Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

‘Hello, Dolly!’ celebrates its 50th anniversary

Dan Webster

Above: Barbra Streisand and Walter Matthau star in "Hello, Dolly!"

In her first starring role in a movie, 1968's "Funny Girl," Barbra Streisand won an Academy Award.

Or, more correctly, she co-won the Oscar. In only the second time in an acting category (and only the sixth time overall), Streisand shared the Best Actress award with Katharine Hepburn (for "The Lion in Winter"). Both actresses, incredibly, received 3,030 votes.

Streisand didn't fare as well in her second screen appearance, which came just a year later. She starred in "Hello, Dolly!" the screen adaptation of the Broadway musical that had made Carol Channing a star.

The film "relies almost exclusively on the celebrated eyes, ears, nose and throat of Streisand," wrote a critic for Time magazine. "Her musicianship remains irreproachable. But her mannerisms are so arch and calculated that one half expects to find a key implanted in her back."

Still, the film — which was directed by the great Gene Kelly — does star Streisand, one of the premier musical performers of her era. And if that interests you, a 50th-anniversary screening of "Hello, Dolly!" is scheduled to screen twice in the coming week at two area Regal Cinemas theaters.

Screen times are 1 p.m. Sunday and 7 p.m. Wednesday at both Northtown Mall and Coeur d'Alene's Riverstone Stadium.

If you go, remember to say … well, "Hello, Dolly!"