William Inges Come Back Little Sheba

Come Back Little Sheba is a play written by American playwright William Inge, (he wrote the play in those days when he was a teacher at Washington University in St. Louis 1946-1949). The play was written in 1950 and was presented by The Theater Guild and directed by Daniel Mann. It was premiered at the Booth Theater (15th Feb 1950) and it hitted 190 performances. Sheba is the lost Dog in the play who do not appear on stage.

Come Back Little Sheba is about a couple who used to live in a dreary house in the Midwest, diverted from Maudlin. The husband is a alcoholic brat (Philip Bosco) and his wife (Shirley Knight). The play is slightly a plot sort of but it is flavoured with a musky atmosphere. The marriage of the couple was just for the sake where there is no love. One day a young girl who (Mia Dillion) was a college student came over as a paying guest. The wife treated her as her daughter she use to see in the girl her lot daughter who died 20 years ago. But in the last we see that the marriage of the couple gets wrecked due to the girl.

The title Come Back Little Sheba I about the wife who call for the lost dog Sheba who will not come back behind this calling was on truth- the truth that the lady was growing older and older and her young age will never come back. Her husband had lust for the young girl and fantasizes about the girl as a young virgin which perhaps her wife was not. This is what made the wifes life painful and she behaves kittenishly even with the milk man. The young girl get love and leaves them.

In Come Back Little Sheba, Inge has portrayed the sexual frustration of middle age, the truth of genuine life. Inge does not transform his characters rather they end where they began, but the characters were well understood. Sindey Blackmer and Shirley Knight both were awarded for their performance.

In 1952 the play Come Back Little Sheba was adapted in form of a movie, casting Shirley Booth (Lola Delancy), Burt Lancaster (alcoholic Doctor Delancy), Terry Moore- Marie Buckholder, Richard jaeckel (Turk fisher), Philip Ober (ED Anderson), Edwin Max (Emlo Huston), Lisa Golm (Mrs. Coffman), Walter Kelley (Bruce). The running time of the movie was 99/96mins (TMC Print) in English. It was a black and white movie by Paramount Pictures, directed by Daniel Mann. Shirely booth won the Academy Award for Best Actress. Terry Moore was nominated for Best actress in Supporting Role. The Movie was also nominated for best editing.

In 1974 Come Back Little Sheba was adapted into a Mucical, by Clint Ballard Jr. (music) and Lee Gola Smith (book and lyrics). In1977, there was a T.V. show by the name Come Back Little Sebha starring Laurence Oliver, Joanne Woodward and Carrie Fisher. It was directed by Silvio Narizzano.Wikipedia