Otto Harbach was one of the most prolific lyricist- librettists of Broadway, writing more than forty musicals between 1908 and 1933 and providing books and lyrics for musical comedies and operettas with such distinguished composers as Rudolf Friml, Vincent Youmans, Sigmund Romberg, and Jerome Kern. At one point in 1925, five Harbach shows were playing on Broadway, a record still to be surpassed. Yet, Harbach is hardly a familiar name, rarely invoked along with Oscar Hammerstein or Alan Jay Lerner, even though he was a major influence on both of them, as well as on other major Broadway lyricists. Harbach's importance lies not in his prolific output or because of a handful of song standards such as "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" (1933), but because he encouraged a new degree of maturity in musical theater creating librettos and lyrics that were literate, logical, and integrated with character and plot. At a time...