Is Shy Baldwin in 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel' Based on Anyone? (2024)

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Is Shy Baldwin in 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel' Based on Anyone? ›

It's hard to name a single influence for Shy Baldwin (Leroy McClain). Co-writer Daniel Sherman said (via Parade) “We were inspired by a lot of African American crooners at the time, like Johnny Mathis.” However, Harry Bellafonte is another real person with whom Shy shares similarities.

Although there was no real Shy, Rachel Brosnahan told Refinery29 that the character was a mix of several real-life legendary singers. "He's kind of an amalgamation of a lot of different figures who were that successful, but Johnny Mathis comes to mind," Rachel explained.

He's probably based on Johnny Carson.

Johnny Carson does technically already exist in the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel universe, but the similarities between Gordon Ford cannot be overlooked. Like Gordon Ford, Johnny Carson was the host of his own show with his name in it: NBC's The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.

Midge is heavily inspired on Joan Rivers, too.

Although much of her career and the show's setting is based around Amy's father, a lot of Midge's experiences are based on the life of Joan Rivers.

The This Is Us star is just one of several new additions to the cast for the third season, and although Broadway actor Darius de Haas dubs the singing voice of singer Shy Baldwin (played by Leroy McClain), Brown does his own singing.

Maisel features several characters based on real-life people. Lenny Bruce (played by Luke Kirby) plays the real-life comedian by the same name, Sophie Lennon's character has similarities to comedienne Phyllis Diller, and Alex Borstein's character, Susie, was inspired by female talent agent Sue Mengers.

It was really just to give her a bit more of a bounce. “We shortened the wig from the first couple of episode of the show to make it more perky,” DeCarlo told the publication. “She has a perky quality as a character, so we wanted the wig to match.” He also noted that the comic is still figuring herself out.

Another Marvelous Mrs. Maisel character with a clear parallel to a real person, Susie Meyerson is based on legendary Hollywood talent agent Sue Mengers. While Susie isn't yet a Hollywood kingmaker, a flash forward in The Marvelous Mrs.

Joan Rivers: The real-life inspiration for Midge Maisel

Her bold, often abrasive humor was a defining characteristic of her act, but it also led to many controversies throughout her career. She was unapologetic about her penchant for controversial jokes, often saying that laughter was a way to deal with pain.

Scott also surmises that Gordon would never be able to cope with Midge's success and comedic ambitions in the long run (and that is part of why he keeps refusing to put her on the show). "He sees in her someone who's fresh and doing something different," he says.

What happened to Lenny Bruce in real life? ›

Throughout the final decade of his life, Bruce was beset by severe drug addiction, using heroin, methamphetamine and Dilaudid daily, suffering numerous health problems and personal strife as a result. His death was caused by an overdose. He had an affair with jazz singer Annie Ross in the late 1950s.

Matilda Szydagis was born and raised on the South Side of Chicago. Her family immigrated from Poland and she speaks Polish. Known for playing Zelda on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel all 5 seasons.

The model for superstar crooner Shy Baldwin is almost certainly Johnny Mathis.

Shy Baldwin

Shy is another one of those characters who isn't based on *one* person but draws inspiration from lots of people. “He's kind of an amalgamation of a lot of different figures who were that successful, but Johnny Mathis comes to mind,” Rachel told Refinery 29.

The relationship between Shy and Reggie is ultimately platonic, although the episode leaves some questions.

Darius de Haas, who provided the singing voice of Shy Baldwin on TV's The Marvelous Mrs.

In Season 4, we meet yet another performer striving for stardom: the magician Alfie (Gideon Glick), who Susie (Alex Borstein) takes under her wing as a new client. Like Shy and Sophie, Alfie is not based on a real person.

It has been the ingenuity of several legendary comics that shaped comedy as we know it. While Midge Maisel (Rachel Brosnahan) is a fictional comedian based on the great Joan Rivers, the show gives fictitious storylines to a few real-life, influential comedians.

Amazon's The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel's titular character, Midge, is fictional, but the New York City of the 1960s that she lives in was very, very real. The sights, the sounds, the Gaslight—they're all representative of the city during that time.