Professor shoots for the stars
Helitzer hopes play runs all the way to Broadway
By Amy Maggart

Rick Fatica Mel Helitzer

Ohio University journalism Professor Mel Helitzer is taking a shot at Broadway with a musical about Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis' little-known relationship with her father.

After fine tuning the script for more than a year, Helitzer presented "Oh, Jackie!" to an audience of alumni and friends at Cincinnati's Aronoff Center in late February. He is negotiating summer and fall performances in theaters in Toronto, Cleveland, Philadelphia and up and down the West Coast.

"Oh, Jackie!" focuses on the powerful bond between Jackie Kennedy and her father, Jack "Black Jack" Bouvier. As the story unfolds, Bouvier's controversial reputation as an alcoholic, womanizer, bigot and gambler is softened by the portrayal of a loving, adoring parent who shaped the life of his famous daughter even after his death.

"While there have been more than 20 books written about Jackie, the real story of her relationship with her father, the most powerful influence in her life, has never been fully developed by her biographers," Helitzer says. "He was the mentor who inspired Jackie's interest in style, culture, men and material rewards. He always planned for her to become the most admired and popular woman in the world."

The musical clearly reflects Helitzer's belief that the bond between father and daughter lasts a lifetime. This notion, and his own opportunity to meet Jackie Kennedy more than 40 years ago, inspired Helitzer to write the script, he says.

"I hope people will watch the play and take with them the importance of father-daughter relationships," says Helitzer, who has two daughters of his own.

Helitzer hopes to capture the attention of Broadway as he stages the musical in various cities across the country. It will be a long journey, he says, equating the road to Broadway to winning an NCAA basketball championship: "You have to win at every level to go on, and when you lose, you're out of the game."

School of Music Director Roger Stephens, who played the role of Bouvier in the Cincinnati showing, thinks the musical has Broadway potential.

"I think the play can really be a first-rate show," Stephens says. "It's an exciting venture because it's hard to get a new musical produced anywhere."

In December 1998, two readings of the play were conducted at Ohio University. After each performance, audience members gave Helitzer suggestions for improving the script. He says he appreciates how the campus community helped him create the musical.

"The support I've received from Ohio University and the Athens community has been unbelievable," he says.

Amy Maggart, BSJ '00, is a student writer for the Ohio University Alumni Association.