From Great Flop to Great Gatsby: The Surreal Story of “The Vegetable”



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In 1923, F. Scott Fitzgerald was drowning. His quest to fulfill his lifelong dream of becoming a playwright wasn’t panning out quite as expected. If things didn’t turn around quick, he’d have to pawn the furniture.

This the story of alcohol, ambition, decadence and despair. This is the story of The Vegetable.

Works Cited: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wA-OJiEKEVFOgbLnnxFs55Qu3TEY8a3kAURKWkod0Vg/edit?usp=sharing

Special thanks to Charles Scribner III, James West, Jackson Bryer, Mark Taylor, and Anne Margaret Daniel for sharing their Fitzgerald expertise; and to Kait Kerrigan and Katharine Quinn for valuable conversations on Gatsby today. Endless thanks to the Princeton University Archives and University of South Carolina Archives, for use of their amazing collections.
Many thanks to Kat Beaufort and Ann Liles Cox for editorial input.

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Ainsley Rosenstiel
Alice
Amy Elizabeth Reinhart
Ann
Ann Marie Wilson
Anon!
Ayinde
Blythe Lavender
Brent Black
Cindy Lindsay
Danniella
Deena Abdullat
Devra Gatling
Ethan
Frances McGinn
Holly T
jack walk
Katie McGuire
Kelseigh Ingram
Lawren Kinsey
Lucia Figueras
Marisa
Megan McCasland
MindlessNonsense
Orange
Phil Edwards
Rachel Goodman
Savannah Cash
stephen seale
Taekook
The Dirty Bubble
Timothy Murray
Tom Norris
Toryana Frazier

0:00 Intro
2:01 A Play To Make My Fortune
7:23 The Second Act’s Kinda Weird
11:51 A Continuous Party
15:15 Miscellaneous Pleasures
17:53 The Actor’s Struggled On
20:48 Not So Great

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23 thoughts on “From Great Flop to Great Gatsby: The Surreal Story of “The Vegetable””

  1. Julianna might’ve been too nervous to narrate, but I want to make sure everyone knows this script is all her.

    For nearly half a year she’s been interviewing scholars, digging through archives, and walking 12 miles in Long Island just to finally tell this untold story.

    I’m so proud of her and this video and I hope you enjoy it 🙂

    Reply
  2. Wait in the Wings with the Benjamin Mezzara HSMTMTS shirt!

    I had heard of this show, but I was a Fitzgerald kid in high school. Zelda’s life is such a tragedy from start to finish and is worth looking at further

    Reply
  3. Who over conceived this or was the impetus for this video deserves all the praise! Thank you for highlighting something a theater and English nerd like me had never heard of! I don’t know how much engagement you get on videos like this but I appreciate the hell out of it!❤👍🏾

    Reply
  4. Your theatre documentaries are always so interesting, and while I’m not a big fan of theatre I come back these just to listen. Something I’d think would be interesting to see you cover if the play Moose Murders, which is a legendary flop among musicals and only ran for a single performance

    Reply
  5. I just figured out who Fitzgerald looks like. If you put aside the hair cut and look only at his face (especially when smiling), young Fitzgerald reminds me of young Jake Gyllenhalle.

    Reply

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