Marky Bey on Pearl Bailey and Cab Calloway's Hello, Dolly!

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Marky Bey is an African-American TV and film actress of the70s. She starred in Sugar Hill and had a recurring role on Starsky and Hutch. At the time of Hello, Dolly, she spelled her name withan "I”. Marky's nickname as a child was always Marky, short for Marqueeta.
She used it starting with her career in Philadelphia at 15 .She was later talked into  Marky with an "i" because it was more 'feminine'.  Later , she just said, screw it...she was 'going out' just like she 'came in'.  So she changed it back to the original spelling.
In 1967, she was working as a singing waitress at the Improvand heard about auditions for Hello, Dolly starring Cab Calloway and PearlBailey through the grapevine.She went to the auditions and got cast for thechorus and to understudy Minnie Fay. She also played Mrs. Rose. How did sheapproach the part? For weeks, Pearl Bailey had her walking in and out of herdressing room saying:”Well, well, well, look who’s here, Mrs. Levi.”
If she were given the opportunity to go back, Marky wouldnot change a thing. On the  dark nightwhen it was their company’s turn to perform for all the other Equity houses,she got great applause doing Mrs. Rose crossing that stage at the St. James Theater.Marki brought a style that was all her own, her own freshness of delivery. Shedidn’t continue to tweak her performance after the show opened. Marky’s thoughts on Pearl Bailey are that she was an artist,a DIVA, a master of comic timing, a teacher, a “second mother” as she signedher book to Marky.
There was never a time when she did not own the stage shewas on. Marky fell in love watching Dolly/Pearl’s entrance down thestairs into the Harmonia Gardens each show for the title number and the eatingscene with Horace that followed it.
For most in this company, they were in their early twentiesand it was their first encounter with “Celebrity Royalty.” There were ups anddowns for some, Marki included.
Initially when Marky was cast, she was intimidated at thethought of playing opposite a star of Pearl Bailey’s magnitude. It was the “celebrityroyalty” thing. 
After playing Minnie Fay in one of the National Companies andreplacing Chris Calloway as understudy in their Broadway company, Marky learnedto trust herself and stand tall on her legs of confidence. Marky does place Hello, Dolly in her top five list of hercareer. She places that along the revival of Lost In The Stars with Brock Peters at The Imperial Theater. Thatwas the show where she met and is still married to the love of her life, Don If she could go back with the knowledge she has now, she WOULDN”TWALK IN AND OUT OF PEARL BAILEY’S DRESSING ROOM DOOR SO MANY TIMES!!!!! (Smile) 

A younger Pearl Bailey

In actuality, she wouldn’t do anything differently.  Being in Hello, Dolly pivoted Marki towards feature filmsand episodic television. The one thing that she learned with her involvementwith doing Dolly that she has carried forward with her since then isconfidence. This production of Hello,Dolly was unique. They were the FIRST all black company of Hello, Dolly! Not only did they reachthe inquisitive white theater going community, but now the black communitybecame even more engaged. Their company consisted of a bouquet of blackperformers, Pearl Bailey used to refer to this as her flower garden, from thevery light in skin color to the very brown. They were MARVELOUS!!!!!
Marky’s worst experience with the show happened oneperformance as the scenery was coming in for Put On Your Sunday Clothes. The scenery “grabbed” her hat and knocked it off. Her hair was in pinclips and small pink curlers, and she was headed for the downstage front row ofthe number! She faked a faint before making the turn and they got her off stageso as not to interfere with the number! They took her to Pearl Bailey’sdressing room and gave her “poppers” (for her heart!). It was one of her mostmemorable acting moments! It was not uncommon for Marky to have terribleexperiences during a performance of Dolly. Minnie Fay’s Harmonia Gardens hat,for example. It was a large pink question mark shaped feather atop the hat.Marky was seated and bent over to put it on during intermission, and the wireat the top of the feather went in the inside of her upper thigh inches awayfrom, well, just use your imagination…She couldn’t get it out, and they hadonly five minutes before curtain. It was their beloved stage manager, FrankDudley, who performed the ultimate extraction. And the show went on…Marky also saw Carol Channing play Dolly. One would thinkshe could never be replaced. She never was… She really OWNED Dolly. Marky saw her again many yearslater in Pasadena when lines were forgotten, but if Marky had not been in theshow she would never have known…overwhelmingly supported by the audience withrounds of applause initiated by her biggest fan and loving husband, CharlesLowe.
The only “tailoring” that Pearl Bailey made to the scriptwas the eating scene between her and Cab Calloway. It was a priceless piece ofcomic art, especially with the “sopping of her plate and his.” It brought thehouse down every performance. It has been written about many times here, PearlBailey’s “third act.” In hindsight, Marky is sure the cast members would haveappreciated it more if they hadn’t  hadto stand there for  an additional 20minutes in those ever so heavy costumes! But they did, and as always, it was alesson in how to get an audience to love them even more…Pearl Bailey gave themthe extra 10% more after giving them the first 100%. It never failed. Even whenshe had to wear “slippers” (pink) all through one show because of shots in oneof her feet she needed. OR, the night she had to have drops put in her eyes anddid the entire performance in dark glasses. The famous 3^rd Actalways went on. The only exception was the night Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wasassassinated. Fans loved it and came back again and again knowing they would befurther entertained after the show was over with Pearl Bailey doing a tap dancearound the passarelle with Cab Calloway singing Won’t You Come Home, Bill Bailey?
Lucia Victor, of course, directed this production and itcouldn’t get any better than that. Marky only met Jerry Herman once. He gaveher a charm bracelet which she still cherishes to this day. The first time sheheard the entire score was at the first rehearsal and she was instantlysmitten. There is no way that the title number can’t work. It is the entrance ofall time…in RED…not to mention music by Herman. There Cornelius Hackl was JackCrowder who later changed his name to Thalmus Rassulala, He had an incrediblevoice and stage presence. Thalmus Rasulala (November 15, 1939 – October 9,1991) was an African American actor who starred in Blaxploitation films. Healso was an original cast member of ABC's soap opera One Life to Live from its inception in 1968 until he left the showin 1970. Their Barnaby Tucker was Winston Dewit Hemsley.  He was a fabulous dancer. There were no peptalks needed from Lucia. They were so high energy all the time. She knew at thefirst rehearsal this was going to be a great Dolly! Marky loved their stage manager, Frank Dudley. At one time,he was married to Lucia Victor prior to Dolly in 1963. They were now divorcedbut continued to work together.
When they closed on Christmas Eve 1969, they were even moremagnificent than when they opened on October 11^th, 1967 at TheNational Theater in Washington, DC.
Marky Bey (now Fenwick) says she can do Hello, Dolly for therest of her life. This show is such a part of her life’s history as a young adultthat she treasures and holds close to her heart…and she can’t imagine anyfemale in any company of Dolly not desiring to grow up and play the role ofDolly Gallagher Levi! Marky Bey has earned the right.    Beginningin 1984 with a MagicCruise to Alaska, Don and Marky Fenwick have been producing"common interest", or themed cruises for over 25 years.   Utilizing their skills as entertainers andorganizers, the Fenwicks produce four or five various cruise/conventions eachyear, including a StampCruise (with the American Philatelic Society), MiniCruise(for miniaturists), and Murder Mystery.

Marky and Don Fenwick

Don writes all their Murder Mysteries, and Marky utilizesher many talents in creating  the cluesused by the detectives of the Mystery Cruises. Check out their website.   
   
Thank you Marky Bey Fenwick for the gifts you have given to the world and continue to give!


With grateful XOXOXs ,

Check out my site celebrating my forthcoming book on Hello, Dolly!
I want this to be a definitive account of Hello, Dolly!  
 If any of you reading this have appeared in any production of Dolly, I'm interested in speaking with you!

Do you have any pics to share?

If you have anything to add or share, please contact me at Richard@RichardSkipper.com.

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TILL TOMORROW...HERE'S TO AN ARTS FILLED DAYRichard Skipper, Richard@RichardSkipper.com                              
This Blog is dedicated to ALL THE DOLLYS and ANYONE who has EVER had a connection with ANY of them on ANY Level!