The Untold Truth Of Annie

"Annie" opened on Broadway in April 1977 and ran for 2,377 performances over nearly seven years, making it one of the most successful shows in New York theatrical history (per Playbill). That's the kind of show that's prime for a revival, and the first eventful, heavily promoted return to Broadway for "Annie" came when the show was booked into the Martin Beck Theatre in March 1997 to commemorate its 20th anniversary. The squeaky-clean, family-friendly, widely loved musical wasn't without scandal, somehow.

According to Playbill, 12-year-old Joanna Pacitti, who played the title role in a touring production from November 1996 to February 1997, was set to star in the Broadway version, too. Just before the show went live, however, producers fired Pacitti and promoted her understudy, 8-year-old Brittny Kissinger. Pacitti reacted and emoted on TV. "It split my heart in two," Pacitti said of the firing on ABC's "Good Morning America," adding that her parents planned to sue "Annie" organizers for as much as $50 million. "I'm a lot like Annie `cause I keep my chin up," Pacitti added, through tears on ABC's "Turning Point." "Out of a hundred shows or more, I've got a standing ovation every single time, and if you went to the six cities that I went to, I think that they'll remember me as the real Annie." According to the New York Post, the case was settled out of court for a few million dollars, in 2001.

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