Arena

Episode 322: Broadway - The Great White Way

January 22, 1988

Broadway is one of the most famous streets in the world. Legendary for bright lights, musical comedy, and the dreams of stardom, the myths and cliches of the theatre have influenced every mile of this great thoroughfare. From immigrants in sweatshops to yuppy speculators in chic apartments, Broadway symbolises a state of mind, a way of looking at life; it's the road to success. Following an old Indian trail, it runs 146 miles from the financial jungles of Wall Street, past the theatres and sleaze of Times Square and into rural upstate New York. Arena travels the length of Broadway and talks to songwriter Jerry Leiber, 100-year-old George 'Mr Broadway' Abbott, beat poet Allen Ginsberg, Indian chief Lone Bear, Lena Horne, Ben E. King and Rip Van Winkle. They explore the legends of the Great White Way.