "Tom Hanks Gives Heartfelt Nora Ephron Tribute At Women In The World Summit". The Huffington Post. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  11. "Tom Hanks' Broadway Debut In 'Lucky Guy'". The Huffington Post. May 9, 2012. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  12. Rotello, Gabriel (April 3, 2013). "What I Never Told Nora Ephron About Mike McAlary". The Huffington Post. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  13. Kumar, Nikhil (April 9, 2013). "Theatre review: Tom Hanks' acting is never fully tested in Nora Ephron's Lucky Guy". The Independent. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
  14. Rooney, David (April 1, 2013). "Lucky Guy: Theater Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  15. Zoglin, Richard (April 4, 2013). "Lucky Guy: A Broadway Debut for Tom Hanks: Playing a rumpled newspaperman, Hollywood's everyman has found a perfect vehicle – if not the perfect play". Time. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  16. Lupica, Mike (July 4, 2013). "New Yorkers were the lucky ones with Nora Ephron's final work, 'Lucky Guy'". Daily News. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  17. Healy, Patrick (May 9, 2012). "A Broadway Debut in Works for Tom Hanks". The New York Times. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  18. Kennedy, Mark (October 11, 2012). "Tom Hanks to make his Broadway debut next year". The Huffington Post. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  19. Kennedy, Mark (June 28, 2012). "'Lucky Guy,' Nora Ephron Play, Will Proceed As Planned". The Huffington Post. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  20. Piepenburg, Erik (January 7, 2013). "Maura Tierney and Courtney B. Vance Join the Cast of 'Lucky Guy'". The New York Times. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  21. Hetrick, Patrick (January 11, 2013). "Cast Complete for Nora Ephron's Lucky Guy With Tom Hanks, Peter Scolari, Maura Tierney and More". Playbill. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  22. Snetiker, Marc (March 1, 2013). "Tom Hanks Makes His Broadway Debut as Nora Ephron's Lucky Guy Begins Previews". Broadway.com. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  23. Lunden, Jeff (June 7, 2013). "How Tom Hanks Is Taking Home $150,000 a Week for 'Lucky Guy'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  24. Gans, Andrew (May 26, 2011). "George C. Wolfe Will Be Honored with 2011 Mr. Abbot Award". Playbill. Retrieved April 25, 2013.
  25. "Spotlight on Lucky Guy". Tony Awards. Retrieved April 25, 2013.
  26. "Lucky Guy". Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
  27. Cox, Gordon (May 2, 2013). "'Lucky Guy' recoups, while 'The Nance' extends for eight weeks". Variety. Retrieved May 24, 2013.
  28. "Tom Hanks' Broadway run extended". World Entertainment News Network. April 18, 2013. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  29. Hetrick, Adam (July 3, 2013). "Nora Ephron's Lucky Guy, Starring Tom Hanks, Ends Broadway Run July 3". Playbill. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  30. "Lucky Guy". Playbill. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  31. Lunden, Jeff (April 1, 2013). "Nora Ephron's 'Lucky Guy' And Tom Hanks Make Their Broadway Debuts". NPR. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  32. Ng, David (April 18, 2013). "Tom Hanks extends his stay in Broadway run of 'Lucky Guy'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 25, 2013.
  33. Brantley, Ben (April 1, 2013). "Old-School Newsman, After Deadline Tom Hanks in 'Lucky Guy,' at the Broadhurst Theater". The New York Times. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  34. Green, Jesse. "Theater Review: Lucky Guy and Nora Ephron's Love for Newsrooms". Vulture.com. New York Magazine. Retrieved March 24, 2016.
  35. Dale, Michael (April 6, 2013). "Review - Lucky Guy". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
  36. Schwarzbaum, Lisa (April 1, 2013). "Lucky Guy (2013)". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
  37. Lemon, Brendan. "Matilda, Shubert Theatre, New York – review", Financial Times, April 11, 2013
  38. "Tony Awards 2013 nominees: Complete list". Los Angeles Times. April 30, 2013. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
  39. Gardner, Elysa (April 30, 2013). "'Kinky Boots' nabs 13 Tony nominations: British import 'Matilda' scored 12 nominations". USA Today. Retrieved April 30, 2013.
  40. Semuels, Alana (June 9, 2013). "Tony Awards 2013: Courtney B. Vance glad he took a chance on 'Lucky Guy'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 9, 2013.
  41. Purcell, Carey (June 9, 2013). "Kinky Boots, Vanya and Sonia, Pippin and Virginia Woolf? Are Big Winners at 67th Annual Tony Awards". Playbill. Archived from the original on June 11, 2013. Retrieved June 10, 2013.
  42. Gans, Andrew (June 3, 2013). "69th Annual Theatre World Awards Presented June 3". Playbill. Archived from the original on September 22, 2013. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  43. Gans, Andrew (April 25, 2013). "Nominees Announced for 79th Annual Drama League Awards". Playbill. Archived from the original on April 26, 2013. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
  44. Gans, Andrew (May 17, 2013). "'Kinky Boots', 'Pippin', 'Vanya and Sonia', 'Virginia 'Woolf? and More Win Drama League Awards". Playbill. Archived from the original on June 15, 2013. Retrieved May 17, 2013.
  45. Gans, Andrew (May 13, 2013). "'Pippin' Is Big Winner of 2012-2013 Outer Critics Circle Awards". Playbill. Archived from the original on December 22, 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2013.
  46. Hetrick, Adam (May 19, 2013). "Billy Porter, Andrea Martin, Pippin, Matilda, Vanya and Sonia Win Drama Desk Awards". Playbill. Archived from the original on June 5, 2013. Retrieved May 20, 2013.
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