Potash and Perlmutter (play)


Potash and Perlmutter is a three-act play written by Montague Glass and Charles Klein, based on earlier short stories written by Glass. Producer Albert H. Woods staged it on Broadway, where it opened at the George M. Cohan Theatre on August 16, 1913. The play is a comedy featuring the characters Abe Potash and Mawruss Perlmutter, who are business partners in the garment industry.
The play was a hit and ran for 441 performances on Broadway. A production on London's West End opened on April 14, 1914, at the Queen's Theatre. By the fall of 1914, Woods had eight road companies presenting the show on tour.
The play was adapted as a 1923 movie, also called Potash and Perlmutter. Woods produced several theatrical sequels, including Abe and Mawruss, Business Before Pleasure, , Partners Again, and Potash and Perlmutter, Detectives, all written by Glass with various co-authors.

Cast and characters

The characters and opening night cast from the Broadway production are listed below:
CharacterBroadway cast
Abe PotashBarney Bernard
Mawruss PerlmutterAlexander Carr
Marks PasinskyLee Kohlmar
Henry D. FeldmanJoseph Kilgour
Boris AndrieffAlbert Parker
Mozart RabinerLeo Donnelly
Henry SteuermanStanley Jessup
Senator SullivanEdward Gillespie
Book AgentArthur J. Pickens
SidneyRussell Pincus
ExpressmanDore Rogers
U.S. Deputy MarshalJames Cherry
U.S. Deputy MarshalMelville Hecht
Felix SchoenEdward Mortimer
Ruth SnyderLouise Dresser
Mrs. PotashElita Proctor Otis
Miss CohenGertrude Millington
Irma PotashMarguerite Anderson
Miss LevineGrace Fielding
Miss O'BrienDoris Easton
Miss PotchleyDorothy Landers
Miss NelsonMarie Baker