A blast from Broadway past. Ray Walston originated the role of Applegate (aka Satan) in the show Damn Yankees in 1955. Mr. Walston was a fine actor and he had appeared in musicals before, most notably as Luther in the touring company and London production of South Pacific. People think he originated the role on Broadway but he didn't. He did however play it in the movie.
Still, the folks behind Damn Yankees felt he had a limited capacity as a vocalist so Applegate only got one song in the show, and it was written for a performer of limited singing capacity. Nevertheless, he turned it into quite a star turn. In either 1982 or 1985 — reports differ — he re-created the number on stage for a TV special called That's Singing: Best of Broadway, which does not seem to have made it yet to DVD…