Trivia / Really Rosie

• Actor-Shared Background: Upon meeting Carole King, Sendak remarked to her that she sounded like a Jew from Brooklyn, to which King said, "Well, I am a Jew from Brooklyn". While the Brooklyn part is confirmed, the Jewishness is only implied, especially in the stage adaptation when Kathy insists they already did her life story movie, which culminated in her and her lover jumping off the Brooklyn Jewish Hospital. Also, Chicken Soup with Rice is known to be a Jewish cure for whatever ails you.
• Cut Song: Side 2 of the soundtrack album consists of songs that weren't in the animated special. In order, they are "Avenue P" (where Rosie imagines Avenue P as a set for a King Kong-style movie), "My Simple Humble Neighborhood" (where Rosie reminisces about her childhood on her depressingly normal street), "The Awful Truth" (where Rosie fantasizes about playing Dracula), and "Such Sufferin'" (Rosie's "I Want" Song). The songs, with the exception of "Such Suffering", were later implemented into the stage adaptation.
• Dawson Casting: Carole King, who at the time was 33, plays Rosie, a pre-teen girl.
• Keep Circulating the Tapes: It was released on VHS twice, once as a "Children's Circle" title and once through Paramount. After that, it was never released on DVD, except for segments that appear on the Scholastic title Where the Wild Things Are and Other Stories (originally released as the "Children's Circle" title The Maurice Sendak Library), which had its sound replaced with the versions heard on the album (with Pierre's vocals replaced by King and one of her backup singers). It's not even available on demand. It has shown up quite a few times on YouTube though.
• The Other Marty: In the original off-Broadway cast, a 12-year-old unknown named Tisha Campbell (who would later be known as Tisha Campbell-Martin) created the role, but had to bow out in the middle of the run and was replaced by her understudy, Angela Coin. Coin also sang the role on the cast album.
• Referenced by...: The opening lyrics of the song "Really Rosie" are regularly referenced in Stephen King’s Rose Madder.
• Unspecified Role Credit: The voice actors for Johnny, Kathy, Alligator, and Pierre are all listed under "Nutshell Kids" in the credits.

---