# Musicals that were not huge hits on stage, but were made into successful movies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 15, 2016, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicals-that-were-not-huge-hits-on-stage-but-were-made-into-successful-movies/757419 "2016-06-15T13:47:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2016, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicals-that-were-not-huge-hits-on-stage-but-were-made-into-successful-movies/757419/1 "2016-06-15T13:47:48Z")
Opposite of [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=795676) thread _Jesus Christ Superstar_ was not done well on stage, but Norman Jewison’s movie is really a good representation of the 1960’s. Rocky Horror Show did not do so well its first time on stage. The movie is a phenomenon What others? ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_s\_Son](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@Jim\_s\_Son](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_s_Son)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2016, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicals-that-were-not-huge-hits-on-stage-but-were-made-into-successful-movies/757419/2 "2016-06-15T13:59:59Z")
The original Broadway production of “Jesus Christ Superstar” ran for 711 shows which was probably fairly successful, although reviews were mixed. At the time the album was very successful. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2016, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicals-that-were-not-huge-hits-on-stage-but-were-made-into-successful-movies/757419/3 "2016-06-15T15:54:14Z")
Musicals that were unsuccessful on stage are rarely made into movies at all. ---
**Author:** ![lew\_cody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e274bd/32.png) [@lew\_cody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lew_cody)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2016, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicals-that-were-not-huge-hits-on-stage-but-were-made-into-successful-movies/757419/4 "2016-06-21T03:02:39Z")
_Higher and Higher_ could only scrape together 108 performances in its two Broadway engagements in 1940, but I would guess that the 1943 movie was fairly successful, especially since it was Frank Sinatra’s first acting role and he was still a wild favorite of the bobby-soxers. Most of the Rodgers & Hart score was jettisoned, so it wasn’t exactly a faithful filming, if that affects the criteria. _Cabin in the Sky_ ran for 156 performances in 1940-41, a moderate showing by the standards of the time, but the MGM movie in 1943 did quite well according to the IMDB’s box office figures. _Hazel Flagg_ did an OK, unspectacular run of 190 shows in 1953, then was made into _Living It Up_, a Martin & Lewis vehicle, in 1954 (with Hazel now Homer). I don’t know exact figures but again, I’d have to think it did well, given the team’s popularity. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2016, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musicals-that-were-not-huge-hits-on-stage-but-were-made-into-successful-movies/757419/5 "2016-06-21T03:26:14Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Rocky Horror Show did not do so well its first time on stage. The movie is a phenomenon. I don’t think this is a very good example. According to [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rocky_Horror_Show), the stage show ran in London for seven years and won the Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Musical. It also did fairly well in Los Angeles. It wasn’t a hit on _Broadway_, but that was two years after its “first time on stage”. The movie didn’t initially do well in theaters but began to gain a cult following after it started being shown as a midnight movie.