March, 1952 – Singin’ in the Rain is MGM‘s fabulously entertaining new nostalgia musical about the motion picture industries transition to sound. This film has everything you could possibly ask for in a great Hollywood musical.
A outstanding cast that features Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds, Donald O’Connor, and Cyd Charisse. Extraordinary songs from Arthur Freed and Nacio Herb Brown, marvelous dance numbers that include Gene Kelly’s classic Singin’ in the Rain number (in the pouring rain) while Gene is “laughing at the clouds…”, the imaginative and acrobatic comedy dance number “Make ‘em Laugh” with Donald O’Connor, the sunny start your day number “Good Morning” with Kelly, Reynolds, and O’Connor, and the wonderful finale “Broadway Rhythm” with Kelly “gotta sing, gotta dance”, and the beautiful, leggy Cyd Charisse.
Put a smile on your face with this instant Hollywood musical classic for the price of a movie ticket. Celebrate the best-of-the-best in Hollywood musicals with Singin’ in the Rain.
Starring – Gene Kelly (Don Lockwood), Donald O’Connor (Cosmo Brown), Debbie Reynolds (Kathy Selden), Jean Hagen (Lina Lamont).
Description – Don Lockwood and Lina Lamont are the King and Queen of the silent screen. Their romantic screen pairing has captured the publics hearts and Don has captured Lina’s.
However, a big change is in store as sound is now the rage in motion pictures. This does not sit well with Lina as she has what can only be described as a “grating voice.”
A few weeks earlier, in an effort to escape some overly exhuberant fans, Don accidently met Kathy Selden who claimed to be a stage actress, but who turned out to be a chorus girl. That is, a chorus girl with a great voice.
Don’s best friend Cosmo Brown comes up with a brainstorm. For their next film, have Kathy’s voice dubbed over the voice of Lina Lamont. This infuriates Lina who fears that Don is falling for Kathy and does everything she can to stop their budding romance and sabotage the film.
NOTABLE:This motion picture was nominated for two Academy Awards; Best Actress, in a Supporting Role (Jean Hagen), and Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture.
In 1989 Singin’ In The Rain was selected for the National Film Registry in the Library of Congress.
This film is rated #1 on the American Film Institute’s 100 Years of Musicals list and #5 on the list of 2007′s Greatest Films.
Gene Kelly’s famous song-and-dance routine for Singin’ In The Rain was filmed with a little milk added to the water used for the scene. It was done to have the puddles and rain water show up better on film. Kelly was actually sick during the filming of this scene with 103 degree fever.
There were some problems during production of the film between Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds. Reynolds was not a trained dancer and this caused Kelly to initially be quite harsh on her abilities. Have no fear, Fred Astaire, upon hearing about the problem between the two, volunteered to help Reynolds with her dancing. Kelly later admitted to being too critical of Reynolds.
Dancer Cyd Charisse performs a brief, but memorable dance routine with Kelly.
Debbie Reynolds stated that making this film and surviving childbirth were the two hardest thing she had ever done.
The very acrobatic dance number “Make Em Laugh” left Donald O’Connor bedridden for days suffering from exhaustion and carpet burns.
Personal Note: While there were many great musicals made during the decades covered on this site, this is my favorite. A musical treat for the eyes and the ears. In my mind, and many would agree, this is probably the greatest musical of all time.
October, 1951 - MGM's ambitious new musical An American In Paris, starring Gene Kelly, Leslie Caron (in her film debut), and Oscar Levant, showcases the music and lyrics of George and Ira Gershwin. Raising the bar on Hollywood musicals this film is sure to become a model for future musical releases.
Although filmed at the MGM sound studios in California, An American In Paris recreates the sights, sounds and romantic imagery of Paris. Throughout the film are a number of show-stopping song and dance numbers combining the artistic choreography of Gene Kelly with some of the most popular Gershwin music.
This romantic love story with Technicolor cinematography, lavish sets, beautiful costumes, and an imaginative finale that includes an 18 minute (approximately) fantasy dream ballet made An American In Paris a distinguished member of MGM's Golden Age of Musicals.
Starring – Gene Kelly (Jerry Mulligan), Leslie Caron (Lise Bouvier), Oscar Levant (Adam Cook), Georges Guetary (Henri “Hank” Baurel), Nina Foch (Milo Roberts).
Description – Free-spirited American expatriate Jerry Mulligan is trying to make a name for himself painting in Paris. It looks as though good luck has finally come his way when he is “discovered” by society woman Milo Roberts.
However, looks can be deceiving as Milo is interested in more than Jerry’s paintings. Unaware, or possibly just ignoring her advances, Jerry meets and falls in love with Franch girl Lise whom he meets at a restaurant. While Lise would like to return those feelings she is already involved with Henri to whom she feels indebted for having saved her family during the war.
A wonderfully enjoyable musical ride to true love.
NOTABLE: In 1993 this film was selected for inclusion in the United States National Film Registry.
In 2006 the American Film Institute ranked this as #9 in their list of 100 Years of Musicals.
This motion picture won six Academy Awards that included Best Picture, Best Writing, Story and Screenplay, Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture, Best Costume Design, Color, Best Cinematography, Color, and Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Color. There were two more nominations for Best Director (Vincente Minnelli), and Best Film Editing.
In addition, Gene Kelly received an honory Academy Award for “his versatility as an actor, singer, director and dancer, and specifically for his brilliant achievements in the art of choreography on film.”
Actress Cyd Charisse was originally cast in the role of Lise Bouvier but had to be replaced when she discovered she was pregnant.
This film was the first for Leslie Caron who was discovered performing in a ballet by Gene Kelly while vacationing in Paris.
The beautiful climatic 17-18 minute dance sequence cost $500,000. and took a whole month to film.
Personal Comment: Over the years I have gone back and forth in my personal opinion as to who was the better dancer – Fred Astaire or Gene Kelly. I finally realized I was comparing apples with oranges. Fred Astaire exuded sophistication and class, while Gene Kelly added the elements of athleticism and sensuality. They were both the best at what each did.
