On This Day: The hills came alive with music

Before Julie Andrews twirled through the Austrian mountains and made Maria von Trapp a household name, another actress had already brought the story to life. Sixty-seven years ago today, one of the world’s best-loved musicals opened on Broadway.

Can you hear it? Do-Re-Mi, My Favourite Things, Edelweiss and, of course, The Sound of Music.

For generations of Australians, those songs bring back memories of family movie nights, television screenings and singing along with Julie Andrews as she tried to teach seven rather mischievous children.

But the story began on stage.

On November 16, 1959, The Sound of Music opened at New York’s Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, starring Mary Martin as Maria and Theodore Bikel as Captain Georg von Trapp.

Before Julie Andrews became Maria

The musical was inspired by the experiences of Maria von Trapp, whose family fled Nazi-controlled Austria and became internationally known for their singing.

Legendary songwriting partners Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II created the score, with a story that mixed family life, romance and the growing threat of war.

The Broadway production was a tremendous success, winning five Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and running for 1,443 performances.

Then, in 1965, Hollywood brought the story to the big screen.

With Andrews as Maria and Christopher Plummer as Captain von Trapp, the film became an international sensation, winning five Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

For many viewers, the songs became as familiar as nursery rhymes, while the sight of the von Trapp children marching to their father’s whistle remains one of the film’s unforgettable scenes.

And who could forget the moment Maria teaches them to sing?

A little boy was left Home Alone

November 16 also marks the anniversary of another family favourite.

On this day in 1990, Home Alone opened in American cinemas, introducing audiences to eight-year-old Kevin McCallister, played by Macaulay Culkin.

Accidentally left behind when his family flew to Paris for Christmas, Kevin turned his house into a fortress of homemade traps to outwit two bungling burglars played by Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern.

The film became a Christmas favourite, and 36 years later, plenty of families still make time to watch it every December.

Born on this day

Australian actress and children’s entertainer Justine Clarke, remembered for Home and Away and Play School, turns 55 today.

Canadian jazz singer and pianist Diana Krall celebrates her 62nd birthday.

And Lisa Bonet, who became a television favourite playing Denise Huxtable on The Cosby Show, turns 59.

Do you remember?

Did you first fall in love with The Sound of Music at the cinema or watching it on television? And which song can you still sing word for word?