Chicago Spanking Review Forum

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Patricia Morison, who was born on March 19, 1915, turns 102 years young today!

It's such a pity that no one seems to remember Patricia today. But on December 30, 1948, the raven-haired beauty opened in what would become her greatest triumph: Playing Lili Vanessi ("Kate") in the Cole Porter musical "Kiss Me, Kate."

"Kiss Me, Kate" became a major hit on Broadway, running for 1,077 performances at the New Century Theatre and then the Shubert. After Broadway, the show moved to London, where it played for another 400 performances. It is not necessary to remind you denizens of the Chicago Spanking Review that "Kiss Me, Kate" contains the most famous spanking scene in theater history. Patricia Morison surely (don't call me Shirley!) did not take the spankings in all 1,477 shows -- she was probably replaced by stand-ins for at least some of them. But she was so much the star of the show, it is inconceivable that she was replaced often. And just think of the rehearsals: In my feverish mind, I can imagine the director telling the replacement Petruchio, with Patricia Morison over his lap, to "bring a little more heat, this spanking has got to look real."

Of course, Miss Morison was the star of other Broadway shows, in particular her famous teaming with Yul Brynner in "The King and I." My own reminiscences of Miss Morison (I'm using the honorific "Miss" rather than "Ms." because Morison never married) begin with her work in the very last of the Basil Rathbone "Sherlock Holmes" mysteries, "Dressed to Kill" in 1946. With apologies to Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, Miss Morison was the very best thing in that film.

Someone on this board, probably Web-ed himself, posted a glowing tribute to Maureen O'Hara in memory of her work in "McLintock!". I humbly submit that Patricia Morison -- the very first Lili Vanessi/Kate -- is deserving of recognition here also.

Cheers,
Dan

There had been a discussion earlier about spanked actresses and their longevity. Perhaps Patricia Morison is the prime example! There is a possibility that she may just be the most spanked actress in show business, since she was the original Lili Vanessi from 1948 to 1851, doing 1077 performances (according to Wikipedia) in the show's first run... then 400 more in the London production, a TV performance, and a revival in 1965! Wow! That woman took a lot of spankings! And she's still alive at 102!

Here is a nice publicity photo I found from the 1951 London production of Kiss Me, Kate with Ms. Morison turned over co-star, Bill Johnson's knee! And here's a publicity shot to promote her television appearance as Lili Vanessi in 1959.

HI Boom,

102 . Perhaps it has to do with spanking keeping that blood flowing . Having seen these shows, I think her pissed off expression in the 1959 pic is probably more true to the character of Lili, but I much prefer the more distressed and apprehensive expression in the 1951 pic, which is more as I think it should be . BTW, I think the position of her right hand goes perfectly with that expression . Hmmmmmm, one left handed and one right handed . Thanks for posting these, Phil

Good find, b00m, and thanks for posting it! Morison was an excellent Lilli/Kate, and it's fun to think of her getting spanked something like 1500 times over the years ! Best wishes from all of us at CSR to Miss Morison on her 102nd birthday.

KMK is certainly one of the more important spankings in cinema: it was a well-known movie that was rerun regularly on TV, allowing many of us to see it. And it was the most important spanking on stage, with productions continuing to this day to the delight of spankos and no doubt the displeasure of feminists . Because there were so many other sites with KMK material, particularly Chross's, I pretty much gave up on posting it early in CSR's history. I do have some KMK items that will be posted eventually, including a snapshot of the spanking scene during an out-of-doors rehearsal in Wisconsin that I don't believe has ever been posted anywhere else.

daneldorado wrote:.
Patricia Morison, who was born on March 19, 1915, turns 102 years young today!

It's such a pity that no one seems to remember Patricia today. But on December 30, 1948, the raven-haired beauty opened in what would become her greatest triumph: Playing Lili Vanessi ("Kate") in the Cole Porter musical "Kiss Me, Kate."
...
Someone on this board, probably Web-ed himself, posted a glowing tribute to Maureen O'Hara in memory of her work in "McLintock!". I humbly submit that Patricia Morison -- the very first Lili Vanessi/Kate -- is deserving of recognition here also.

Cheers,
Dan

I agree, Dan, and B00m did also as you can see from the fact that he posted his tribute to Patricia just a few hours after you posted yours, and probably without seeing it. Because Phil O. and I saw his post first we responded to it, then by the time I got to yours I was too tired to respond or move it as I have now. I think more people will see your post here under "Miscellaneous Spanking" than they would have under "CSR Feedback" and I regret I couldn't get to this earlier.

Actress Patricia Morison who originated the role of Kate/Lilli Vanessi for Cole Porter's Kiss Me, Kate has died at the age of 103. Morison first played Kate exactly 70 years ago in 1948. Over the course of her initial appearance she was spanked by Alfred Drake or one of his substitutes 660 times [she left the show on June 3, 1950]. She also played Kate/Lilli many more times over the following decades including a national television production in 1958. Scroll up for Dan's and Hugoboom's information about Patricia Morison. A 1961 tour spent a week in Pittsburgh, PA. This photo was published on August 4, 1961

She'll be missed.