One day I'll be famous, I'll be proper and prim,
Gone to St. James so often I will call it St. Jim.
One evening the King will say, "Oh, Liza, old thing,*
I want all of England your praises to sing.
Next week on the twentieth of May, da-da-da-da-da-da-DA,
I proclaim Eliza Doolittle Day!
All the people will celebrate the glory of you,
And whatever you wish or want I gladly shall do."
"Thanks a lot, King," says I in a manner well-bred,
"But all I want is 'enry 'iggins 'ead!" dum-da-dum
A subsequent correction: I just (20 May 2003) heard from Thi Ha (thi@amcmusic.net) , who apparently does have the score, that “Eliza, old thing” is also not exactly correct; but it actually is “Oh, Liza, old thing.”
*We have the ANSWER! These two syllables were unknown (at least, to me!). I received the following from Sam (chana1@gramercy.ios.com):
I know the lyrics because some time ago (30 years?) I received the LP My Fair Lady as a gift and played it religiously for six months. I, too, was puzzled by that indecipherable line, and reduced to singing a variety of approximate endings. My long-time favorite was "Eliza O'Ling," although there was no textual support for any Irish-Chinese ancestry. Finally I got my hands on a copy of the score and looked it up. Might I permit myself one more intervention? I believe (though I am less certain of this) that the preceding words are not "On that day" but rather "One evening the king will say..." As I no longer have the score, you'll have to check this one out yourself.
Sam may not have the score, but she (I just found out that Sam is short for Samantha!) sure knows the score! She is, of course, right about this second correction, as well.
Thanks, Sam!