Pat Suzuki "I Enjoy Being A Girl" on The Ed Sullivan Show

[@stevefaure415]

She's still alive. A great talent. Listen to that voice!

[@gerryivie3455]

She’s still above ground. 93 years old.

[@Jayjee762]

She’s so underrated! She summons such power when she sings- the control she has over her vibrato is so satisfying to listen to.

[@pamczech5984]

Acting wad great too

[@that70sgirl90]

Fantastic voice! What a big, beautiful, infectious smile! 😊 Happy Monday... thank you for sharing! 💖

[@chrisfrenchnyc]

One of my favorite of all-time performances from the Golden Age of the musical theatre. Pat Suzuki is the real deal, and this is a perfect example on how to ‘sell’ a song without ever doing too much. Oscar Hammerstein II’s brilliant lyrics always get the top priority, and you can tell that Ms. Suzuki must have been even better in a live theater where that big, warm, brassy belt voice undeniably made it all the way to the back row!

[@robertcotgrave5920]

Marvellous 🎉. Set's you up for the day 👍 🎉

[@joecampos5624]

She has a very amazing voice

[@fivemile13]

She is just awesome!

[@TomElvisSmith]

From the "Flower Drum Song" by Rodgers and Hammerstein. This episode featured the original cast, of which Suzuki was a part, and I think most, if not all, of the songs have been uploaded now. I would also love to see the great tenor Mario Del Monaco sing "Musica Proibita" on this episode.

[@molliestanton2869]

She makes this song really sweet!

[@neontetra67]

OMG Her voice is so amazing!

[@toddduncan1703]

The hand gestures at this point were so powerful, and showed her determination at reaching her goal. Love it. 1:52

[@edwardpootchemunka8027]

Beautiful Voice ♥️👌👍❤️

[@arlenecerf8833]

One of the premiere Broadway legends from its golden era ❤❤❤

[@jaymorgenthal9479]

This is from Sunday 12-14-1958. The show opened on Broadway Monday Dec 1,1958.

[@JudgeJulieLit]

During its Broadway run, my parents attended, then brought home the show's program for us kids. My dad soon bought the vinyl 33 rpm LP record of Pat Suzuki's debut album, The Many Sides of Pat Suzuki. Every track a gem ... lovely ballads such as Poor Butterfly, Lazy Afternoon, and How High the Moon showcased her sotto voce side.

[@robertosabastiani2051]

Fantastic voice and communication skills!

[@willminkorea2010]

This is fantastic!

[@robmccabe27]

Such an accomplished entertainer.

[@christopherbarnard608]

Such a powerhouse. Fabulous

[@awanfarrell2880]

More please ❤

[@pamczech5984]

I love this song and the movie

[@noragracefergason5357]

Hello. This is my new anthem!!! You may borrow it, a little. You heard it here first!! She really does the song proud.

[@MXB2001]

That's the Ethel Merman school of singing I believe. Impressive.

[@furtherdefinitions1]

That infectious smile makes you want to fall in love with her

[@juanmonge7418]

This show came out the same season as “Westside story” and “The music man”. The film came out the same year as “Westside story” you think that it was overlooked?

[@jaymorgenthal9479]

it was good but didn’t measure up to R&H shows such as Oklahoma, Carousel and South Pacific. It was followed by their last show The Sound of Music which rounded out the big four,

[@brgilbert2]

@@jaymorgenthal9479 Huh!! Flower Drum Song was written by Rodgers and Hammerstein!!

[@jaymorgenthal9479]

@@brgilbert2 read my comment carefully? I said R&H . anyone knows that means Rodgers and Hammerstein.

[@brgilbert2]

@@jaymorgenthal9479 I understand that but what was not clear to me was your statement, "it was good but didn't measure up to R&H shows such as" instead of what I expected to read, "it was good but didn't measure up to R&H's OTHER shows such as"!! It read like you were comparing Rodger & Hammerstein's Oklahoma etc. to Westside Story, Carousel and South Pacific but not including Flower Drum Song.

[@edufau815]

It was inevitable that in times in which the prevailing culture has dynamited the classic concept of genre, the evaluation of the performance ends up being reduced to the lyrics of the song... which in this version eliminates the last stanza where there was an abundance of clichés about femininity. Actually, this song makes perfect sense in the context of the musical for which it was composed, a story in which Asian immigrants are torn between their own traditions and integration into the American pop culture of that time. Let's remember that in West Side Story, from only 3 years later, a story also about the integration of immigrants, there is a musical theme (I feel pretty) that today would not be understood if we took it out of context...

[@opal817]

Well said. Something written within the era-specific context of a narrative show can quickly become toxic fodder for people who see it as an aspirational model that society should aspire to. I wonder if those who still hold this up as a rulebook for femininity realize it was written by two men.

[@dmnemaine]

West Side Story was not 3 years later. It debuted on Broadway in 1957, actually before Flower Drum Song, which debuted on Broadway in 1958.

[@edufau815]

@@dmnemaine You are correct, my apologies for the mistake, indeed West Side Story was released in 1957.

[@dottieobrien2606]

God

[@dadanxlpsdpgj]

¨̮⃝

[@staceymohr8107]

I am a girl who was born a girl and who enjoys being a girl, too. I love getting dressed up and being brought flowers and having guys open doors for me. It's fun to be girly. Mind you, I can also throw down if necessary, but that's all part of being a girl. 😘

[@robertsettle2590]

Nowadays she would probably catch hell for singing 🎶 that tune.

[@angelastars27]

She would be attacked by zoomer mobs 😂

[@MXB2001]

The world has gone mad dontcha know?

[@robertsettle2590]

@@MXB2001 yepper

[@opal817]

You're about 60 years late with this criticism. lgbt folk have been singing this forever. Even they can recognize the irony of being able to "enjoy being a girl" without being one. Nancy Kwan (movie Linda) is even proud of this fact. And here's Pat Suzuki herself, who wasn't that impressed with the song: “I thought it was kinda silly, actually. I mean, who enjoys being anything? I guess it remains popular because they still use it in auditions-they think it’s belting-and God knows, it’s been on every gay bar jukebox."

[@toddduncan1703]

The show was revived in 2002, and people weren’t bothered by it then.

[@randyphillips7223]

Oh, if only they had let her sing the entire song!

[@salvatorecollura2692]

Sullivan was notorious for giving performers very little time

[@brgilbert2]

@@salvatorecollura2692 Sullivan?? Flower Drum Song written by Rodgers & Hammerstein and directed by Gene Kelly.

[@salvatorecollura2692]

@@brgilbert2 Ed Sullivan. The host of the show she is singing on.

[@brgilbert2]

@@salvatorecollura2692 Oh!! Sorry for the "brain freeze".

[@brgilbert2]

@@salvatorecollura2692 I should have added, when I read "Sullivan" all I could think of was ""Gilbert and Sullivan"!! Lol!

[@pariscloud2907]

What happened?

[@stomptheelites]

Define a Girl/Woman😜😜2023

[@dmnemaine]

Pat Suzuki should have been a much more major star than she was. Unfortunately, in the 1950s/60s there wasn't a whole lot of opportunity for Asian actors or singers.

[@pacz8114]

(Here we go again...Yawn.)

[@dmnemaine]

@@pacz8114 Well, she deserved more than she was able to achieve, and it was because she wasn't white. That's how things were in the 1950s/60s whether you like it or not.

[@pacz8114]

​@@dmnemaine Please explain: Of what precisely, in your opinion, did she "deserve" more?

[@dmnemaine]

@@pacz8114 She deserved to have her considerable talent more widely recognized. She had the same or better charisma, talent, and presence as any of the major Broadway stars of the era (Merman, Channing, Martin). She deserved that much recognition, and would easily have gotten it if she had been white. She was that good.

[@pacz8114]

@@dmnemaine Is not having a recording contract the with largest record company in the USA at the time (RCA) considered suitable recognition? Is not a Grammy Nomination (Female pop vocal - 1960) considered suitable recognition? Are not performances on top-rated coast-to-coast network television programmes (e.g., Red Skelton, Tonight Show, Sinatra, et al.) considered suitable recognition? None of the foregoing would have occurred if she was devoid of tangible talent. Being an entertainer is a high-risk occupation. The obvious fact that she was able to sustain such an occupation - and on demand all the more - indicates she was clearly recognized as an entertainer.

[@jl3322]

Nancy Kwan played the part in the movie. Kwan was superior!

[@bradleyscarton3931]

Nancy Kwan didn’t do her own singing though. She dubbed by B.J. Baker, who was once married to Mickey Rooney. I prefer Pat’s rendition here.

[@jl3322]

@@bradleyscarton3931 looks mattered in the role, so…..also Roz Russell did not sing in Gypsy and its hard to see the Merm in Gypsy on film - although Garland might have been extraordinary but to each his own.

[@denverdubois5835]

She was dubbed lol.

[@EugeneLorey]

Gen z must find this "toxic & problematic".

[@JohnShinn1960]

And looks like a girl too! 🤠👍

[@MXB2001]

Most emphatically!

[@kingcoletriofan79]

You mean people like being the sex they are? I prefer saner times. Today is nuts.

[@joshdukie998]

Saner times? are you forgetting about segregation? sorry to tell you but the world was NOT sane back then. Some people weren't even treated like human beings.

[@JoseMorales-lw5nt]

​@@joshdukie998 That's why I always appreciated when Ed Sullivan had Black entertainers appear on his primetime series. He essentially gave a big middle finger to Southern CBS affiliates who couldn't stand seeing other ethnic groups take a spotlight away from White performers. Mr. Sullivan didn't give a damn about racism. Just ask The Supremes, the one music group that appeared 17 times on Sullivan's show!

[@chrisfrenchnyc]

And yet even 60+ years later, it’s stunning how many fans of Rodgers & Hammerstein still haven’t learned the lessons about love, tolerance and acceptance that their shows like FLOWER DRUM SONG (and SOUTH PACIFIC) tried to teach America. @kingcoletriofan79, the fact that you’ve only recently managed to learn about transgender people and think they’re ‘new’ is a sad admission of your ignorance. Less than 1% of Americans identify as transgender. It’s pathetic that their mere *existence* interrupts you from enjoying a terrific performance (by someone, as a Japanese American, also knew what discrimination felt like).

[@jadezee6316]

not much of a song of clearly an obvious perception that seems to be under attack from some insane units......which DOES NOT MEAN YOU SHOULD EVER ACCEPT IT.......on the contrary, if you love your children you will do everything you can to make sure they do not grow up in a world that will disrespect them for being normal...the choice IS YOURS

[@chrisn7259]

Normal? You me the way YOU are.

[@taaro7771]

If you love your children, you accept them like they are, not changing them in base of your prejudices.

[@that70sgirl90]

@@taaro7771 So True.. you them unconditionally! 💖

[@molliestanton2869]

@@taaro7771 You accept their phases, but you need to safeguard your kids, too. They are rapidly growing, changing, exploring different ideas. You don't want your own prejudice for absolute freedom for them, to not see the bigger picture of phases and trends--that pass. Maybe for some, it isn't a trend, but the last thing we need is a society which has lost all common sense, so eager not to be criticized for having guardrails for a new trend in " thinking."

[@p.o694]

No one ever is discriminated against for being straight, It's literally people like you who choose to be what they want to be........ Which is their choice, not yours!

[@notinmyUSMC]

She's a girl? She must be a biologist. Otherwise, how could she possibly know this? 🤔

[@mikewilder6728]

🤮

[@arlenecerf8833]

What’s the puking emoji for?? I thought the performance was outstanding :) You clearly don’t have an eye , ear and a knack for talent if this performance failed to impress you in anyway.

[@kaindeamedha6301]

Heil Putin!0/