Gene Kelly was an American film actor and director whose athletic style and classical ballet technique transformed the film musical. Kelly died on February 2, 1996 at the age of 83. I don't object to that as long as they don't dance effeminately. For Me and My Gal performed very well, and in the face of much internal resistance, Arthur Freed of MGM picked up the other half of Kelly's contract. [8], A clear progression was evident in his development, from an early concentration on tap and musical comedy style to greater complexity using ballet and modern dance forms. For his efforts on the film, Kelly received an honorary Academy Award "in appreciation of his versatility as an actor, singer, director and dancer, and specifically for his brilliant achievements in the art of choreography on film.". He's a hard taskmaster and he loves hard work. He wis kent for his energetic an athletic dancin style, his guid leuks, an the likeable chairacters that he played on screen. The third picture he completed was a co-production between MGM and himself, a cheapie B-film, The Happy Road (1957), set in his beloved France, his first foray in a new role as producer-director-actor. His mother pushed for this to happen as she ensured Kelly and his brother enrolled for the lessons. He created dance routines with his younger brother Fred to earn prize money in local talent contests. Gene Kelly - The Start of Hollywood Success, Movies and Career Highlights: 'Singin' in the Rain'. Cantinflas . 1962) and Bridget (b. Kelly is best known today for his performances in films such as Anchors Aweigh (1945), On the Town (1949) which was his directorial debut, An American in Paris (1951), Singin' in the Rain (1952), Brigadoon (1954) and It's Always Fair Weather (1955). This generation experienced much of their youth during the Great Depression and rapid technological innovation such as the radio and the telephone. Born in Pittsburgh, PA #31. Working with director Vincente Minnelli, Kelly continued to take dance on film into uncharted territory with An American in Paris (1951). Along with Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly was the most successful song-and-dance man in film history, a towering figure in the development and enduring success of the movie musical. [14] He directed veteran actors James Stewart and Henry Fonda in the comedy Western The Cheyenne Social Club (1970), which performed poorly at the box office. It was dedicated to his memory. While filming "Singin' in the Rain," Gene Kelly was ill, his suits were shrinking underneath the hot lights, and he filmed for days in the rain. Gene Kelly was dicovered by a man named Max Adkins who saw Gene in a University of Pitt Scotch and Soda review and recomended him to people in California. This role propelled him to stardom. Gene Kelly had three children. 5, Kelly played the antagonist. Born In 1912. He was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style, his good looks, and the likable characters that he played on screen. The venture proved a success, Kelly being retained for seven years until his departure for New York. You can spot many male dancers who have this tuition by their arm movements—they are soft, limp, and feminine. "[11][25] Together, they opened up the musical form, taking the film musical out of the studio and into real locations, with Donen taking responsibility for the staging and Kelly handling the choreography. [14] Generally speaking, he tended to use tap and other popular dance idioms to express joy and exuberance—as in the title song for Singin' in the Rain or "I Got Rhythm" in An American in Paris, whereas pensive or romantic feelings were more often expressed via ballet or modern dance, as in "Heather on the Hill" from Brigadoon or "Our Love Is Here to Stay" from An American in Paris. He starred in, choreographed, or co-directed some of the most well-regarded musical films of the 1940s and 1950s, until they fell out of fashion in the late 1950s. His first was a daughter, KERRY, born in October of 1942 to Gene and his first wife, Betsy Blair. He had sailors performing ballet moves in On the Town (1949), in which he starred with Frank Sinatra. Kelly served as a teacher at the studio during his undergraduate and law-student years at Pitt. MGM executive Louis B. Mayer caught Kelly's stellar performance and offered him a movie contract with his studio. The following year, Singin' in the Rain featured Kelly's celebrated and much imitated solo dance routine to the title song, along with the "Moses Supposes" routine with Donald O'Connor and the "Broadway Melody" finale with Cyd Charisse. The result was Pas de Dieux, based on Greek mythology, combined with the music of George Gershwin's Concerto in F. It was a major success, and led to his being honored with the Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur by the French Government. Kelly is remembered for his lead role in Singin' in the Rain, regarded by some as the best dance film ever made. Then, a major opportunity arose when Fox—buoyed by the returns from The Sound of Music (1965)—commissioned Kelly to direct Hello, Dolly! Gene Kelly Biography by Bruce Eder + Follow Artist. (1969) starring Barbra Streisand[3][4][5] the latter of which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture. It, too, sold few movie tickets. He entered the Pennsylvania State College as a journalism major, but after the 1929 crash, he left school and found work in order to help his family financially. [14] In December 1951, he signed a contract with MGM that sent him to Europe for 19 months to use MGM funds frozen in Europe to make three pictures while personally benefiting from tax exemptions. As co-director, lead star, and choreographer, Kelly was the central driving force in both of these films. "[11] At one time, his childhood dream was to play shortstop for the hometown Pittsburgh Pirates. (1969), again directing Matthau along with Barbra Streisand. He died on February 2, 1996, at his home in Beverly Hills, California. Kelly starred in the poorly received action film Viva Knievel! Born on August 23 #30. His father worked as a phonograph salesman. Gene Kelly Fans Also Viewed . in the mid-1970s to help promote and preserve the great film musicals of the past. Gene Kelly’s life was on an upward path by the time he was 28, but the up and comer still felt that something was lacking. John Wayne is a graceful man and so are some of the great ballplayers ... but, of course, they don't run the risk of being called sissies. 2 issued 2015, House Committee on Un-American Activities, "Gene Kelly was proud of Irish roots - RTÉ Ten", "The Top 100 Greatest Movie Musicals of All Time", "The 42nd Academy Awards (1970) Nominees and Winners", "Heritage Gazette Vol.12 no.1: Entertainment and Recreation (May 2007)", "On Stage: Kate Hepburn, Richard Rauh and old Nixon", "The Man Who Helped Kelly Put His Best Foot Forward", "Book Review: 'The Sound of Music Story' by Tom Santopietro - WSJ", "Woody Allen On Gene Kelly 1966 TV Special", "Marriage Ends For Gene Kelly, Actress Wife", "Married to Gene Kelly: 'He didn't seem that old to me, "Gene Kelly, Dancer of Vigor and Grace, Dies", "Our History | Church of the Good Shepherd", "20 Things You Probably Didn't Know About Gene Kelly", "Oscar-winning actor Gene Kelly's mansion was destroyed early Thursday", "Here Are Hundreds More Artists Whose Tapes Were Destroyed in the UMG Fire", "6th Berlin International Film Festival: Prize Winners", "Gene Kelly Joins Hollywood Players in "Glass Key, The Gene Kelly Awards – University of Pittsburgh, Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers, Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gene_Kelly&oldid=999135251, Cecil B. DeMille Award Golden Globe winners, United States National Medal of Arts recipients, Articles with dead external links from December 2016, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using infobox person with unknown parameters, Wikipedia articles needing clarification from March 2019, Articles with Encyclopædia Britannica links, Wikipedia articles with BIBSYS identifiers, Wikipedia articles with CANTIC identifiers, Wikipedia articles with MusicBrainz identifiers, Wikipedia articles with PLWABN identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SNAC-ID identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SUDOC identifiers, Wikipedia articles with Trove identifiers, Wikipedia articles with WORLDCATID identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, American (Irish citizenship granted late in life), 1942 – Best Actor award from the National Board of Review for his performance in. It enjoyed great popularity in Roman Catholic countries outside the US. Actor Gene Wilder made his first huge splash as the title character in Mel Stuart's film adaptation of 'Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. It's an Irish quality, a jaw-jutting, up-on-the-toes cockiness—which is a good quality for a male dancer to have. He often appeared as himself on tribute specials. He was stationed in the Photographic Section, Washington D.C., where he was involved in writing and directing a range of documentaries, and this stimulated his interest in the production side of filmmaking.[14][22]. This exposé of organized crime is set in New York's "Little Italy" during the late 19th century and focuses on the Black Hand, a group that extorts money upon threat of death. Kelly's first big breakthrough was in the Pulitzer Prize–winning The Time of Your Life, which opened on October 25, 1939—in which, for the first time on Broadway, he danced to his own choreography. [8] Kelly received an Academy Honorary Award in 1952 for his career achievements, the same year An American in Paris won six Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Yet he wasn't satisfied. In an episode foreshadowing his later conflicts with the studio, cf. [8] He experimented with lighting, camera techniques, and special effects to achieve true integration of dance with film, and was one of the first to use split screens, double images, and live action with animation, and is credited as the person who made the ballet form commercially acceptable to film audiences. We strive for accuracy and fairness. They tied the knot in 1941. “I think he used word ‘Pygmalion’ about me. With such classic movie musicals as Singin’ In The Rain, Anchors Aweigh, On The Town and An American In Paris, Gene Kelly came to symbolise American post-war optimism. I just say that if a man dances effeminately, he dances badly—just as if a woman comes out on stage and starts to sing bass. His father was of Irish descent and his mother was of Irish and German ancestry. The man of the talent known for his dancing, acting, singing, directing and choreographing, Gene Kelly has screened in several classic movies in his time of era. His final film project was the animated film Cats Don't Dance, not released until 1997, on which Kelly acted as an uncredited choreographic consultant. It features Kelly's work with the Nicholas Brothers—the leading black dancers of their day—in a virtuoso dance routine. In the late 1930s, Kelly made his way to the Broadway stage. On this day, August 23, 1912, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, one of the greatest dancers of all time Gene Kelly was born. His first opportunity to dance to his own choreography came in his next picture, Thousands Cheer (1943), where he performed a mock-love dance with a mop. 5 (1943) and in Christmas Holiday (1944), he took the male lead in Cole Porter's Du Barry Was a Lady (1943) with Lucille Ball (in a part originally intended for Ann Sothern). Late in life, Kelly was awarded Irish citizenship under Ireland's Citizenship by Foreign Birth program. 1952 – He performed Singin’ in the rain, and achieved the Honorary Academy Award "in appreciation of his versatility as an actor, singer, director and dancer, and specifically for his brilliant achievements in the art of choreography on film." [46], Kelly appeared as actor and dancer in musical films. He is probably best known today for his performances in musicals, notably An American in Paris (1951) and Singin' in the Rain (1952). Agnostic, as he had previously been married to Stanley Donen teacher at the Studios... 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