Liliom

"Liliom" is a 1909 play by Ferenc Molnár. it was very famous in its own right during the early to mid-twentieth century, but is best known today as the basis for the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical "Carousel".

Plot

The story concerns Liliom, a tough, cocky carousel barker who falls in love with Julie, a young woman who works as a maid. When both lose their jobs and Julie discovers that she is pregnant, Liliom, unbeknownst to Julie, agrees to participate with his friend Ficsúr, a criminal, in a holdup to obtain money to provide for the child. The holdup is a disaster, but Ficsúr escapes, and Liliom kills himself to avoid capture. He is sent to a fiery place, presumably Purgatory. Sixteen years later, he is allowed to return to earth for one day to do a good deed for his now teenage daughter, whom he has never met. If he succeeds, he will be allowed to enter Heaven. He fails in the attempt, and is presumably sent to Hell. The ending, though, focuses on Julie, who obviously remembers Liliom fondly.

A contrasting subplot involves Julie's best friend, Marie, and Wolf Beifeld, a rather pompous hotel porter who marries Marie and eventually becomes the wealthy owner of the hotel at which he once worked. The two eventually have seven children, but the children never appear onstage in Molnár's play, although they are a very unpleasant bunch in "Carousel", in which the number of children is increased to nine rather than seven. There is also a Carpenter in "Liliom" who is in unrequited love with Julie, and who, in contrast to Liliom, has a stable job.

Reception and adaptations

"Liliom" was a failure in Hungary when it was staged there in 1909, but not when it was staged on Broadway in an English translation by Benjamin Glazer in 1921. The production starred Joseph Schildkraut and Eva Le Gallienne, with supporting roles played by such actors as Dudley Digges and Helen Westley. Ivor Novello starred as Liliom in 1926 in London, with Charles Laughton, in one of his first stage roles, as Ficsúr. Schildkraut and Ms. Le Gallienne also starred in the first American revival of the play , in 1932. In 1940, a second American revival, starring Burgess Meredith and Ingrid Bergman, with Elia Kazan as Ficsúr, played New York.

In 1945, Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II wrote "Carousel", an American musical adaptation of the play, which became one of the great classics of musical theatre. Even though the musical adaptation took liberties with Molnár's play, changing the ending so that the ex-barker is successful in trying to help his daughter upon his return to Earth, Molnár applauded "Carousel". The character of Liliom's daughter, Louise, is made more poignant in the musical, in which she is snobbishly taunted and rejected because her father was a thief. It is the Liliom character who finally gives her the confidence she needs to face life. In "Carousel", the characters of Marie and Wolf Beifeld in "Liliom" become Carrie Pipperidge and Mr. Snow, and Snow, who becomes a fisherman in the musical, is made even more pompous than in the original play. Carrie and Mr. Snow's children are the ones who so viciously taunt Louise, although, in an effort by Hammerstein to keep Carrie sympathetic, she is totally unaware of this, and in contrast to Mr. Snow, is supportive of a potential budding relationship between Snow's eldest son and Louise. (The relationship is quickly cut short, however, when Snow's son insults Louise by stating outright that marrying her would be "beneath his station").

"Carousel" also Americanizes the story, setting it in Maine during the last part of the nineteenth century, and including a New England clam bake as the setting for some of the more cheerful songs in the show. The names of most of the other characters were changed as well. Liliom became Billy Bigelow, the criminal Fiscúr became Jigger Craigin, and Mother Hollunder, the boarding house keeper, became Julie's cousin Nettie. There is no Carpenter in "Carousel".

There is an added layer of social commentary in "Liliom" which is deliberately omitted from "Carousel". The intended holdup victim in Molnar's play, a payroll clerk named Linzman, is Jewish, as is Wolf Beifeld. In "Carousel", Linzman becomes Mr. Bascombe, the wealthy owner of the cotton mill at which Julie once worked.

In "Liliom", Liliom encounters Linzman only once: during the robbery. In "Carousel", Billy Bigelow has met Bascombe much earlier during the play. Bascombe finds him and Julie together and kindly offers not to fire Julie, who has stayed out past the mill workers' curfew, if she allows him (Bascombe) to take her back to the mill. She gently refuses.

However, many elements of "Liliom" are retained faithfully in "Carousel", an unusual step for a musical play of that era, especially one based on such a serious drama. Molnár's basic plotline for Liliom and Julie is largely adhered to, as is much of his dialogue (although Hammerstein makes it more colloquial and gives it a New England flavor). Billy Bigelow is a womanizer and an abusive husband, as is Liliom in the non-musical play, but the Rodgers and Hammerstein musicalization is careful to stress that he has hit Julie only once, and that other characters erroneously believe that he is a habitual wife-beater. "Carousel" also retains the attempted robbery scene and Liliom/Billy Bigelow's suicide early in the second act.

Film adaptations

"Liliom" has been filmed several times, beginning in the silent era:

*The first film version, directed by Michael Curtiz in 1919, was aborted in mid-production because of Curtiz's flight from Hungary, and never finished.

*The second, a somewhat disguised and altered version reset in Coney Island, was made in 1921 and was titled "A Trip to Paradise". It starred Bert Lytell.

*In 1930 came the first talkie version, a mostly faithful adaptation made in English by Fox Film, although Ficsúr (played by Lee Tracy was called "The Buzzard" in this version. The character Hollinger, who is alluded to in the stage version but never actually appears, was one of the supporting characters in this film, and Mother Hollunder, the boarding house keeper, was re-christened Aunt Hulda. Directed by Frank Borzage, the film starred Charles Farrell and Rose Hobart, and was not a success. It is rarely shown today.

*Next came what is considered to be the most notable film version of Molnar's original play - the 1934 French film, directed by Fritz Lang and starring Charles Boyer and Madeleine Ozeray. This version was also extremely rarely seen, until it was made available on DVD in 2004. On the whole, it was a very faithful adaptation. Lang, however, omitted the characters of Wolf Beifeld and the Carpenter. Mother Hollunder was renamed Mrs. Menoux. In Lang's version, Hollinger again appears onscreen. He serves as a substitute for the Carpenter, and is changed by Lang into a rather twerpy young man foolishly infatuated with Julie. The criminal Ficsúr, who leads Liliom into committing a holdup, was renamed Alfred.

These first two talking film versions of Molnar's original play also alter the ending to make it more hopeful, though not as drastically as "Carousel" does. In the 1934 film, Liliom finally does gain entry into Heaven, not because he has successfully done something good for his daughter, but because of Julie's forgiveness and love for him. Likewise, in the 1930 film version, Liliom feels that he has failed, but the Heavenly Magistrate (H.B. Warner) reassures him that he has not, because Julie clearly still loves him.
By contrast, in the original stage play, Liliom is ominously led offstage after he fails in his heavenly mission and is never seen or heard from again, although Julie still remembers him fondly.

*The play has also been adapted for both Austrian and German television, respectively.

*Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical adaptation, "Carousel", was made into a Cinemascope 55 color film by 20th-Century Fox in 1956, starring Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones. The movie version of the hit musical failed to attract wide public attention at the time, although its soundtrack album was a best-seller and remains so to this day, but it has since taken its place as one of the Rodgers and Hammerstein film classics. (See the article on the film, "Carousel".)
*A television adaptation of "Carousel", starring Robert Goulet and an unknown singer-actress named Mary Grover, aired in 1967 on the ABC network.

Major Characters in 'Liliom'

*"Liliom", a carousel barker
*"Julie", a housemaid who falls in love with Liliom
*"Mrs. Muskat", owner of the carousel at which Liliom works; she is infatuated with Liliom
*"Fiscur", a criminal, and friend of Liliom
*"Mother Hollunder", owner of the boarding house at which Liliom and Julie are staying
*"Young Hollunder", her son
*"Marie", Julie's best friend
*"Wolf Beifeld", a hotel porter and Marie's fiancée
*"A Carpenter", in unrequited love with Julie
*"Louise", Liliom and Julie's daughter
*"Linzman", a payroll clerk
*"The Heavenly Magistrate"
*"Two Policemen from the Beyond"

External links

*imdb title|id=0025397|title=Liliom