SKU: 67005936838

Finishing the Hat: Collected Lyrics (1954-1981) with Attendant Comments, Principles, Heresies, Grudges, Whines and Anecdotes

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Finishing the Hat: Collected Lyrics (1954-1981) with Attendant Comments, Principles, Heresies, Grudges, Whines and AnecdotesStephen Sondheim has won seven Tonys, an Academy Award, seven Grammys, a Pulitzer Prize and the Kennedy Center Honors. His career has spanned more than half a century, his lyrics have become synonymous with musical theater and popular culture, and in Finishing the Hat titled after perhaps his most autobiographical song, from Sunday in the Park with George Sondheim has not only collected his lyrics for the first time, he is giving readers a rare

Stephen Sondheim has won seven Tonys, an Academy Award, seven Grammys, a Pulitzer Prize and the Kennedy Center Honors. His career has spanned more than half a century, his lyrics have become synonymous with musical theater and popular culture, and in Finishing the Hat--titled after perhaps his most autobiographical song, from Sunday in the Park with George--Sondheim has not only collected his lyrics for the first time, he is giving readers a rare personal look into his life as well as his remarkable productions.

Along with the lyrics for all of his musicals from 1954 to 1981--including West Side Story, Company, Follies, A Little Night Music and Sweeney Todd--Sondheim treats us to never-before-published songs from each show, songs that were cut or discarded before seeing the light of day. He discusses his relationship with his mentor, Oscar Hammerstein II, and his collaborations with extraordinary talents such as Leonard Bernstein, Arthur Laurents, Ethel Merman, Richard Rodgers, Angela Lansbury, Harold Prince and a panoply of others. The anecdotes--filled with history, pointed observations and intimate details--transport us back to a time when theater was a major pillar of American culture. Best of all, Sondheim appraises his work and dissects his lyrics, as well as those of others, offering unparalleled insights into songwriting that will be studied by fans and aspiring songwriters for years to come.

Accompanying Sondheim's sparkling writing are behind-the-scenes photographs from each production, along with handwritten music and lyrics from the songwriter's personal collection.

Penetrating and surprising, poignant, funny and sometimes provocative, Finishing the Hat is not only an informative look at the art and craft of lyric writing, it is a history of the theater that belongs on the same literary shelf as Moss Hart's Act One and Arthur Miller's Timebends. It is also a book that will leave you humming the final bars of Merrily We Roll Along, while eagerly anticipating the next volume, which begins with the opening lines of Sunday in the Park with George.

Binding Type: Hardcover
Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group
Published: 10/26/2010
ISBN: 9780679439073
Pages: 445
Weight: 3.22lbs
Size: 11.10h x 8.44w x 1.11d

Review Citations: New York Times Book Review 10/31/2010 pg. 1
Entertainment Weekly 11/19/2010 pg. 103
New York Times Book Review 11/07/2010 pg. 42
NY Times Notable Bks of Year 12/05/2010 pg. 30
Entertainment Weekly 12/17/2010 pg. 82
New York Times Book Review 12/12/2010 pg. 10
Books & Culture 01/01/2012 pg. 25
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SKU: 67005936838

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Jessica Burdett
New York, US
★★★★★ 5
Best socks!
Size: Medium, Color: Blue
I love these socks! They last for years and they fit so nicely on my feet. I love that I can wear the in tennis shoes or wool boots and they never move!
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Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2025
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john jeffrey elliott
Fort Morgan, US
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TOO SMALL
Size: Medium, Color: Blue
Nice socks, but they are way too small. Says they fit size 6 - 10. I kept 3 ( I wear size 8) and gave 3 to my daughter (size 8.5). We both agreed that they were just too small.
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Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2026
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Mar Gee
Dallas, US
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Style and comfort
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Exactly what I was looking for. Style and sock thickness and comfort.
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Reviewed in the United States on December 14, 2025
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Amazon Customer
Fort Morgan, US
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So comfortable! They stay up perfectly love love love
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Reviewed in the United States on December 7, 2025
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Will
Los Angeles, US
★★★★★ 5
Excellent all-poly athletic socks for general lifting and HIIT.
Size: Medium, Color: Black/White/Grey
***These are NOT “low” -cut socks as the description in the title states. These are actually “quarter”-cut socks as clearly visible in the picture of the sock itself. “Low” -cut socks are shorter than this height but still visible with a shoe. Also, on the actual UA package of these socks, it clearly states these are QUARTER cut socks. My review: Gave these UA Performance Tech socks (UAPT) 5 stars since they’re very good but in all reality not the best socks I’ve ever had for lifting and HIIT workouts. That title goes to Nike Dri-Fit MAX socks (DFM)….but these socks are really good. Like Nike’s DFM’s, these UAPT socks come in sizes, halleluah (M, L, and XL). The idea that most athletic sock are sized 6-12 and should therefore fit everyone perfectly is absolutely ridiculous. Your shoes come in whole and half sizes…so socks should at the very least be sized like these UAPT’s and Nike DFM’s…in S/M/L or in this case, M/L/XL. I wear a men’s size 8 shoe and the M (medium) size in these socks was a perfect fit; true to size. Also, UAPT socks are ALL polyester with Spandex which is ideal and 100% that which you want for athletic socks: wicking with stretch. Cotton socks are the absolute worst thing you could wear to the gym since they’re sponges for sweat and therefore get wet and heavy, cause blisters, tend to stink, stick to skin, etc… IF you prefer cotton socks for athletics, then you don’t understand how performance fabrics work in athletics and training. You do NOT want cotton in your athletic apparel. You want your fabrics that wick sweat away; NOT soak up sweat and hold onto it. Also, the flexibility and stretch of the foot and ankle parts of the sock were both just right. Snug but not too tight. Wicking is perfect, too. Already worn during two 3 1/2 hour workouts and my feet stayed as dry as a desert. When looking for UA athletic socks on Amazon, I surprisingly continued to find UA “athletic” socks made with mostly cotton which completely surprised me because a serious athletic company should produce an abundance of performance-level socks… i.e. all-poly socks. Thank goodness I finally came across these UA all-poly Performance Techs. The only drawback to these UAPT’s…and it’s a minor drawback…is that unlike Nike DFM’s, these do not come in L & R (left and rights) to specifically match the individual foot shape. Nike DFM socks come in L and R which sets them apart from all other athletic socks…and yet I don’t like supporting a massive monopolistic athletic apparel company like Nike, but they’re the only one that makes THE best athletic sock. Nonetheless, these UAPT’s are perfect workout/HIIT/lifting socks for the bundle value price of six pair and three colors. If you’re looking to match your new UA or Rock shoes with the appropriate UA athletic sock, then here you go. I chose the black/white/gray mix bundle since I have new pairs of a black and a white version of the same UA-Rock shoe. These UAPT socks are medium thickness so they didn’t take up an exorbitant amount of room in my shoes but they’re thick enough to prevent blisters and provide cushion. Overall they’re very comfortable, hold a good stretch, hold their shape, and seem to be durable but only time will tell. And since we’re on the black and white sock subject, I couldn’t resist: I read a shoe review about someone angered that his new UA/Rock black shoes (obviously bought for casual wear in lieu of gym use) staining his white cotton socks. First of all, never ever wear white socks (much less cotton white socks) with black athletic shoes! The possibility of staining is always there and the appearance just doesn’t work. However, you can get away with black socks with white shoes in some cases…but never white socks with black shoes. Why? Who knows? It’s just one of those unwritten rules of the gym. And no, I didn’t make the rules…so don’t blame the messenger. LOL!
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Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2025

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