Character guide
Bud Frump
Bud Frump is a supporting character in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Frank Loesser's 1961 musical, working as the boss's nephew at the World Wide Wicket Company.
- Show
- How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
- Broadway premiere
- 1961
- Role
- Supporting
- Music by
- Frank Loesser
Bud Frump on stage vs screen
Broadway compared with the 1967 film
On screen, Bud Frump went to a new actor. Charles Nelson Reilly created the boss's scheming nephew in 1961 and won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical, but in the 1967 film the part went to Anthony Teague.
That contrasts with the film's other leads: Robert Morse (Finch), Michele Lee (Rosemary), and Rudy Vallee (J.B. Biggley) all reprised roles they had played on Broadway.
Who is Bud Frump?
Bud is the nephew of company president J.B. Biggley's wife, a fact he leans on constantly to demand special treatment and promotions he has not earned. He becomes Finch's chief rival almost immediately, resentful that a newcomer without his family connections keeps outmaneuvering him for advancement.
Whiny, entitled, and quick to complain, Bud represents the show's satire of nepotism and office politics, a foil whose sense of entitlement contrasts sharply with Finch's more inventive, if equally self serving, scheming.
Bud's role in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
Bud is a supporting comic role that requires an actor able to play petulance and whining for laughs while still keeping pace with the show's fast, satirical energy. He appears throughout the office scenes, usually scheming against Finch or complaining to anyone who will listen.
Charles Nelson Reilly originated the role on Broadway in 1961 and won a Tony Award for the performance, and Anthony Teague played the part in the 1967 film. Audiences remember Bud as the show's most purely comic antagonist, the entitled foil whose failures highlight Finch's cleverness by contrast.
Bud Frump: frequently asked questions
What show is Bud Frump from?
Bud Frump is a supporting character in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, which opened on Broadway in 1961.
Is Bud Frump a lead or supporting role?
Bud is a supporting role, serving as Finch's whiny, entitled rival in the office.
Who wrote the music for How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying?
Frank Loesser wrote the music and lyrics for How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.
Think you can name today's mystery character in eight guesses?
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