While this year's distribution was a virtual dead heat (A-M's
28 shows to N-Z's 27), the lower half managed 173 nominations
(54.6%) to the upper's 144 (45.4%). The awards went in a similar
distribution (N-Z: 60%; A-M: 40%) Conclusion: Start your show with a letter from either
half of the alphabet; it doesn't seem to make a difference (wheareas
last year's conclusion was "All rules go out the window
if you open your show the same season as The Producers").
There were no shows beginning with letters from the extreme
ends of the alphabet (A-B and X-Z). Conclusion: Pick an extreme if you'd like to stand alone
("hi-ho, the derry-o").
There was a three-way tie for most nominations at 7 each
for "M," "S," and "T." These three,
as you would expect, also picked up the most nominations (at
47, 35, and 58 respectively). Their average nominations per show,
however, (at 6.7, 5, and 8.3) was only middling, and their average
wins per show (at a paltry 1, .4, and 1.9) was below average. Conclusion: Joining the crowd is no guarantee of success.
The letters "I," "O," and "U"
were part of a 6-way tie for least number of shows beginning
with a particular letter, but they managed to clean up win, place,
and show in both average nominations (2nd, 1st, and 3rd, respectively)
and average wins (3rd, 1st, and 2nd). Conclusion: Pick a letter that no one else is using.
Then you have two choices if you want to make it big: 1. Revive
a show by a composer whose first and last names start with the
same letters (e.g., Richard Rodgers or Stephen Sondheim), or
2. Pick a title with an excretionary content.
Whereas last year, if we had shifted 42nd Street out
of "F" and
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