Broadway Creators Nix ‘Gypsy’ Pix : Movies: Despite such potential leading ladies as Streisand, Midler and Madonna, the composer and playwright don’t want a new film of their revived musical, which stars Tyne Daly.

Hollywood came calling with some of its biggest names: Barbra Streisand, Bette Midler, Madonna. But Broadway said “no.”

“Not for all the money in the world will we let them make another film version of ‘Gypsy,’ ” said playwright Arthur Laurents.

The first time Hollywood filmed the Broadway musical, it was “lousy,” said composer Jule Styne, referring to the 1962 Warner Bros. adaptation that starred Rosalind Russell and Natalie Wood. Neither of the stars sang their roles in the Mervyn LeRoy-directed movie and critic Pauline Kael labeled the interpretation “extremely unpleasant.”

This time, Laurents and Styne were reacting to two recent proposals to film the 1959 show that they co-wrote with lyricist Stephen Sondheim. The original version, based on the autobiography of famed stripper Gypsy Rose Lee, starred Ethel Merman.

Styne said that he, Laurents and Sondheim last weekend nixed a proposal by the powerful Creative Artists Agency that would have cast Streisand as the domineering psychopathic Mama Rose and Madonna as the shy daughter-turned-stripper.

“We turned it down,” Styne said curtly. “We turned down a Midler version too,” referring to a proposal that he said was made by Walt Disney/Touchstone Pictures.

Turned down two major actresses to play one of the plum female roles written for the musical theater?

“Sure, it (the casting) is impressive, but we don’t want it . . . you don’t get the magic you get on the stage,” Styne said, calling the show and its string of hit songs “the most important thing I’ve ever written.”

“It’s almost unbelievable that they’re saying no to those names,” said one Hollywood-based film producer who asked that his name not be mentioned. “You rarely see this kind of regard for the integrity of a stage property.”

Styne made it clear that the rejection of the projects had nothing to do with the stars. It is the concept of transferring the show from stage to film to which he objects.

Styne said that after the 1962 film, “the show was dead in stock (touring productions). It took almost 30 years to offset that lousy picture.”

Styne was overlooking the 1974 revival that starred Angela Lansbury. Instead, his focus is on a new production, starring Tyne Daly, that will open Nov. 16 at New York’s St. James Theatre. The same 30th-anniversary production toured nationally earlier this year, playing to full houses in Los Angeles and Orange County.

Echoing his fellow collaborator, Laurents said that after the L.A. run, suddenly the movie business was interested again. “It’s very Hollywood thinking,” he said of the casting concepts. “They think they’re doing us each a favor.

“No one seems to believe that you could turn down stars and money,” said Laurents. “Well, I don’t want it. . . . I like ‘Gypsy’ the way it is.”

The way it is, in the current stage revival--which Laurents directed--is “the way it should be,” he said, adding that the show was conceived by Jerome Robbins for the stage and that the transition to film would make it entirely a different piece. That is a prospect he does not want to ponder, especially after the first go-round.

Both Styne and Laurents are quintessential Broadway animals, both having written such other hit shows and films as “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” and “Funny Girl” for Styne and “West Side Story,” “The Way We Were” and “The Turning Point” for Laurents. Their teaming with the young Sondheim for “Gypsy” produced what has become a legendary show that many critics consider the finest book musical ever.

Styne and Laurents agreed that they would not object to a filmed version of a stage production of “Gypsy,” which would retain the theatrical essence of the story rather than transform it into a cinematic event. And neither had any objections to Streisand or Midler playing Mama Rose--if they would do it that way. Sondheim could not be reached for comment.

But filming a stage version of “Gypsy” would take rehearsal time, plus a shakedown period of four to six weeks in front of an audience before the cast was polished. The prospect of that kind of run is something that Streisand has no interest in, said her publicist, Lee Solters. She has a busy agenda, currently directing and starring in “Prince of Tides,” Solters said. “Right now, the answer is ‘no,’ ” and down the road, any answer would be “strictly speculation.”

Is there any future for a new film version?

“Let’s just say there’s no motion at all on this,” said CAA’s Marty Baum, after confirming that his agency had made the Streisand/Madonna pitch. He expressed bewilderment about what more “one of the three writers” could possibly want in the way of casting, suggesting that it was one member of the trio who objected to the new film version, not all. He named “the playwright” (Laurents) as the chief foe of the project.

(In Broadway collaborations, typically, each partner has veto power over the others. That is the case in the present situation, where, ironically, “Gypsy’s” song “Together Wherever We Go” takes on added significance.)

But don’t count Streisand out. Her co-producer on the musical film “Yentl,” Rusty Lemorande, has taken a major interest in the proposed production. He called “premature” speculation on the project’s demise and described the waltz that is going on between the parties as “a creative idea under discussion.” When contacted about his role, he said, “I’m just the bee pollinating the flowers right now.”

With fewer and fewer Broadway musicals available for adaptation to the screen, such roles as Mama Rose are considered plums. In addition to such songs as “Everything’s Coming Up Roses” and the bitter, dramatic soliloquy “Rose’s Turn,” the role is known for its range of emotion--a tour de force for Merman and Lansbury when they played it. As one film casting agent put it, “What’s so great about Rose is it’s visceral. It’s from the guts.”

In recent memory, the only comparable projects have been “Funny Girl” (the biography of Fanny Brice played by Streisand on stage and film), as well as the role of Eva Peron in the musical “Evita.” Meryl Streep recently withdrew her name from the much-delayed “Evita,” a project that has been suggested as a vehicle for either Madonna or Streisand in the past.

For either Streisand or Midler, the chance at Mama Rose would mark a return to musicals--the form through which both began their careers. According to Styne and Laurents, Streisand apparently had avidly sought “Gypsy” as a vehicle. CAA has approached the writing trio for the film rights on several occasions since the show played Los Angeles last summer, they said. The most recent offer was $2 million for the film rights, and Laurents would have the chance to write his own screenplay adaptation.

Lemorande said he personally knows that “the role of Rose is one she (Streisand) would like to play.”

Both Styne and Laurents have been instrumental in Streisand’s career--Styne having written the music to Streisand’s signature role in “Funny Girl” and Laurents the screenplay to one of her biggest films, “The Way We Were.” More recently, Sondheim has played a role in Streisand’s recording career as writer of several of the songs on her multimillion-seller “Broadway” album.

Disney/Touchstone president of production David Kirkpatrick said through a spokeswoman that he had “absolutely no comment” on the Midler proposal. The spokeswoman also said that Midler was unavailable for comment.

However, Laurents noted that Kirkpatrick had approached him about writing an original screenplay to co-star Streisand and Midler. A comedy? A musical?

“I have an idea in mind” is all he would say.