Jack Warner optioned the film rights to both The Pajama Game (1957) and Damn Yankees (1958) with the idea of teaming stage director George Abbott and film director Stanley Donen to ensure both a faithful transfer and a cinematic rendition of the original shows. In each case, Warner was willing to import the entire original cast for the film version as long as one of the leading roles was played by a bankable movie star. For The Pajama Game (1957), the initial plan was to cast Frank Sinatra as Sid, pairing him with Janis Paige, who played Babe on Broadway. When Sinatra turned down the role, Warners decided to retain John Raitt from the stage version, playing opposite the studio's resident nightingale, Doris Day. This move cost Paige the movie, but she bounced back quickly, securing a showy role in MGM's film version of Silk Stockings (1957), which she effectively stole out from under Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse.

Film

Nessun dato in archivio