Somewhere for Me: A Biography of Richard Rodgers

My knowledge of Richard Rodgers was limited to the fact that he wrote the music and Lorenz Hart wrote the words to a favorite song of mine entitled Manhattan. I wanted to learn more about the partnership of Rodgers and Hart and found them to be an odd couple of sorts. Hart was a genius in writing lyrics, but was a difficult man to work with due to his problem with alcohol. Rodgers finally had to find a new partner when Hart's health failed him and he could no longer be depended upon. Rodgers then hooked up with Oscar Hammerstein and the two of them gave the world Oklahoma, South Pacific, The King and I, The Sound of Music, and other treasured musicals. Rodgers also had an alcohol problem at this time when drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes was common in society. I suppose it still is. Rodgers and his lifelong wife, Dorothy, did not have a very happy marriage although they did their best to keep their marital problems hidden from the public. One of their children, a daughter Mary, was often ridiculed by her father for being what he considered to be fat. Retirement was not something Richard Rodgers would consider for himself. He always wanted to write the next musical. Irving Berlin lived in fear that he would never be able to write another hit song. Rodgers lived in fear of not be able to come up with another musical. Both showed their insecurities in their line of work. I feel the author does an excellent job in researching her subject. I rate the book four stars, not because I feel the book is lacking in any respect, but because it is a subject I had no knowledge of and my interest was held to about a four star level.

We can be grateful to Secrest for toiling on Rodgers with her usual thorougness and objectivity, and for doing so when many of Rodgers's friends and colleagues, not to mention his thoughtful daughters, are still here to contribute. If the result is not quite as good a read as her works on Bernstein and Sondheim, we have to blame the subject, not the author. Rodgers was not an easy man to get to know, and while his music was often original and sophisticated, his life was marked by a dull and distant anger. A lesser biographer might have added a larger dose of amateur psychoanalysis and squeezed more dramatic juice out of alcohol and infidelity, but Secrest knows that her job is to depict a life, not to make a sport of it. Given the scope of Rodgers's influence on 20th century culture, Secrest's book will no doubt be invaluable when this fascinating musical era is approached by future writers.

"Somewhere For Me" is one of the better biographies of Richard Rodgers, focusing heavily on the personal life of the composer. It's all here, warts and all. From his battles with the bottle, to his roving eye, his depression, hypochondria, and so on. The book does focus heavily on his relationship with Dorothy Rodgers, but doesn't really attempt to explain why he strayed in their marriage. Also, the book at times does focus a little bit too much on Dorothy, and Lorenz Hart, but Oscar Hammerstein, with whom Rodgers did his most significant writing, is almost pushed to the background. For example, the famous rift between the two after Hammerstein strived for some time to write "Hello, Young Lovers," only for Rodgers to call the song "adequate," is not even mentioned except in passing. And Hammerstein's ire over it is never mentioned. As another reviewer writes, the film versions of the major Rodgers and Hammerstein films "South Pacific" and "Oklahoma!" were ones in which Rodgers was heavily involved. The author also erronously states that the film of "Oklahoma!" was viewed as unsuccessful in its initial release; and the immensely popular and heavily panned film of "South Pacific" only gets minimal mention. Both deserve more attention in any Rodgers biography, because the films of these plays (and "The King and I" and, of course "The Sound of Music") are probably the most accessible Rodgers works available to the reader. Nonetheless, this book does shed more light on Richard Rodgers the person than any volume I've read on him. For as lengthy a book it is, you'd like to think the above areas received more attention. Still, even though his works may not get quite as much attention, you'll learn more about Richard Rodgers the man in this book. Perhaps a good complement to it would be Rodgers' biography "Musical Stages" and Hugh Fordin's biography of Oscar Hammerstein, "Getting to Know Him."

Secrest is an outstanding biographer. Once again she has brought her research skills, integrity, knowledge and compassion to the story of the life of an American musical genius. She presents a straightforward and unblinking account of a composer whose works are classics, whose productivity was astounding, and whose sadness as a person belied the upbeat and joyous tunes he bequeathed to us. I grew up with Rodgers' songs and have enjoyed many of his musicals over the years, on stage as well as in the movies. I feel grateful for the beauty he brought - and brings - into my life. I wish he had had a happier life. Secrest does a superb job in bringing the complexity of this man to the reader. Highly recommended!