Afternoon:
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Rodgers’ catalogue going for £113m song
03.09.08
Rodgers & Hammerstein's back catalogue of music and shows, including The Sound of Music and Annie Get Your Gun, are up for sale with a likely price tag of at least $200 million (£112.8 million).
The catalogue includes more than 3,000 songs; not just from the original composers but another 100 writers including Irving Berlin and TS Eliot.
Potential buyers range from rival music publishers EMI and Sony to private equity firms.
The Rodgers & Hammerstein Organisation, which is now controlled by the two writers' grand-daughters, vets, licences and collects royalties from both amateur and professional productions of the shows around the world.
That includes the revival of The Sound of Music in London's West End, which starred Connie Fisher as Maria, and the recent Broadway hit of South Pacific.
