1968: april 29

It had opened off-Broadway the previous fall, and, after changes, had its Broadway premiere on April 29, 1968. The cast included such names as Melba Moore and Diane Keaton. It was a smash hit that ran for 1,750 performances in its initial Broadway run, played in cities across the U.S. (in San Francisco, one of the actors was Philip Michael Thomas), and in London ran for almost 2000 shows (Moore starred there as well, as did Tim Curry and Richard O'Brien). It was a musical, and several songs from the production became hits for various pop singers. A film version in the late-70s starred Treat Williams, Beverly D'Angelo, John Savage, and Ellen Foley. It was, of course, Hair, responsible for all those "rock" musicals to come (like Jesus Christ, Superstar, Grease, The Wiz, and Evita). Before Hair, the closest thing to a rock musical on Broadway was Bye Bye Birdie. Hair was the first one made from the point of view of the rock generation.

Was it rock, and does it matter? Most people would say no to the latter question ... I'd say no to the first, and while I suppose I can't blame the creators of Hair, I don't know that the aesthetics of rock and roll are a good match for those of Broadway. I'd argue that Hair was more important in theater than in rock ... the "rock musical" is an accepted form now, but how many rock musicians would cite Hair as a primary influence? Suffice to say that the title song was a popular hit in 1969 for the Cowsills.