onn Arden, “Sure it’s overproduced. That’s my trademark. I like to give you everything, then throw it away. That jet? That’s just a two-minute toy."

The jet may be a two-minute toy but it is probably the most recognized piece on Hello Hollywood, Hello. The original plan called for either a 707 or a DC-10 to be “flown” onto the stage at the Zeigfeld Theater. Both proved impossibly large so Arden compromised and had a stage-size version made, taking features from both.

The sets were designed by Ray Klausen and Brian Bartholomew. The pieces were constructed off location, primarily in Las Vegas and Los Angeles. They were then re-assembled in Reno. It was a large operation with carpenters and assistants hired for weeks of assembly work. Some like Lou Allard were hired to be part of the show’s cadre of stagehands.

Lou Allard, “I was working for a radio station, I heard there was an opening so I came in — got a job in the morning — went and quit my job — went and got my tools and came here and went to work for the next 18 hours. Just putting bolts together on the earthquake set underneath — crawling underneath the set holding the bolt while somebody above me put the screw in. We just went 1 to 1. It was almost a weeks worth of work just doing that.”

The San Francisco earthquake struck the Grand nightly. The skyline was created out of boards and hinges, and to the accompaniment of fireworks, smoke and plenty of screams from the cast, the skyline trembled and fell — simulating the earthquake of 1906.

Also figuring prominently in the opening scene was a Donn Arden staple, the grand staircase, where Michael Eardley descended night after night, crooning love songs to the elaborately coifed and dressed showgirls.

Another Hello Hollywood, Hello great is the “Living Curtain,” a wall, laden with showgirls, which descends during the “Space” scene. While living curtains have been used in other productions, the one in Hello Hollywood, Hello is noteworthy because of its size. Dancers loved it.

Debbie Kladney, “This living curtain it was like, you could live on it, it was huge. It had depth, so you didn’t feel like you were going to fall off.”