Betty Comden Screenwriter, playwright Date of Birth: 03.05.1917 Country: USA

Biography of Betty Comden

Betty Comden was a renowned American playwright, screenwriter, and lyricist, best known as one half of the famous comedy duo 'Comden and Green'. She was born as Elizabeth Cohen in New York City. After completing school, she attended New York University, where she studied dramatic arts.

In 1938, Comden was introduced to aspiring actor Adolph Green by mutual friends. Along with young Judy Holliday and Leonard Bernstein, Comden and Green formed the team 'Revuers'. They performed their acts at the 'Village Vanguard' club in Greenwich Village, which garnered them significant attention and recognition from major entertainment industry figures.

In 1944, the duo made a brief appearance in the film 'Greenwich Village' and then returned to New York. Their first Broadway experience was the production of 'On the Town', a musical about three sailors on leave in New York City. Comden and Green wrote the lyrics and dialogue for the show, and it marked the beginning of their successful collaboration with Bernstein and choreographer Jerome Robbins.

Following their Broadway debut, Comden and Green faced some disappointments with shows like 'Billion Dollar Baby' (1945) and 'Bonanza Bound' (1947), which did not achieve significant success. They eventually found work at MGM studios in California, where they wrote screenplays for films like 'Good News' and 'The Barkleys of Broadway', which featured the legendary duo Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.

Comden and Green also adapted 'On the Town' into a film, removing most of Bernstein's music at the request of Arthur Freed. They later collaborated with Gene Kelly on the classic film 'Singin' in the Rain', which marked the end of the silent film era. The duo wrote the story and screenplay, while the majority of the songs were old hits from the 1920s by Arthur Freed and Nacio Herb Brown.

'The Band Wagon' was another successful project by Comden and Green, which earned them two Academy Award nominations for Best Original Screenplay. They also received three Screen Actors Guild Awards for their work on 'The Band Wagon', 'It's Always Fair Weather', and 'On the Town'.

In the 1950s, Comden and Green worked on projects like 'Two on the Aisle', 'Wonderful Town', and 'Bells Are Ringing'. They made contributions to the popular musical 'Peter Pan', translated 'Die Fledermaus' for the Metropolitan Opera, and collaborated with Jule Styne on several songs for 'Say, Darling'.

In 1958, their show 'Party with Betty Comden and Adolph Green' premiered on Broadway and received positive reviews from both critics and audiences. It was revived in an updated format in 1977. During the 1960s, Comden and Green reunited with Jule Styne for four joint projects. In the 1970s, they worked on the musical adaptation of the film 'All About Eve' titled 'Applause', and collaborated on 'On the Twentieth Century', where Comden also played the role of Letitia Primrose.

Their last major success was the 1991 musical 'The Will Rogers Follies', where Comden and Green wrote the lyrics to music by Say Coleman. In the early 1980s, Comden tried her hand as an actress in Wendy Wasserstein's play 'Isn't It Romantic'.

However, their most notable failure was the 1982 production 'A Doll's Life', which explored the life of Nora from Henrik Ibsen's 'A Doll's House' after leaving her husband. The play only lasted for five performances, but Comden and Green were still nominated for a Tony Award for their screenplay.

Betty Comden passed away on November 23, 2006, at the age of 89 due to heart problems. Throughout her career, she left a lasting impact on Broadway and Hollywood, and her creative collaboration with Adolph Green will always be remembered in the entertainment industry.