Broadway Marquees to Dim Lights in Memory of Carol Channing on Anniversary of the Original Hello, Dolly! Opening Night

The Broadway League has announced that marquee lights of Broadway theaters will be dimmed in remembrance of Tony-winning actress Carol Channing, who passed away on January 15 at age 97. The lights of every Broadway theater will dim simultaneously at exactly 7:45pm on January 16, the date which marks the anniversary of the original Hello, Dolly! opening.

"Carol Channing personified everything we love about American musical comedy: big, funny and joyous. To see her hold an audience in her thrall was a master class in star power," said Thomas Schumacher, chairman of The Broadway League. "Hello, Dolly! opened fifty-five years ago tomorrow. She always was famous for her timing."

Channing is most known for debuting the role of Dolly Gallagher Levi in the original production of Michael Stewart and Jerry Herman's Hello, Dolly! (1964). Her portrayal of the matchmaker hoping to find love for herself earned Channing a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical. Channing became iconically known for the role, later reprising her beloved turn in two revivals (1978 and 1995).

Among Channing's other credits is an iconic performance in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1949) and Tony-nominated turns in The Vamp (1955) and Lorelei (1974), a revision of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Channing earned an Academy Award nomination and a Golden Globe Award for her performance as Muzzy Van Hossmere in the film Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967).

Channing was presented with a Special Tony Award in 1968 and a Tony for Lifetime Achievement in 1995. In 1960, she was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.