Brother Rat

Brother Rat (1936), a comedy by John Monks Jr and Fred Finklehoffe. [Biltmore Theatre, 575 perf.] Although Bing Edwards ( Eddie Albert) is his military school's star pitcher, he is not certain that he will win the school's $200 award as its best athlete. He needs the money since he is, against school rules, secretly married. The day before the big game, he learns his wife is pregnant. The news unnerves him and the well‐meaning help offered by his friends, Billy ( Frank Albertson) and Dan ( José Ferrer), only makes matters worse. He loses the game but discovers he has won $300 as the first father in the class. A typical example of the high school and collegiate comedies that remained popular from the turn of the century until World War II, the play enjoyed producer‐director George Abbott's fast‐paced direction and excellent performances by then unknown youngsters. Fred FINKLEHOFFE (1910–77), who was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, later produced a number of Broadway shows, including The Heiress (1947), Affairs of State (1950), and Ankles Aweigh (1955).