39th Tony Awards

The 39th Annual Tony Awards was broadcast by CBS television on June 2, 1985 from the Shubert Theatre. Instead of a formal host, there was a group of performers/presenters. Some paid tribute to the songs of Jule Styne, Cy Coleman, Andrew Lloyd Webber, with these composers ending the broadcast by playing songs from their respective new shows. Mary Martin introduced the Special Award for Yul Brynner. [O'Connor,John J."New York Times", June 4, 1985, p.C13] For the first time in Tony history, awards were not presented for lead actor and actress in a musical and choreography. [Freedman,Samuel G."New York Times", June 3, 1985, p.C15] [ [http://www.broadway.com/gen/Buzz_Story.aspx?ci=513006 The Insider,] Ken Mandelbaum, broadway.com]

Musicals represented:
*"Big River" ("Muddy Water"/" River in the Rain"- Daniel Jenkins, Ron Richardson and Company);
*"Grind" ( "This Must Be the Place" - Ben Vereen and company);
*"Leader of the Pack" (Medley - Company)

Presenters and Performers: Danny Aiello, Susan Anton, Hinton Battle, Deborah Bauers, Deborah Burrell, Terry Burrell, Jim Dale, Loretta Devine, Jackie Gleason, Julie Harris, Rex Harrison, George Hearn, Van Johnson, Raul Julia, Rosetta LeNoire, Mary Martin, Millicent Martin, Maureen McGovern, Rita Moreno, Mike Nichols, Stefanie Powers, Juliet Prowse, Tony Randall, Lee Roy Reams, Lynn Redgrave, Chita Rivera, Wanda Richert, Tony Roberts, Rex Smith, Leslie Uggams, Dick Van Dyke, Ben Vereen, Tom Wopat.

Winners and Nominees

"Winners are in bold "

Production

=Best Play=

*"Biloxi Blues" by Neil Simon. (Produced by Emanuel Azenberg, and the Center Theater Group/Ahmanson Theatre, Los Angeles)

;Nominees:
*"As Is" by William M. Hoffman. (Produced by John Glines/Lawrence Lane, Lucille Lortel, and The Shubert Organization)
*"Hurlyburly" by David Rabe. (Produced by Icarus Productions, Frederick M. Zollo, Ivan Bloch and ERB Productions)
*"Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" by August Wilson. (Produced by Ivan Bloch, Robert Cole, and Frederick M. Zollo)

=Best Musical=

*"Big River" (Produced by Rocco Landesman, Heidi Landesman, Rick Steiner, M. Anthony Fisher, and Dodger Productions)

;Nominees:
*"Grind" (Produced by Kenneth D. Greenblatt, John J. Pomerantz, Mary Lea Johnson, Martin Richards, James M. Nederlander, Harold Prince, Michael Frazier, Susan Madden Samson, and Jonathan Farkas)
*"Leader of the Pack (musical)" (Produced by Elizabeth I. McCann, Nelle Nugent, Francine LeFrak, Clive Davis, John Hart Associates, Inc., Rodger Hess, and Richard Kagan)
*"Quilters" (Produced by The Denver Center for the Performing Arts, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, The American National Theatre and Academy, and Brockman Seawell)

Reproduction (Play or Musical)
*"A Day in the Death of Joe Egg" (Produced by The Shubert Organization, Emanuel Azenberg, Roger Berlind, Ivan Bloch and MTM Enterprises, Inc.)

;Nominees:
*"Cyrano de Bergerac" (Produced by James M. Nederlander, Elizabeth I. McCann, Nelle Nugent, Cynthia Wood, Dale Duffy, and Allan Carr)
*"Much Ado about Nothing" (Produced by James M. Nederlander, Elizabeth I. McCann, Nelle Nugent, Cynthia Wood, Dale Duffy and Allan Carr)
*"Strange Interlude" (Produced by Robert Michael Geisler, John Roberdeau, Douglas Urbanski, James M. Nederlander, Duncan C. Weldon, Paul Gregg, Lionel Becker and Jerome Minskoff)

Performance

=Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play=

*"Derek Jacobi" ("Much Ado About Nothing");Nominees:
*Jim Dale ("A Day in the Death of Joe Egg")
*Jonathan Hogan ("As Is")
*John Lithgow ("Requiem for a Heavyweight")

=Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play=

*"Stockard Channing" ("A Day in the Death of Joe Egg");Nominees:
*Sinead Cusack ("Much Ado About Nothing")
*Rosemary Harris ("Pack of Lies")
*Glenda Jackson ("Strange Interlude")

=Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical=

"NONE"

Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical

"NONE"

=Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play=

*"Barry Miller" ("Biloxi Blues");Nominees:
*Charles S. Dutton ("Ma Rainey's Black Bottom")
*William Hurt ("Hurlyburly")
*Edward Petherbridge ("Strange Interlude")

=Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play=

*"Judith Ivey" ("Hurlyburly")Nominees:
*Joanna Gleason ("Joe Egg")
*Theresa Merritt ("Ma Rainey's Black Bottom")
*Sigourney Weaver ("Hurlyburly")

=Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical=

*"Ron Richardson" ("Big River");Nominees:
*René Auberjonois ("Big River")
*Daniel H. Jenkins ("Big River")
*Kurt Knudson ("Take Me Along")

=Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical=

*"Leilani Jones" ("Grind");Nominees:
*Evalyn Baron ("Quilters")
*Mary Beth Peil ("The King and I")
*Lenka Peterson ("Quilters")

Craft

=Best Direction of a Play=

*"Gene Saks" ("Biloxi Blues")Nominees:
*Keith Hack ("Strange Interlude")
*Terry Hands ("Much Ado About Nothing")
*Marshall W. Mason ("As Is")

=Best Direction of a Musical=

*"Des McAnuff" ("Big River")Nominees:
*Barbara Damashek ("Quilters")
*Mitch Leigh ("The King and I")
*Harold Prince ("Grind")

=Best Choreography=

"NONE"

=Best Book of a Musical=

*"Big River" (William Hauptman)Nominees:
*"Grind" (Fay Kanin)
*"Harrigan" 'n Hart (Michael Stewart)
*"Quilters" (Molly Newman and Barbara Damashek)

=Best Original Score Written for the Theatre=

*"Big River" (Music and lyrics by Roger Miller)Nominees:
*"Grind" (Music by Larry Grossman, and lyrics by Ellen Fitzhugh)
*"Quilters" (Music and lyrics by Barbara Damashek)

=Best Scenic Design=

*Heidi Landesman ("Big River")Nominees:
*Clarke Dunham ("Grind")
*Ralph Koltai ("Much Ado About Nothing")
*Voytek and Michael Levine ("Strange Interlude")

Tony Award for Best Costume Design

*"Florence Klotz" ("Grind")Nominees:
*Patricia McGourty ("Big River")
*Alexander Reid ("Cyrano de Bergerac")
*Alexander Reid ("Much Ado about Nothing")

Tony Award for Best Lighting Design

*Richard Riddell ("Big River")Nominees:
*Terry Hands ("Cyrano de Bergerac")
*Terry Hands ("Much Ado About Nothing")
*Allen Lee Hughes ("Strange Interlude")

pecial awards

*Regional Theatre Award Winner - Steppenwolf Theater Company, Chicago, Illinois
*Yul Brynner honoring his 4,525 performances in The King and I
*New York State Council on the Arts

ee also

Tony Awards

References

External links

* [http://www.tonyawards.com/en_US/index.html Tony Awards official site]