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1-11 of 11
- Additional Crew
- Director
- Music Department
Busby Berkeley was one of the greatest choreographers of the US movie musical. He started his career in the US Army in 1918, as a lieutenant in the artillery conducting and directing parades. After the World War I cease-fire he was ordered to stage camp shows for the soldiers. Back in the US he became a stage actor and assistant director in smaller acting troupes. After being forced to take over the direction of the musical "Holka-Polka" he discovered his talent for staging extravagant dance routines, and he quickly became one of Broadway's top dance directors. Producer Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. called him to direct the dance routines for his production of "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court". Eddie Cantor, who starred in the long-running Ziegfeld production "Whoopee!", suggested Berkley create the dance routines in the film version )Whoopee! (1930) and Ziegfeld agreed.
At first in Hollywood Berkeley wasn't satisfied with the possibilities of his job--at the time, dance directors trained the dancers and staged the dances. The director chose camera positions and the editor chose which of the takes were shown to the audience. Berkeley wanted to direct the dances himself and convinced producer Samuel Goldwyn to let him try. One of the first chances he took was that he used only one camera in his films. He also showed close-ups of the chorus girls. Asked about this, he explained, "Well, we've got all the beautiful girls in the picture, why not let the public see them?" With the decline of musicals in 1931 and 1932, he was thinking of returning to Broadway when Darryl F. Zanuck, chief producer at Warner Brothers, called him in to direct the musical numbers of Warners' newest project, the backstage drama 42nd Street (1933). Berkeley accepted and directed great numbers like "Shuffle Off To Buffalo", "Young and Healthy" and the grandiose story of urban life, the finale "42nd Street". The film was a smash hit, and Warner Brothers knew who made it such an extraordinary success--Berkeley, as well as composer Harry Warren and lyricist Al Dubin, got seven-year contracts. Berkeley created musical numbers for almost every great musical that Warner Brothers produced from 1933 to 1937. His overhead shots forced him to drill holes in the studio roofs, and he used more dancers with each succeeding picture. However, by the late 1930s the musical was in decline once again, and Berkeley had nothing to do as a choreographer. He directed two non-musical pictures for Warner Brothers then went to MGM, where he choreographed the final number from Broadway Serenade (1939) with Jeanette MacDonald. As a director and choreographer he worked on four pictures with teenage stars Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney. He also choreographed the "Fascinatin' Rhythm" finale for MGM's reigning tapping star, Eleanor Powell in Lady Be Good (1941). He directed Gene Kelly in his first picture, For Me and My Gal (1942). Kelly, who choreographed his own numbers, learned a lot from Berkeley.
Berkeley worked for 20th Century-Fox in The Gang's All Here (1943) with its surrealistic number "The Lady in the Tutti-Frutti Hat". In 1949 he directed his last picture, Take Me Out to the Ball Game (1949), but this time the choreography was by Gene Kelly. Berkeley did a few numbers in the early 1950s but, by the end of the decade, he was all but forgotten. A revival of his films in the late 1960s brought him some popularity and he was asked to return to Broadway and supervise the dance direction in the revival of a Vincent Youmans musical comedy from 1925. One of the actresses in this production was Ruby Keeler, one of his leading ladies in Warner musicals. When the production went on tour in 1972, one of the road cast was Eleanor Powell. The production was a smash hit. When he walked on stage after one opening night, the house exploded with applause.
A strange fact is that Busby Berkeley never had a dancing lesson and, in his early days, was very afraid of people finding out. He often drove his producers crazy when he gave orders to build a set and then sat in front of it for a few days, thinking up the numbers.- Actor
- Art Department
- Set Decorator
El Hedi ben Salem was born on 4 March 1936 in Redeyef, Gafsa, Tunisia. He was an actor and set decorator, known for Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974), The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (1972) and Eight Hours Don't Make a Day (1972). He died on 14 March 1976 in Nîmes, Gard, France.- Jenie Jackson was born on 27 November 1921 in California, USA. She was an actress, known for Ride the High Country (1962), The Wild Wild West (1965) and Tweet's Ladies of Pasadena (1979). She died on 14 March 1976 in Hollywood, California, USA.
- Maude Louis was born on 19 February 1884 in Oregon, USA. She was an actress, known for A Slave of Vanity (1920) and Madame X (1920). She was married to Willard Louis. She died on 14 March 1976 in Glendale, California, USA.
- Thérèse Dorny was born on 18 September 1891 in Paris, France. She was an actress, known for Diabolique (1955), Cognasse (1932) and The Sweetness of Loving (1930). She was married to André Dunoyer de Segonzac. She died on 14 March 1976 in Saint-Tropez, Var, France.
- Writer
- Music Department
Jasimuddin was born on 1 January 1903 in Faridpur, East Bengal, British India. He was a writer, known for Sojan Badiar Ghat, Beder Meye (1969) and Darpan Bishorjon (2016). He died on 14 March 1976 in Dhaka, Bangladesh.- Music Department
- Sound Department
Gerhard Mendelson was born on 4 February 1913 in Berlin, Germany. He is known for Mein Schatz ist aus Tirol (1958), Mein Schatz komm mit ans blaue Meer (1959) and Melodie und Rhythmus (1959). He died on 14 March 1976 in Feldafing, Bavaria, Germany.- Alberta Franklin was born on 20 May 1896 in California, USA. She was an actress, known for The Devil's Trail (1919). She was married to Paul Levy. She died on 14 March 1976 in Mountain View, California, USA.
- Paul Mundorf was born on 10 September 1903 in Essen, Germany. He was an actor, known for Ehen vor Gericht (1970), Kinder der Liebe oder Hulda Schändlinger (1972) and In dieser Hölle (1969). He died on 14 March 1976 in Starnberg, Bavaria, West Germany.
- Writer
- Composer
- Music Department
Walton Farrar was born on 5 March 1918 in Oakland, California, USA. He was a writer and composer, known for Feud of the West (1936), The Beat Generation (1959) and The Gazebo (1959). He died on 14 March 1976 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Production Designer
- Art Director
- Art Department
Willy Schatz was born on 9 July 1903 in St. Petersburg, Russian Empire. He was a production designer and art director, known for The Tiger of Eschnapur (1959), Die vertagte Hochzeitsnacht (1953) and Mistress of the World (1960). He died on 14 March 1976 in Salzburg, Austria.