Marc Blitztein

419 Pine Street

The first stop of this Old City tour is here at the childhood home of Marc Blitzstein. The gay composer was born in Philadelphia in 1905. He showed musical talent from a young age and would study composition at the Curtis Institute of Music and briefly in Europe. As he grew older, he became involved with left-leaning music groups, where he connected with prominent composers like Aaron Copland and Leonard Bernstein. Blitzstein's early success came with his 'Triple Sec' opera in 1928.

Bltzstein was still struggling to come to terms with his sexuality at this time, and in the summer of that year, he would meet Eva Goldbeck at the MacDowell Colony, a farm in New Hampshire where artists would work in the company of their peers. The two became fast friends and enjoyed each other's company, inspiring each other in their artistic pursuits and exchanging love letters. The two would eventually marry in 1933 and settle in Greenwich Village, even after Blitzstein revealed his sexuality to her. Blitzstein would live for the rest of his life in New York. It would quickly become apparent to Goldbeck that Blitzstein had not married her for a desire for companionship but because it served his artistic ambitions. Unfortunately, Eva had always been frail and struggled with breast cancer. In 1937, sexually, artistically, and intellectually frustrated, she tragically starved herself to death at the age of 34. That same year, Blitzstein released his best-known work, 'The Cradle Will Rock,' a musical about corruption, union organizing, prostitution, and other sensitive issues in a steel town. The Works Progress Administration famously shut down the show just before its opening night on Broadway. Blitzstein, director Orson Welles, and the rest of the cast marched uptown to another theatre. With Blitzstein at a battered piano and actors singing from their seats in the audience, the show opened and became a musical theatre legend.

Marc Blitztein with 'The Craddle Will Rock' Cast.

If you run into any trouble on lyrics..., consult Marc - he's my deputy.

-Leonard Bernstein

Although it is reported that Blitzstein engaged in a good deal of casual gay sex throughout his life, he did have two long-term homosexual relationships before his death. Always attracted to masculine working-class men, Blitzstein preferred to cruise the rough trade, which, according to his nephew, 'led to incidents of theft, abuse, and violence' and ultimately his death. Blitzstein had been brutally attacked and robbed by three sailors after attempting to pick them up in a bar on the French island of Martinique. The U.S. consular officer rushed to check on Blitzstein in the hospital after the assault. Initially, Blitzstein told the officer that his injuries were the result of a car accident as he had not come out to his relatives. However, he ultimately decided to report the attack and identify his attackers, who almost went free because of the stigma attached to homosexuality at the time. Luckily, his murderers were convicted of involuntary homicide and theft.Blitzstein, tragically, died from a ruptured liver caused by the severe beating. Though his legacy has been somewhat overlooked since his untimely death in 1964, his impact on American music and theater was significant. In 1999, a feature-length film based on the events surrounding the opening night of 'The Cradle Will Rock.'

Hank Azaria as Marc Blitzstein in the 1999 feature film, Cradle Will Rock, directed by Tim Robbins. Image courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures/Photofest

Citations

'Biography.' Marc Blitzstein, March 3, 2016. https://marc-blitzstein.org/biography/.

Predota , Georg. 'Lavender Marriagemarc Blitzstein and Eva Goldbeck.' Interlude, August 29, 2022. https://interlude.hk/lavender-marriagemarc-blitzstein-and-eva-goldbeck/#.

Skiba, Bob. 'Philadelphia LGBT Mapping Project.' Google: My Maps, n.d. https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/viewer?mid=1gyv3dfHs3MS82BHisv8oyZA77Ng&ll=39.94867667550744%2C-75.1492302684218&z=19.

'The 1964 Murder of Noted Composer Marc Blitzstein in Martinique.' Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training. Accessed April 21, 2024. https://adst.org/2019/07/the-1964-murder-of-noted-composer-marc-blitzstein-in-martinique/.