Harold Prince

Graduating from the University of Pennsylvania at age 19, Prince looked for a way to break into the theater. Prince offered George Abbott his services, and the older man gave him a job running simple errands. Abbott often had a number of projects in the works simultaneously, and Prince soon graduated to doctoring television scripts and stage managing Abbott's touring productions. On returning from the service, Prince went back to work for George Abbott, stage managing Wonderful Town, a show that reunited composer Bernstein with lyricists Comden and Green. By age 26, Prince felt ready to try his wings as a producer. In partnership with fellow Abbott protégé Robert E. Griffith, he acquired the rights to a popular novel, 7 1/2 Cents, a comic depiction of a strike in a pajama factory. The resulting show, The Pajama Game, was the surprise hit of the 1954 season; it immediately recouped its investment and won Broadway's Tony Award as Best Musical of the Year. Prince and Griffith followed their first hit quickly with Damn Yankees, based on another popular novel, about an aging baseball fan who sells his soul to the devil to become a young ball player and lead his beloved Washington Senators to victory. Robert Griffith died in 1961, and Prince continued on his own, supported by an army of loyal investors. Prince produced Stephen Sondheim's first Broadway musical as a composer, A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum. Prince embarked on an intense collaboration with his old friend Stephen Sondheim, creating a series of productions that marked a high point in the development of the musical theater. In 2006, Harold Prince was presented the special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theater. With over 50 plays, musicals and operas to his credit, Harold Prince has won a record-setting 21 Tonys -- more than any other individual -- including eight for directing, eight for producing, two as producer of the year's Best Musical and three special awards.