September 30, 1964
The British play “Oh What a Lovely War” opened at Broadhurst Theater, New York City, for 125 performances. In a series of a song-and-dance vignettes, the play follows the Smith family, who initially view World War I with sunny optimism but, after witnessing the reality of trench warfare, their illusions are shattered. In 1969 it was made into a film by Richard Attenborough. The lyrics form the ending sequence: “And when they ask us, how dangerous it was, / Oh, we’ll never tell them, no, we’ll never tell them: / We spent our pay in some cafe, / And fought wild women night and day, / ‘Twas the cushiest job we ever had.”
