Ordinary People
Sheet Music
1951 (published), 1921 (published)
1951 (published), 1921 (published)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Ordinary People was a number from Act 1 of the musical Zip Goes a Million, sung by the main protagonist played by George Formby (1904-1961) as the window cleaner Percy Piggott, and the Company. In the musical Piggott is obliged to spend a million dollars in order to inherit a fortune, and this music sheet is illustrated with an image by the Scottish illustrator and cartoonist Arthur Ferrier (1891-1973) showing George Formby sitting on top of bags of dollars as he sits in a chauffeured convertible. Zip Goes a Million was specially written by the American Eric Maschwitz and the English impresario Prince Littler as a vehicle for the enormously popular George Formby. It opened at London's Palace Theatre on 20 October 1951 after an out-of-town try-out. Six months into the London run Formby suffered a heart attack and was replaced by the comedian George Dixon who remained with the musical until it closed after 544 performances on 7 February 1953.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 2 parts. (Some alternative part names are also shown below)
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| Title | Ordinary People (published title) |
| Materials and techniques | Lithograph, intermediate pages composed of printed text |
| Brief description | Music sheet for Ordinary People words by Eric Maschwitz and Emile Littler, music by George Posford, published by Chappell & Co., 1951. From the musical Zip Goes a Million starring George Formby (1904-1961), Palace Theatre London, 20 October 1951. Music sheet illustrated by Arthur Ferrier, 1951. |
| Physical description | Music sheet for Ordinary People with an illustration of a man playing a banjo atop a money-filled gold car. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Credit line | Given by Mrs R. Russell |
| Association | |
| Summary | Ordinary People was a number from Act 1 of the musical Zip Goes a Million, sung by the main protagonist played by George Formby (1904-1961) as the window cleaner Percy Piggott, and the Company. In the musical Piggott is obliged to spend a million dollars in order to inherit a fortune, and this music sheet is illustrated with an image by the Scottish illustrator and cartoonist Arthur Ferrier (1891-1973) showing George Formby sitting on top of bags of dollars as he sits in a chauffeured convertible. Zip Goes a Million was specially written by the American Eric Maschwitz and the English impresario Prince Littler as a vehicle for the enormously popular George Formby. It opened at London's Palace Theatre on 20 October 1951 after an out-of-town try-out. Six months into the London run Formby suffered a heart attack and was replaced by the comedian George Dixon who remained with the musical until it closed after 544 performances on 7 February 1953. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.1182-2014 |
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| Record created | May 15, 2014 |
| Record URL |
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