Appreciating all that makes America special

Actor: Gene Kelly

Gene Kelly had many memorable dance performances in his wonderful career, but we'll always remember him "singin' and dancin' in the rain." Uploaded by trueclassics.wordpress.com.

Recently, my wife and I had the opportunity to see Singin’ in the Rain shown on a big screen at a restored movie house near here, and it was a blast. You know that old saying, They don’t make ’em like they used to? Well, they don’t. Gene Kelly will never be classified among the greatest thespians of our age, but wow, could he ever dance.

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His family owned a dance studio in Pittsburgh, and Kelly started training at the age of eight. He went from local theater to Broadway, had his breakthrough role in Pal Joey, and was recruited to Hollywood by David O. Selznick. Among his more memorable films:

In addition to acting and dancing, Kelly directed 11 films and choreographed more than two dozen. He was known to be a perfectionist whose rehearsals were long and grueling. He received Lifetime Achievement Awards from Kennedy Center Honors, the Screen Actors Guild, and the American Film Institute. The AFI named him number 15 in its roster of Greatest Male Stars of All Time.

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2 Comments

  1. Easily one of my 10 favorite movies, and in my top 3 of best ever dance routines EVER.  #1 and 2 are this one and Fred Astaire’s dancing on the ceiling routine, so I’ll make them #’s one and two and you can decide which one you like better.  No. 3 is the Seven Brides for Seven Brothers dancing on the logs routine. Can you tell I LOVE movie musicals?  Don’t even get me started on Rodgers and Hammerstein

  2. I love love love this movie, One of my three all time favorite musical routines… Tied for # one is this one, and Fred Astaire’s dancing on the ceiling routine.  #3 would have to be Seven Brides for Seven Brothers log dance. Can you tell I love musicals?  Especially the 40’s and 50’s movies.