THE STORY: David Cole, after five years of retirement, returns to produce King Lear, his last affirmation of human dignity in a musical-comedy world he no longer understands. The busboy, Hymie, who has hoarded his tips and is the local angel for plays, is reluctant to finance Cole, whose previous Shakespearean ventures have all been flops. But Cole induces Hymie to finance his modern King Lear. But a brisk Hollywood agent flashes a big movie contract before the young actor who is to star in the revival. The young man has felt frustrated in the expiring Jewish Theater. His sweetheart, Cole’s daughter, agrees that he must make the break and move on. So does her mother, a noted Jewish actress. The opening night arrives, and the Hollywood agent turns up just before the curtain rises, waving a huge offer. The young actor turns it down. But Cole suddenly sees that he is fighting history and himself assumes the beard and the robes of the tragic King.
It is a tender, humorous portrait of actor, playwright, waiter, bus-boy, card player and, above all, the eminent Shakespearean actor, David Cole.
