Ethel Merman, Mary Martin--Beverly Sills Gala, 1981

Mary Martin and Ethel Merman bring down the house at the 1981 Farewell Gala tribute to Beverly Sills, with their trademark renditions of "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" and "There's No Business Like Show Business".

[@jeffreymiller4814]

Ethel Merman, past 70, singing CONSTANTLY for over 50 years, gives her last great live performance of this, her signature song. And it’s one of her BEST performances ever, sung over a full classical orchestra, without a mic. No mic needed. Ever. She was in a class by herself.

[@zyxw2024]

I was thinking while listening she no longer could belt it out.

[@jeffreymiller4814]

@@zyxw2024 I’ll make sure to tell her that the next time I see her.

[@zyxw2024]

@@jeffreymiller4814 I already have, don't bother her.

[@jeffreymiller4814]

@@zyxw2024 🤣 Ok!

[@zyxw2024]

@@jeffreymiller4814 😁 👍

[@allenjones3130]

Mary & Ethel--two of the greatest ladies of American musical theatre!

[@bevally1533]

Mary Martin (she owns "Peter Pan") and Ethel Merman -- no one could sing "There's No Business Like Show Business" like she did. What a priceless treasure KZbin is to bring us memories like this.

[@mariemarchesani1595]

I was there sixth row. It was a great evening with great old fashioned talent....THAN Merman comes on and steals the show. Ovations!!!Great Times

[@rexlex1736]

I had the privilege of knowing Mary Martin. She was a wonderful person. Unpretentious and no ego. Completely down to earth.

[@marklauzon186]

Like x100!

[@LaDivinaLover]

It’s “Then” as in and then something happened. Not “than” as in instead of something “this rather thAn that”. Just FYI. It’s not a hard concept but people apparently have trouble with it. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ not being condescending just trying to help.

[@mmjhcb]

​@@rexlex1736 I agree. She was GENUINE. She cared about her fans (and I have several notes to prove it). I met her once and she was just as I expected. Her talent is massive; her singing is some of the best Anerica has EVER produced-- the sheer range of her songs, all impeccably sung with perfect diction and interpretation, from children's to Broadway, to big band, to operatic, to patriotic, etc. -- her impressive comedic and acting skills, ALL of these make her the legend she was and will always remain. That she was a lovely woman, too, really seals the deal. I miss her daily.

[@itstheburnz]

There will never be another Ethel... the showmanship.. presence.. KILLS IT

[@socio2psycho]

As a young Opera lover went to see Montserrat Caballe, Everyone was elegant and drinking champagne you know so stupid I stepped on Beverly Sills foot by accident she was so wonderful and gracious . Wonderful Talent .. Memories of a Sixties and Seventies youth. 'Ethel Merman lived in a Building in NYC my Uncle was a elevator operator when they had such things. She would tip him immensely. She threw a Christmas party for all employes and their families. Lucky I went and in a cup cake. It said I won a typewriter. how old am I. Can't spell

[@roberthenleynola]

What a charming story! And what a delightful childhood you must have had. I envy you.

[@globalman]

Glorious... I also saw Dinah Shore who Mary and Ethel sat near. I must now be in a minority of people who saw these ladies perform on Broadway and met them. I am reminded that there has been no one to compare with that generation of musical theatre. Thank you for these beautiful moments. All I have left is my memories.

[@randysills4418]

True Broadway Magic! I met Mary Martin once and she was charm and graciousness personified. What a gorgeous gown she is wearing here. A very sad day when she passed.

[@mmjhcb]

I met her too -- what a thrill! I also have cherished notes from her. You are so right -- gracious and so talented.

[@drsunshine1959]

I couldn't agree more. I still miss her.

[@petrof62]

This was a fabulous night on television. NO AUTO-TUNING, no gadgets, no computers, just real live acoustical singing.

[@michael.gerard8687]

I swear, Ethel Merman is my spirit animal. Anytime I feel like life has kicked me in the nuts I listen to this and good ole Ethel revs me up. Lets Go! On with the show! Get back in the game of life and keep fighting!! 💥

[@rexlex1736]

Martin and Merman on the same stage was a dynamite event!

[@rexlex1736]

Like Mount Vesuvius set to music!

[@ollietrim6317]

Ethel 😍 she sucks the air out of the theatre, gives it everything and you just can’t take your eyes off her. Amazingly capable of portraying genuine vulnerability, telling a story through song and having major fun.. all in one song!

[@wotan10950]

Historic! I never had the opportunity to see Merman or Martin on stage, but I did see Sills many times, and even got her autograph.

[@95KIPPIE]

No comparison to the talent we have today to what we had in Ethel and Mary! What happened people? Ethel Merman the first lady of the Broadway musical comedy stage, along with Mary Martin. Those two I have performed every musical that has ever been written

[@linamae89]

This performance gave me chill bumps. I am officially a fan now.

[@showtunestarpower]

There is absolutely nothing at all nostalgic about the two glorious performances in this treasure of a clip. Mary Martin and Ethel Merman are singing both of their songs with immediacy and excitement. I did not know that there was even a film of this magnificent evening. I love the clips final moment when Mary greets Ethel as Ethel walks over to her table. Wow!!!!

[@paulengel7789]

+Star Sky I was there that night (way up in the third ring) and it was electrifying. They cut it from the video, but when Miss Merman finished he song, the ovation was thunderous, and lengthy. She then walked across the stage, embraced several performers, including Miss Sills. Then she walked over to Mary Martin, grabbed her face in both hands, and gave her a big kiss. The audience went wild.

[@chocolatesouljah]

Thanks for that anecdote. The power of being there!

[@mariemarchesani1595]

Paul Engel you 34 3

[@jcnyc9087]

Those 2 great Broadway ladies delivering their signature numbers as if it were the first time So in the moment.

[@elainelosee7974]

WOW, what a trio. Aren't they a Wonder. Thank you Posting

[@dietrichlee24]

Tears.... TEARS.... my uncle showed me the Sills farewell when i was 11 (think he saw something in me? LOL) It was on VHS.. and i have looked EVERYWHERE for this. Thank you so much for this treasured memory.

[@ollietrim6317]

I can attest that Ethel still had it in 1983, just shortly before her collapse from a brain tumour. There is a recording from February 1983 at a concert she delivered in Florida, and wow, she was on form!

[@filmmekker]

Yes! I used to have a dvd if that show. Wish I still did.

[@micdom43]

I have this also. I think from Daytona or Lakeland 1 night after the other amazing

[@ollietrim6317]

Daytona 😊

[@jaynehaught9715]

I love Ethel Merman.......one great Dame.....they don't make them like her anymore.....what a shame.....❤️

[@rashen24]

keep the ethel merman videos coming

[@chocolatesouljah]

Okay! She turned up for real in this one!

[@micdom43]

Ethel merman truly amazing

[@mariemarchesani1595]

Michael Olbrych g the

[@edwardharbur4907]

This is what stars look like. Talent, presence and CLASS. Sadly, no longer requirements for success in show biz.

[@judebarnes4]

Absolutely spot on, Mr. Harbur!

[@mmjhcb]

Edward Harbur Oh how right you are! These people were real talents, real artists, and as you said, had CLASS. They grabbed you and never let go. When they died it was like the fall of a great civilization. Today we have "stars" who aren't worthy of any title but "average."

[@TenorReacts]

Edward Harbur agree 💯%

[@JM-lw3nx]

oh really? I could name quite a few talented and classy performers.

[@rexlex1736]

I agree.

[@allancuseo7431]

There were stars in those days. Now we have adequate performers. Have always loved Martin and Merman is in a world of her own...no one equals Ethel Merman

[@BTURNER1961]

Martin can still sell this song with that mischievous twinkle and effervescent charm she always owned, but you can tell that Mary had, for the most part, stopped doing much singing, while Ethel was still performing this very number in concerts regularly. rly .

[@donaldgordon3991]

I.am sure that happens to alot of performers when you get along in years, but she still can wash that man right out of her hair

[@lalagonegaga]

There is something about Merman on a big stage. Her TV performances are fine but when you run into footage of her live stuff, on stage, nothing and no one compares. Also, let us remind ourselves that, at this point, she had been singing professionally for over five decades. Talk about vocal longevity.

[@BTURNER1961]

Small spaces cramp Ethel, but the bigger the stage, the more ears to hear, the bigger, the broader, the brassier she gets. She is a living breathing trumpet.

[@LJ-ht4zs]

I saw Ethel Merman when I was 14 in Gypsy - WOW!!!

[@fonso1030]

I don’t know why Ethel Merman always manages to make me shed a tear with her big finish to a song. She was just a force of nature. It’s sad that younger performers can’t even begin to understand what an Ethel Merman was, or why she will forever be 100% better than any of them.

[@fergusmurray1828]

A lot of them wouldn’t even know who she was or recognise her name. It’s depressing.

[@gnirolnamlerf593]

fonso1030: Mostly true, unless someone can give us a list to prove you're wrong. I never saw Merman live. She was on tons of TV spectaculars, as they used to be called. Her singing was stupendous and then she hit a period where it was pretty embarrassing, and then, in her 60's, she amazingly came back and even at age 73, displayed this incredible performance. I saw Martin (and Preston) in _I Do! I Do!_ from the first row of the theater and got to meet her in her dressing room afterwards. It's a long story. We took photos and imagine my shock when her husband called us working-class people in Yonkers a few weeks later and said that Miss Martin wanted copies of the photos if we could send them to her. Wonderful, unpretentious lady. As for Sills, I generally hate Händel, but I had a subscription to the NYC Opera, when tickets could be had for, like $4 or $5, and one of the operas in my subscription was _Giulio Cesare_ . Oh, well, Händel, but the chance to see and hear Sills and Treigle in what would no doubt be an opulent production, I thought, well, OK. OMG! The two of them blew me away! (The rest of the cast was not chopped liver either.) No, it didn't make me a fan of Händel, but did make me go back to see them in various roles. As for today, we all saw Lady Gaga do the _Sound of Music_ medley at the Oscars, which pretty much made the whole world gasp, including jaded Hollywood. She has the chops. She needs to do a Broadway musical or three if there ever are Broadway musicals again and demonstrate that she can handle a starring role, not just a series of songs, a starring role in which you get only one take every night, six nights a week. (I'll give her matinees off, though that will disgruntle a lot of tourists, if there ever are tourists again.) I think she can do it.

[@wishingonthemoon1]

Ohmygosh i would pass out if I was in the same room as all these ladies 😍😍😍

[@williamboiczuk1233]

Both great artists. Great at what they did best. The best, both of them.

[@leemclaury6251]

There is no one like Merman . She steals the stage

[@FlopFlap1]

I prefer David Mermin.

[@Leanrosso]

Divino. First class singing. Real singing lessons for future generations.

[@micdom43]

Ethel merman never fails to knock out um on their feet

[@lorilemonade6649]

Love this!💕❤

[@susanfagan2727]

PURE TALENT !!! ❤️

[@LJ-ht4zs]

I saw Ethel Merman in 1959 in NYC in the play Gypsy. Amazing, could not believe her voice (I was aged 13); then the following year saw JFK up close when he was campaigning in Yonkers in 1960. What an exciting time - one legend; and one soon to be a legend. Only other person that I wished I had seen in 1960 was Lucille Ball in Wildcat. (Actually heard her singing "Hey, Look Me Over," on Ed Sullivan - she sang really well.) Does anyone remember her trying trying to teach Ethel Merman to sing on "The Lucy Show"? Also unforgettable - Lady Gaga singing the National Anthem at President Biden's Inauguration! I wasn't present only watching it on tv. but my spirit was there all the way. Much love to these people.

[@wishingonthemoon1]

How does Mary’s voice not age? How does she go between timbres so flawlessly? How does Ethel’s voice not age? How does she go between timbres so flawlessly? 😂 (Yes I know the vibratos get wider. But still. They sound and move amazingly)

[@OLIVCHEN77]

HEY! GIRLIIIES look what Sex-Appeal really mean.... and a magificent singing-technique.....Brava!

[@mrjason9382]

Thanks for shareing

[@richardgornalle4536]

Two wonderful Broadway dames.

[@gailthomas2631]

Thank God for these films.

[@scottmiller6495]

WOW !!!!!

[@WGARVA]

Merman owns the stage.

[@nornsnornsnorns]

Fantastic!!

[@JLNeis]

Absolutely one of a kind performance, they are the greatest, they are missed and there will never be others like them, they were the best of the best, sad they are gone.

[@mckuhn1000]

To sing like that at 73 WOW!!!!!!!

[@peteradaniel]

Ethel Merman: Mic?! Mic!!! Who needs a mic?!

[@FridaM100]

Ethel, Ethel, Ethel!!!

[@cicc646]

The divas of Broadway.

[@bmbutler2]

Love this!

[@gilbertorosales5317]

I grew up with these kind of quality music and classy people...nowadays...it's so different. We lack of stars in show business...what happened?...

[@JM-lw3nx]

wtf are you talking about?

[@gilbertorosales5317]

@@JM-lw3nx times are quite different...that's what I mean...

[@frankrossi9255]

WOW !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@vephanos]

Dyma bŵer goruchaf y theatr! Llais impeccable, tragwyddol neb llai nag Ethel Merman. Brenhines Broadway! Boed i'w llais hardd ffynnu ymlaen am byth !!!

[@dianaaljadeff2983]

Two great artists unmicked with a great orquestra

[@rjnuzzi1648]

Wh a treat two humans made this epic human!?!!! Atomic

[@alwaysnew189]

Bubbles gathered them! Eeehhh, so may various Divas.... 🌟🎶🎭💗

[@nevim007]

03:15 Respecting and admiring her artistry in every aspect, I just can't shed the image of Lieutenant Hurwitz off my mind 😂

[@dennman6]

Love seeing this excerpt from the Sills Gala! Does anyone know who the lady is that is standing applauding and then sits down behind Dinah Shore as Merman greets Mary Martin? I was 19 when this tribute was presented and I don't remember having seen it if this was a broadcast. The lady I ask about I think is either Marilyn Horne or Eileen Farrell, but the resolution of this 41 year old video hasn't enough clarity for me to be certain of either. Even with old videotape and KZbin compression it is a great joy to see these kinds of videos!

[@mrjason9382]

Nice

[@acassman100]

Projection/ Performance/ Powerhouse/....George Gershwin told Her " Never Take Singing Lessons"

[@micdom43]

Ethel merman

[@stuartlee6622]

Why isn't a Broadway theater named after Mary Martin????

[@micdom43]

once upon a time NY

[@donaldkane1714]

It sounded fine in 1981; KZbin trashed it.

[@Maccastreisfan]

Who is the pretty lady behind Mary at 1:52?

[@micdom43]

Never hear anything like again

[@happythegamingdog]

rich ~

[@jahmal4ever1]

Ethel Merman was a badddddddddddddddd B wooooow!!!!

[@hektor_schmidt]

0:44

[@lottaandgus]

?

[@jspud10]

Sadly, these talents wouldn’t be able to put a toe on stage these days.

[@chriswainwright185]

Why

[@donaldkane1714]

What's the excuse for such poor sound?

[@gnirolnamlerf593]

The video is 40 years old? Ya think? Was not intended for the internet? Ya think? It was a TV show, for heaven's sake. There are TV specials I would practically give my eye teeth to hear and see again, even if they weren't in perfect condition, but I don't think they were preserved. "Annie, the Women in the Life of a Man," starring Anne Bancroft, Lee J. Cobb, Mel Brooks, Jack Cassidy, Dick Smothers, David Susskind and others, comes to mind. It won two Emmys, but it seems to be gone forever.

[@BellaFirenze]

Mary Virginia Martin (December 1, 1913 - November 3, 1990) was an American actress and singer. A muse of Rodgers and Hammerstein, she originated many leading roles on stage over her career, including Nellie Forbush in South Pacific (1949), the title character in Peter Pan (1954), and Maria von Trapp in The Sound of Music (1959). She was named a Kennedy Center Honoree in 1989. She was the mother of actor Larry Hagman.