The King and I
A musical by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II , with a script based on the book Anna and the King of Siam by Magaret Landon . The plot comes from the story written by Anna Leonowens , who became school teacher to the children of King Mongkut of Siam in the early 1860s . Leonowens' story was autobiographical except that its objective accuracy is questionable. In Thailand, the possession of anything related to Anna and the King of Siam or The King and I is illegal, because of what the Thai government says are historical inaccuracies about the King of Siam. .

The musical opened on Broadway in 1951 and was the fourth hit out of five collaborations for the team of Rogers and Hammerstein . It ran for 1,246 performances, winning the Tony Award for Best Musical , among other awards. It spawned numerous revivals and a popular 1956 film version .