The most popular play that ever ran in Manhattan was Abie's Irish Rose, which closed with its 2,400th performance on the night of Oct. 22, 1927. No one ever learned what glib compelling secret Anne Nichols had put into her play to make so many people want to see it. She herself has not been able to repeat its success; imitators have been unable, in story, play or cinema to duplicate its homely attractions.
One cinema, The Cohens and Kellys, which dealt with the same situation (Irish-Hebrew romance), achieved some box-office attention. Accordingly, last...
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