best of: gene kelly

Summer Stock


Anchors Aweigh

Jack in the Beanstalk


The Pirate: Be a Clown


On the Town

It's Always Fair Weather: She Likes Me


Singin' in the Rain: Moses Supposes


And of course...

brigadoon

the year: 1954

the genre: musical


the cast: Gene Kelly (Tommy Albright); Van Johnson (Jeff Douglas); Cyd Charisse (Fiona Campbell); Barry Jones (Mr. Lundie)


the plot: Americans Jeff and Tommy, hunting in Scotland, stumble upon a village - Brigadoon. They soon learn that the town appears once every 100 years in order to preserve its peace and special beauty. The citizens go to bed at night and when they wake up, it's 100 years later. Tommy falls in love with a beautiful young woman, Fiona, and is torn between staying or, as Jeff is encouraging him, going back to his hectic life in New York.


don't miss: the heather on the hill.


listen for: "It's the hardest thing in the world to give everything. Though it's usually the only way to get everything."


did you know: Cyd Charisse said that, of the several films she made with Gene Kelly, this was her favorite.


extra bonus points: if you know the two big names originally slated to play the leads - it would have made for a very different movie, I think!

xanadu

In honor of Laney's birthday...

the year: 1980

the genre: musical


the cast: Gene Kelly (Danny McGuire); Olivia Newton-John (Kira); Michael Beck (Sonny Malone)


the plot: The Greek muses incarnate themselves on Earth to inspire men to achieve. One of them, incarnated as a girl named Kira, encounters an artist named Sonny Malone. With the help of Danny McGuire, a man Kira had inspired forty years earlier, Sonny builds a huge disco roller rink. (And if THAT doesn't intrigue you, I don't know what will.)


don't miss: the dance number between Gene Kelly and Olivia Newton-John. It was filmed after production for the movie had finished and it became clear the filmmakers had not given their audience the one scene the movie required: Gene and Olivia dancing together. Gene Kelly choreographed the dance number. His conditions for doing it included a closed stage that included only himself, Olivia Newton-John, a cameraman, a choreographer he had befriended, and two others.


watch for: the sun rising in the Pacific - oops!


count: how many Xanadu dancers there were for the Roller Disco scene.


listen for: "I've been known to twinkle a toe or two."


did you know: Danny McGuire was also the name of Gene Kelly's character in Cover Girl.


extra bonus points: if you know the famous one sentence review that this film received.



also listen for: "Kid can you imagine it?" "Imagine what?" "A bandstand. Right over there in that corner. And a big band, like in the 40's." "Nah, nah, nah. Bandstands went out with running boards. Over there. A great rock 'n' roll band. This is the 80's!" "Real smooth dancers... wild trombone... the band decked out in tuxedos." "Six guys wearing electric orange... synthesizer... heavy precussion... electric guitar."

summer stock

the year: 1950

the genre: musical



the cast: Judy Garland (Jane Falbury); Gene Kelly (Joe Ross); Eddie Bracken (Orville Wingait); Gloria DeHaven (Abigail Falbury); Marjorie Main (Esme); Phil Silvers (Herb Blake); Ray Collins (Jasper G. Wingait)



the plot: As a favor to her actress sister Abigail, New England farmer Jane Falbury allows a group of actors use her barn as a theater for their play. In return, the cast and crew have to help her with the farm chores. During rehearsals, Jane finds herself falling for the show's director, Joe Ross, who also happens to be engaged to the show's leading lady-- Abigail.



don't miss: Gene Kelly's "newspaper dance".


check out: "You, Wonderful You" is also a pretty good number - kinda sweet.

count: how many pieces/parts make up Jane's tractor.



listen for: "That actor! She's in love with that actor!"

did you know: On one particular day of fiming, Judy Garland was said to be "not in a fit state to work" so Gene Kelly feigned a fall so that she would be able to take the day off.

bits and pieces

No need to watch the whole movie, but you might enjoy this scene…

Gene Kelly dancing on rollerskates in It’s Always Fair Weather – complete with French subtitles -



Mitzi and Donald on deck in Anything Goes –



Fred and Ginger in The Berkleys of Broadway –



Dancing in the Dark from The Bandwagon –



Frank and Debbie in The Tender Trap –

singin' in the rain

the year: 1952

the genre: musical



the cast: Gene Kelly (Don Lockwood); Debbie Reynolds (Kathy Seldon); Donald O'Connor (Cosmo Brown); Jean Hagen (Lina Lamont)



the plot: It's 1927: Don Lockwood and Lina Lamont are the darlings of the silent silver screen. Offscreen, Don, aided by his happy-go-lucky friend and piano accompanist, Cosmo Brown, has to dodge Lina's romantic overtures, especially when he falls for chorus girl Kathy Selden. With the advent of sound in motion pictures, it is decided to turn Don and Lina's new film into a "talkie" and a musical at that. The only problem is Lina's voice, which words cannot describe. Kathy is brought on to dub her speaking and singing voice in secret, and Don's on top of the world - until Lina finds out...


count: the number of takes before R.F. pulls the rug (er, cord) out from under Lina.


don't miss: the diction lessons. Rrrrooooound tones.


check out: Cyd Charisse's role as the dancer in the Broadway Melody number. That role gave MGM the impetus to finally star her in pictures. Her next film was The Band Wagon (1953), starring Fred Astaire.


listen for: "People"? I ain't 'people.' I am a - 'a shimmering, glowing star in the cinema firmament.'"



also listen for: "Dignity. Always, dignity."



extra bonus points: if you can name the actress who played Zelda Zanders. She would later go on to star in The King and I and West Side Story.



did you know: Gene Kelly insulted Debbie Reynolds for not being able to dance. Fred Astaire, who was hanging around the studio, found her crying under a piano and helped her with her dancing.

i wanna...

Ride Vesapa scooters around Rome (from Roman Holiday).


Go on a cruise and visit beautiful tropical isles (from An Affair to Remember).


Dance in the rain (from Finian's Rainbow).


Tap dance with Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor (from Singin' in the Rain).


And attend cooking school in Paris (from Sabrina).



Maybe we'll call it "I Wanna Wednesdays."