But Levant would become most famous for the music of Gershwin and for his wit, musical flexibility and memory, rather than the classical repertoire he was perfecting with Schoenberg.

In order to understand the life of Oscar Levant, you have to get past the legacy of George Gershwin. Levant was a composer, pianist and author, also a talk show host and legendary quipster.

Oscar Levant was a popular guest on TV talk shows because he reeled off one-liners with ease. ... After Gershwin’s death at age 38, Levant was often called upon to perform his still very popular ...

So they should find playwright Doug Wright’s compacted look at Levant, Good Night, Oscar, now onstage at the Asolo ... George Gershwin, Oscar is a mess—but one who can still make audiences ...

His hands noodle out a few bars from Gershwin’s Concerto in F; then the man in the crumpled suit says: “This is Oscar Levant speaking. It’s an identification that I have to make because I ...

Oscar Levant was a musical virtuoso, more famous for playing his friend George Gershwin's songs than his own. He began his rise to fame in the 1930s; building his credits on radio, TV, and in ...

Those who knew George Gershwin and the Gershwin saga may wax slightly vociferous at this or that miscue, ... Oscar Levant as Oscar Levant can’t miss, and he doesn’t here.

“I didn’t realize that the story was made up by Hollywood, but the music was so good and it had a lot of people who worked with Gershwin – Al Jolson, Oscar Levant, the cast of ‘Porgy and ...