Triple Sigh

Three talented, irresistible Italian men... from the top: Ezio Pinza, Giorgio Tozzi, and Rossano Brazzi.

What luck that we can still hear the great operatic bass Ezio Pinza in the original Broadway cast recording of Rodgers' and Hammerstein's South Pacific. Then we have the melifluous Giorgio Tozzi providing the voice for Rossano Brazzi for the film version in 1958. (A 2001 television version had me very apprehensive, but I ended up loving it too.)

Today on Bravo! they showed Only You (1994) with Marisa Tomei and Robert Downey Jr. It's a romantic comedy AND a fantastic travelogue of Italy... so I recommend it. And early in the film, they show this clip of the wonderful Mary Martin and Ezio Pinza in a rare opportunity to see the creators of the roles in a television rendering of "Some Enchanted Evening."

Also from South Pacific, here is my song of the day... of the month... of the millenium. What a golden age it was for musicals. And like any golden age, it will never be repeated.


This Nearly Was Mine
One dream in my heart,
One love to be living for,
One love to be living for
This nearly was mine.

One girl for my dream,
One partner in paradise,
This promise of paradise
This nearly was mine.

Close to my heart she came
Only to fly away,
Only to fly as day flies from moonlight.

Now, now I'm alone,
Still dreaming of paradise,
Still saying that paradise
Once nearly was mine.

I'll keep remembering kisses
From lips I've never owned,
And all that lovely adventures
That we have never known.

One dream in my heart,
One love to be living for,
One love to be living for
This nearly was mine.

Close to my heart she came
Only to fly away,
Only to fly as day flies from moonlight.

Now, now I'm alone,
Still dreaming of paradise,
Still saying that paradise
Once nearly was mine!