In 1993, the televised version of “Tru” (PBS) won Morse an Emmy for best actor in a miniseries or special. “But there’s a desperate side of Capote, too, and Morse rises to the pain.” “His Capote is wickedly funny, a sly imp ready to deliver an off-color joke about the Queen Mum, zing Robert Goulet or rhapsodize about the time he tap-danced for Louis Armstrong.,” Associated Press drama critic Michael Kuchwara wrote in his review. “Tru,” a one-man show based on Capote’s writings, revived Morse’s stage career in 1989. He was back on Broadway in 1972 - and picked up another Tony nomination - for “Sugar,” producer David Merrick’s musical version of “Some Like It Hot.” Morse starred as Jerry, the part played by Jack Lemmon in the Billy Wilder comedy about two male musicians who disguise themselves as women to get away from murderous gangsters. Morse was back, as was Vallee.īut Morse’s film career largely failed to take off. The 1967 film version of “How To Succeed” dropped some songs but otherwise kept close to the stage original. “As played with unfaltering bravura and wit by Robert Morse, he is a rumpled, dimpled angel with a streak of Lucifer.” “Imagine a collaboration between Horatio Alger and Machiavelli and you have Finch, the intrepid hero of this sortie into the canyons of commerce,” The New York Times wrote. The musical’s song titles suggest the button-down, pre-feminist business world: “The Company Way,” a theme song for yes-men “A Secretary Is Not a Toy,” a song that winks at office dalliance “Coffee Break,” a tribute to caffeine and the hymn Finch sings to himself: “I Believe in You.” Finch toadies up to the aging boss, played by 1920s crooner Rudy Vallee, by joining in the old man’s college fight song, “Grand Old Ivy.” Pierrepont Finch was a master of corporate backstabbing - with a toothy grin - as he went from Manhattan window washer to titan at the World Wide Wicket company with the help of a little “how-to” paperback on office politics. The show won both the Pulitzer Prize and the Tony for best musical and ran for more than three years. Morse was already well-established on Broadway, with two Tony nominations to his credit, when he became nationally famous at age 30 as the star of Abe Burrows and Frank Loesser’s smash 1961 Broadway satire of corporate life, “How to Succeed.”. Jason Alexander tweeted: "His work was infused with joy and it was joyous to be with him." “He radiated a wicked joy it was impossible to watch him without instantly sharing his giddy delight,” wrote playwright Paul Rudnick. The role of Bert Cooper earned him five Emmy nominations as best guest actor in a drama series. More recently, he played the autocratic and eccentric leader of an advertising agency in “Mad Men,” AMC’s hit drama that debuted in 2007.
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