George _x001c_ Chet_x001d_ Forrest (born July 31, 1915 (Brooklyn) - died Oct. 10, 1999 (Miami)and Robert Wright (born September 25, 1914 (Daytona Beach) - died Wednesday August 2, 2005 (Miami)wrote together in the longest continual partnership in the history of musical theatre. They got their start in Hollywood and were equally comfortable writing for the screen or stage. Their most famous musical is KISMET, in which they adapted the musical themes of Alexander Borodin creating a theatrical score filled with songs that became timeless hits including _x001c_ Baubles, Bangles and Beads,_x001d_ _x001c_ Stranger In Paradise,_x001d_ and _x001c_ And This Is My Beloved._x001d_ Several of their works used classical compositions adapted into song form. Their works for the stage include: SONG OF NORWAY (1944) (music adapted from Edvard Grieg), GYPSY LADY (1946) (music adapted from Victor Herbert), MAGDALENA (1948) (original music by Heitor Villa-Lobos), KISMET (1953) (music adapted from Alexander Borodin), KEAN (1961), ANYA (1965) (music adapted from Sergei Rachmaninoff), THE GREAT WALTZ (1970) (music adapted from Johann Strauss), TIMBUKTU (1978) (reworking of Kismet), GRAND HOTEL The Musical (1989).
