Bell was bemused by Logano’s frustration.

“He was tearing up and he put his hand on mine,” she recalled. “And he leaned in to me and very quietly said, ‘That was you. That used to be you.’ And I thought I would die. I thought my heart would drop out of my shoes.”She added: “He’s so gorgeously generous and kind. He has always been that way.”

His Broadway career began in 1960 with “Bye Bye Birdie,” which Strouse wrote with lyricist Lee Adams and librettist Michael Stewart. “Birdie,” which starred Dick Van Dyke and Chita Rivera, told the tale of an Elvis Presley-like crooner named Conrad Birdie being drafted into the Army and its effect on one small Ohio town.Strouse not only wrote the music, but he played piano at auditions while Edward Padula, the show’s neophyte producer, tried to attract financial backers for a production that would cost $185,000.“We never stopped giving auditions — and people never gave money at all. The idea of using rock ‘n’ roll — everybody was so turned off,” Strouse said.

Finally, Padula found Texas oilman L. Slade Brown. When he heard the score, he said, in a Texas twang, “I like those songs,” pushed Strouse aside and picked out the tune of “Put on a Happy Face” on the piano.Brown then said, “How much do you fellas need?” and wrote out a check for $75,000 to cover the start of rehearsals. “Suddenly, the world turned Technicolor,” Strouse remembered.

The popularity of “Birdie” spawned a film (with Van Dyke, Janet Leigh and Ann-Margret) in 1963 and a television adaptation with Jason Alexander and Vanessa Williams in 1995.

Strouse and Adams gave several non-musical theater stars, including Sammy Davis Jr. and Lauren Bacall, stage successes.premiering Thursday. The six-episode show follows settlers during the westward expansion and stars Taylor Kitsch and Betty Gilpin. Like the “Yellowstone” prequel

this new series depicts how the fight for land in the American west was a violent one.— Noah Wyle returns to where we first met him — in the emergency room — for his new series

Instead of playing a green intern, Wyle’s character Dr. Michael “Robby” Robinavitch is an experienced doctor at a fictional Pittsburgh hospital. Each episode follows one hour of Dr. Robby’s 15-hour shift. John Wells, who was the showrunner of “ER” is an executive producer. Writer Michael Crichton wrote the pilot script for “ER” and his estate — led by his widow Sherri Crichton —Warner Bros. Television, calling “The Pitt” an unauthorized rebranded version of “ER.” “The Pitt” debuts Thursday on Max.