Bombs over Broadway

By Melissa August, Val Castronovo, Darren Fonda, Michael Jackson, Benjamin Nugent, John Rosenblatt, Josh Tyrangiel, Alexandra Wolfe

Reviews of the latest Broadway production of MACBETH, starring Frasier's Kelsey Grammer, were a tad caustic: one of many unamused critics called it a "stodgy oratorical exercise." It closed after 13 performances, which is, as it turns out, a long run compared to some other ignominious Broadway flops:

CARRIE, 1988 Not even diva Betty Buckley could save this adaptation of Stephen King's novel, which folded after five performances. In one scene, teenagers smeared fake blood on their chests and sang, "Kill the pig, pig, pig."

MOOSE MURDERS, 1983 This farce featured Holland Taylor as the wife of a quadriplegic who rose from his wheelchair and kicked a moose-suited attacker in the groin during the climax. It ran for one performance.

FRANKENSTEIN, 1981 A special effects-laden staging of the classic lost roughly $2 million and closed after one performance, ending the suffering of Dianne Wiest in a supporting role.

BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S, 1966 Mary Tyler Moore and Richard Chamberlain starred in a musical based on the hit film. Playwright Edward Albee rewrote the script to no avail. Producer David Merrick closed it in previews, but joked, "Cartier's wanted me to keep it open to damage Tiffany's."