Gene Kelly once described his career by stating, “I never wanted to be a dancer... I wanted to be a shortstop for the Pittsburgh Pirates” (IMDb). The events of Kelly’s life and career would almost reflect this sentiment if it were not for the incredible impact Kelly had on the history of cinema. Though he claims in an interview found in He’s Got Rhythm:The Life and Career of Gene Kelly by Cynthia Brideson that his career was more incidental than anything, it was his innovative style, charisma, and challenge of classism in the dance industry that proved him to be a true revolutionary in the world of musical cinema. Gene Kelly challenged the style of studio musicals in not only his form of dance. He challenged the way dancing was viewed by society. Gene Kelly’s legacy can be detailed by his influence on the dance styles found on stage and screen, in modern cinematography and editing, and in the his challenge of the stereotypes …show more content…
Part of the trepidation Kelly had when being contracted with MGM Studio was because of his background. Kelly famously and sincerely asked, “Who wants a choreographer from Pittsburgh?” (Brideson, 2). Despite Kelly’s questioning of his own belonging as a hollywood choreographer, his roots are what made him unique. His claim to an unrefined, gritty, and unglamorous upbringing is directly translated into his dancing and his character. Whereas someone such as Fred Astaire was the pinnacle of upper-class dignity in his coattails and bow ties, Gene Kelly brought what he felt made him what he was into his career. Gene Kelly would not be caught in a tuxedo if he could help it. He rather preferred to dress casually and in a style that reflected where he was from, just like how the way he danced was a reflection of the city of
The battle between Journalist Edward R. Murrow and Senator Joseph McCarthy is a fight that went beyond limits on television in 1954 (http://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2015/mar/30/ggod-night-and-good-luck-george-clooney-edward-murrow-reel-history). Edward R. Murrow earned his fame from his career with CBS News that began in 1935 (SITE MOVIE). Following World War II, Murrow worked with a fellow reporter, Fred Friendly on a program called Hear It Now. Both were successful in the sense that the program was popular and showed on television, which was later called See It Now. Although Murrow and Friendly televised many new reports in their careers, the most recognized and historically remembered contribution was the battle they had with Senator McCarthy on See It Now (http://www.coldwar.org/articles/50s/Murrowvs.McCarthyism.asp). Murrow used his career in
Tap dancing, an art grounded in African American culture, has moved from an upbeat style with its collection of steps that characterize the Jazz Age, such as the Charleston and the Stomp Time Step, to a style that better mirrors rap’s explosive rhythms and tendency towards synchronization. Much like African American music, tap- dancing’s evolution has been closely aligned with social progress and the slow breaking-down of stereotypes developed in the minstrel shows of the late 1800’s. The direct effects of racist stereotyping on tap-dancing are best observed in pre- 1960’s Hollywood films because these films reached a wide, mostly white, audience and were financed and directed by Whites. Tap legend, Bill ‘Bojangles’ Robinson, the star of Stormy Weather (1943), was forced to funnel his talent through a colander of social prejudices set to White Hollywood’s liking, and these social confines are visible in his dancing in this film. It was not until the 1980’s that modern tap emerged in Hollywood as an energetic battle cry from young African American dancers who demanded respect for their art form by refusing to conform to stereotypes. The film Bamboozled (2000), directed by Spike Lee, contrasts modern-day tap to the old-school style. In it, Savion Glover performs both the funky, urban style in street scenes and the smiley, traditional style in modern-day minstrel shows recreated for the film. In order to demonstrate how early conformity with and later break away from stereotypes have fueled the formation of two different generations of tap dancing, I will discuss historical context, and specifically the influence of minstrel shows on Stormy Weather and the 80’s tap revival on Bamboozled, before isolating and analyzing a scene from each film as representative of the two styles of tap-dancing.
The Revolutionary war, sparked by the colonist’s anger towards taxation without representation, was a conflict between the United States and its mother country Great Britain. This event had been considered the most significant event in the American history. It separated the thirteen colonies from the tyrannical ruling of King George. The revolutionary war was not a big war, “The military conflict was, by the standards of later wars, a relatively modest one. Battle deaths on the American side totaled fewer than 5,000”1. However, the war proved that the thirteen colonies were capable of defeating the powerful Great Britain. Over the years there were many Hollywood films made based on the revolutionary war, 1776, Revolution, Johnny Tremain, and The Patriot. But, no movie has stirred up as much controversy as the Mel Gibbson movie The Patriot. The patriot is very entertaining but it is historically inaccurate. Too much Hollywood “spices” was added to the movie for viewing pleasures.
Stage, film, and television dancer, director, and choreographer, was born Robert Louis Fosse in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Cyril Kingsley Fosse, a vaudeville entertainer turned salesman, and Sarah Alice Stanton (Grubb). At nine years of age, Fosse began classes in jazz, tap, and ballet at Chicago’s Academy of the Arts. Small and asthmatic, with a speech impediment that caused him to slur words, he later remarked that his early dance training stemmed from a need to overcompensate for his perceived “handicaps” (Gottfried). He was still a child when he headlined his own act—Bobby Fosse’s Le Petit Cabaret—tap dancing and telling jokes in local nightclubs.
Alvin was born during the Great Depression to two working class parents in Rogers, Texas. His father abandoned the family when Alvin was a mere six months old, leaving him and his mother with the struggle of fending for themselves. The inability for Alvin’s mother to find work led to their move to California in 1942, where Alvin was introduced by a classmate to the most influential person that would be the foundation for his future successful career in modern dance, Lester Horton (DeFrantz 1). Alvin was captivated by Lester’s work, which focuses on building a strong body, and made the executive decision to start his dance training in 1949 when he was eighteen years old. Because Lester Horton’s dance company embraced diversity, and accepted dancers of all ethnicities and backgrounds, Alvin was given the opportunity to do something great with his
Slowly she asked "Is anyone there?" as she walked down the dark deserted road. When she heard a loud sound she turned abruptly trying again "Hello?" Met with only silence she picked up here pace almost running down the dirt road. Her nerves had just began to calm when she heard "WRRRREEENNNNNRRRRRRR" as a chainsaw started behind her. Running she started looking behind her hoping that whoever it was, wouldn’t catch her. With her lack of concentration she tripped over her high heels and face plants into the dirt, giving the murderer a chance to catch up. Slowly he lowered the chainsaw and began cutting --CUT -- This is a common plot used in horror movies today. Movies have changed over the years. They were different five years ago, fifty years ago, and even a almost a century ago. Technologies have unthinkable things possible. They have allowed us to re-sink "the unsinkable ship." They have allowed us to see dinosaurs in all their brutal glory. We have seen imaginary creatures, only ever mentioned in stories brought to life. Movies have moved so far from the 1920's and 1930's. They have developed ideals, rules and even standards; but where did they begin? Did movies just fall out of the sky? Did they just come into being? No they began slowly, silently moving towards a new era, the era we today call "Pre-code Hollywood"
It’s a dark and rainy night. Our hero is hiding behind a wall with a revolver in hand. A crack of light, illuminates half of his face. He’s shaking nervously because he only has one bullet left. He turns the corner, and a sudden gunshot hits our hero. Who shot him? None other than his partner, who’s secretly in love with the very same dame that our hero fell for. You can consider this an example of a classic film noir ending. Film noir is a term used in cinema to describe a visually styled crime drama. Where did it come from? What are the key elements in a film noir? Why did this kind of cinema emerge when it did? What affect did it have in the film world? And finally, where is film noir now?
Speaking about are and dance style, when Brown went on with his career, he transitioned away from the traditional dancing and singing styles of the time, and helped build the style we now know as “funk”. He had a unique blend ...
Famous choreographer George Balanchine once said, “He is the most interesting, the most inventive, the most elegant dancer of our times” and noted dancer Rudolph Nureyev also said, “He was not just the best ballroom dancer, or tap dancer, he was simply the greatest, most imaginative, dancer of our time.” These famous dancers were referring to Fred Astaire, who has been known as one of the greatest dancers of all time. His light, artistic joyful style of dancing has impacted dance in an extremely unique way. Astaire used techniques in films as well as in dance that have shaped society. Astaire was mostly prominent throughout the 1930s during the Great Depression. Everywhere, Americans were looking for some joy in their lives, and Astaire was able to give them hope in a period of history that lacked optimism. Fred Astaire’s carefree dance movement style and techniques, specifically in the films Swing Time and The Gay Divorcee, help America through the Great Depression and signifies the importance of art in this time period.
Before the Second World War began Hollywood’s purpose lied within entertainment for the American people. After the war started, the main focus shifted to wartime propaganda. Film was used to display the war in a way that did not show its true colors—including the censorship of soldier causalities and other negative connotations that are a simple fact of war. There was even a time in which some actors became better known to America than politians. Through films, Hollywood began to make a statement of their anti-Nazi beliefs. They began to make motion pictures for American recruitment into the Army as well as many that supported the war effort, and intended to make other Americans more aware of the war’s effect on the United States, and how people can get involved. Many European countries banned these Hollywood films, as they began to affect not only America but many other countries that were involved in the war as well.
There are many adaptations and interpretations on how the English arrived to the Americas and established their colonies. The 2005 film “New World”, written and directed by Terrance Malick, is a film based off the English settlers and how they settled in the Americas in 1607, and the forbidden relationship between John Smith and Pocahontas. Although the film highly exaggerates on some scenes in order to make the history seem more interesting, the film still holds most historical accuracy and is an enjoyable film.
Born January 5th, 1931 in Texas, Alvin Ailey was an African-American dancer and choreographer. Leaving Texas to move to Los Angeles, he studied dance under modern choreographer Lester Horton, a teacher and choreographer of a modern dance school and company. He then moved on to pursue broadway, making his debut in Truman Capote’s House of Flowers in 1954, in New York (Alvin Ailey Biography n.d). It was here that he also had to opportunity to study dance with Martha Graham and in 1958 Ailey founded his own dance company, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre (Alvin Ailey Biography n.d). Over the course of his career Ailey both choreographed and danced in his pieces until his death in 1989. Ailey’s pieces include influence of African culture, most evident in his piece Revelations (1960). Studying this particular piece of work over the course of five weeks I saw that it
It is no doubt that Martin Scorsese has heavily influenced the emulating of American film making from European influences. He is a prime example of a ‘New Hollywood Cinema’ director, not only from his ethnicity and background, but from his sheer interest in this form
Not only did he revolutionize the look of musical theatre in the 1950’s through the 80’s, but also his work continuing to influence choreographers as well as filmmakers . One of his famous dances was the “Pajama Game” which was directed by George Abbott. Fosse’s signature style was instantly popular because of his complex moves and imagery drawn from Vaudeville . His dynamic choreography often showed dark humor and was sharp influenced by his early experiences in Vaudeville and Burlesque. His flashy style of dance was entrancing and showed off his personality . However, he didn't just wear gloves and hats in dancing methods because of style, but he also wore them because of his increasing baldness and insecurity of how his hands looked. Bob Fosse had wrote three additional stage musicals before his death. He survived a heart attack, suffered during rehearsals for Chicago , just to write and choreograph his film “ All that Jazz .” He then died outside of the Willard hotel on September 23 , 1987 in Washington D.C . His reason for death was caused by a heart attack causing him to die before he had even arrived to the hospital . He remains one of the most distinctive and influential choreographers in history , remembered through Broadway revivals and screenings of his hard
He says, “to the audience, dancing might seem to be something for just their eyes but to the dancer, it is something completely different and it is my job to portray that.” When asked what one needs to do to be a great dancer, his response is, “be yourself, embrace yourself and do not be afraid to show the world what is special about you.” He also says, “every dancer has their own unique quality and nothing can change that.”