![]() Hammerstein had been a lifelong opera fan and as far back as 1934, after witnessing a concert version of Carmen at the Hollywood Bowl, had suggested to MGM that it might make a smashing film. As Hammerstein himself later put it, “After going through such disappointment trying to write what I thought the public wanted, I decided to write something just for myself”. Because not since 1932’s Music in the Air had the once triumphant lyricist behind Show Boat written anything that had met with favour from the critics or the public. in January 1942, his thoughts must have turned to the non-stop string of flops he had endured in New York, Hollywood and London over the past decade. ![]() When Oscar Hammerstein II sat pensively at his farm in Doylestown, Pa. Although the tragic story of Carmen may show the perils of following your natural instincts too passionately, the musical Carmen Jones demonstrates the rewards of just such a path.
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