the last of the red hot lovers
James Coco and Doris Roberts in the original Broadway production
The Last of the Red Hot Lovers is a play by Neil Simon.
At the comedy's core is Barney Cashman, a middle-aged, married nebbish who wants to join the sexual revolution before it's too late. A gentle soul with no experience in adultery, he fails in each of three seductions - a sexpot who likes cigarettes, whiskey, and other women's husbands, an actress friend who he discovers is madder than a hatter, and his wife's best friend, a staunch moralist.
After six previews, the Broadway production, directed by Robert Moore, opened on December 28, 1969 at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre, where it ran for 706 performances. The original cast included James Coco, Linda Lavin, Doris Roberts, and Marcia Rodd. Later in the run, Dom DeLuise replaced Coco and Cathryn Damon and then Rita Moreno replaced Lavin. The play, Coco, Lavin, and Moore all were nominated for Tony Awards.
Simon adapted his play for a 1972 film directed by Gene Saks. The cast included Alan Arkin, Sally Kellerman, Paula Prentiss, and Renée Taylor.
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