Hazel, Saucy Maid of Cartoon and TV Fame, to Get Her Own Musical

Hazel, the plain-spoken maid created by cartoonist Ted Key and made famous by Shirley Booth in a popular 1960s sitcom, will be the subject of a new musical. Composer Ron Abel and lyricist Chuck Steffan have acquired the rights to the character from the estate of Key, who created Hazel in a strip that ran in the Saturday Evening Post from 1943 to 1969. The musical Hazel is aiming for production in 2011, with Broadway the ultimate goal.

Lissa Levin, a 1998 Edward Kleban Award winner for the book of the musical Twist of Fate and writer for sitcoms such as Mad About You and A Different World, will write the script for Hazel. She joins Abel, a veteran music director and producer, and his writing partner Steffan, who are collaborating on several tuners and had been seeking the rights to the character of Hazel for several years.

Hazel is a wise and wisecracking housekeeper who keeps life moving along in the Baxter household. Three-time Tony winner Booth found new fame in the title role of the TV adaptation, which ran from 1961 to 1966. “We’re thrilled to see Hazel finally coming to Broadway; it’s something my father always dreamed of,” Peter Key, the son of  Ted Key and representative of the artist’s estate, said in a statement. The musical will be written as a period piece, according to a news release. No casting has been set.