5 thoughts on “August 23rd – Ranking 40 Gene Kelly Movies on His 107th Birthday”
HI STEVE: I am surprised that you did not let us have a special Kelly video today to join Bruce in the celebration of Gene’s 107th birthday. Here’s Wikipedia’s contribution to the celebration.
“Robert Alda had originated the role of Sky Masterson on Broadway in 1950. For the movie, Gene Kelly at first seemed a serious candidate for the part, but it went to Marlon Brando, partly because MGM would not loan Kelly for the production, but mainly because Goldwyn wanted to cast Brando, the world’s biggest box office draw by a wide margin at that time. The film ended up being distributed by MGM, Kelly’s home studio. Frank Sinatra had coveted the role of Sky Masterson, and relations between him and Brando were strained. Hollywood critic James Bacon quotes Sinatra telling director Joe Mankiewicz, “When Mumbles is through rehearsing, I’ll come out.”
So The Great Mumbler became The Great Dancer [and oh what beautiful clear singing!] and it seems too that Sinatra beat you to the Mumbles tag. As always a Dan-like link can be added to these birthday celebrations because as you no doubt know Eugene directed my Babs in Hello Dolly and my contribution to the party is to invite you to Google “U TUBE – Barbra Streisand sings with Brando in Guys and Dolls.”
BABS: ‘Interestingly, there was a period of 27 years when I didn’t sing in public, because of stage fright, and when I finally did, I created a scenario in which I sang ‘I’ll KNOW’ with Marlon Brando in Guys and Dolls. I put myself in his movie!’ She added: ‘I invited Brando to my house to see the piece, and he made me take him through my entire show. We then watched a movie together. It was wonderful: He was my idol, my biggest crush.’”
As you know own my admiration for Brando as an actor is boundless [and probably only 2nd to my admiration of Jimmy Stewart in the acting stakes as such, and Jimmy entertains me more]. However whist Mr M was OK in the looks department I have never understood his apparently exceptional physical attraction to women because he did not to my eye have the classical good looks of say Valentino, Alexander Archibald Leach or Rock Hudson.
Yet great and/or gorgeous celebs like Monroe, the singer Edith Piaf, Babs, my Joan and Rita Moreno have been identified as or admitted to either being his lovers, having an interest in him and/or [as Bruce puts in on the Rita Morena page] “lusting” after him. [There are opictures on the internet of his socialising with MM] It therefore seems for some reason that if Joel had been a woman maybe even HE would have been attracted to Marlon – and [who knows? ] – suddenly discovered great hidden depths to his acting techniques! Anyway to close this birthday tribute with the lightness of spirit that personified all the great happy feel-good Kelly musicals:
Many happy returns O Great Eugene.
I’ve missed your impish boyishness on screen.
It shines through in every scene,
In happy-go-lucky joviality
And probably accounts for your immortality.
Because on AFI’s list in place 15,
And 4Oth in Bruce’s book you can be seen.
Hey Bob….Steve has a Gene Kelly video….I just added it to our UMR page. Good thoughts on Brando, Moreno, Kelly and Guys and Dolls. It still remains surreal when you mention “my” book. Glad I wrote that book….never thought I would be an author. Good feedback as always.
HI BRUCE:
Thanks for the heads up on Steve’s Gene Kelly video. I can’t recall whether I’ve already seen it as I have now watch so man of Steve’s video. However I am sure it’s worth a 2nd look anyway so I’ll check it out.
Your book is an invaluable reference book which I consult almost daily One of the things that impresses me greatly is that unlike other sources such as AFI your criteria has rightly picked up Crosby, Sinatra, Hope and my Doris as Legends deserving to be ranked; and it excludes much hyped modern figures such as Jennifer Lawrence who can’t seem to consistently open a film that is not part of a self-selling franchise or an ensemble movie. Well done again.
Hi Bob, it might have been better if you posted your comment in the main Gene Kelly page, I think Bruce discards these notifications after a week or so and you’ll lose that entire essay you wrote. [noooooo!]
🙂
I’m not the sentimental type so I don’t wish my film heroes ‘a happy birthday’ decades after they’ve passed on to the great beyond. And I never commemorate their death dates either. Does that make me less of a fan? Probably.
Thanks for the post. And thanks to Bruce for the video share, always appreciated.
Now watch as our comments on this page slowly fade away forever….. [cue sad music]
HI STEVE
Thanks for response. I’ll now transfer my Kelly comment and the exchanges with WH to Eugene’s main page
Charlie Bill Stuart, wherever he is now. might be in a position to appreciate fans still celebrating his birthday. As an actor in his previous life he was aware of for example his life as as slave on a Spanish war galleon hundred of years ago as Judah Ben Hur was on a Roman ship of war.
HI STEVE: I am surprised that you did not let us have a special Kelly video today to join Bruce in the celebration of Gene’s 107th birthday. Here’s Wikipedia’s contribution to the celebration.
“Robert Alda had originated the role of Sky Masterson on Broadway in 1950. For the movie, Gene Kelly at first seemed a serious candidate for the part, but it went to Marlon Brando, partly because MGM would not loan Kelly for the production, but mainly because Goldwyn wanted to cast Brando, the world’s biggest box office draw by a wide margin at that time. The film ended up being distributed by MGM, Kelly’s home studio. Frank Sinatra had coveted the role of Sky Masterson, and relations between him and Brando were strained. Hollywood critic James Bacon quotes Sinatra telling director Joe Mankiewicz, “When Mumbles is through rehearsing, I’ll come out.”
So The Great Mumbler became The Great Dancer [and oh what beautiful clear singing!] and it seems too that Sinatra beat you to the Mumbles tag. As always a Dan-like link can be added to these birthday celebrations because as you no doubt know Eugene directed my Babs in Hello Dolly and my contribution to the party is to invite you to Google “U TUBE – Barbra Streisand sings with Brando in Guys and Dolls.”
BABS: ‘Interestingly, there was a period of 27 years when I didn’t sing in public, because of stage fright, and when I finally did, I created a scenario in which I sang ‘I’ll KNOW’ with Marlon Brando in Guys and Dolls. I put myself in his movie!’ She added: ‘I invited Brando to my house to see the piece, and he made me take him through my entire show. We then watched a movie together. It was wonderful: He was my idol, my biggest crush.’”
As you know own my admiration for Brando as an actor is boundless [and probably only 2nd to my admiration of Jimmy Stewart in the acting stakes as such, and Jimmy entertains me more]. However whist Mr M was OK in the looks department I have never understood his apparently exceptional physical attraction to women because he did not to my eye have the classical good looks of say Valentino, Alexander Archibald Leach or Rock Hudson.
Yet great and/or gorgeous celebs like Monroe, the singer Edith Piaf, Babs, my Joan and Rita Moreno have been identified as or admitted to either being his lovers, having an interest in him and/or [as Bruce puts in on the Rita Morena page] “lusting” after him. [There are opictures on the internet of his socialising with MM] It therefore seems for some reason that if Joel had been a woman maybe even HE would have been attracted to Marlon – and [who knows? ] – suddenly discovered great hidden depths to his acting techniques! Anyway to close this birthday tribute with the lightness of spirit that personified all the great happy feel-good Kelly musicals:
Many happy returns O Great Eugene.
I’ve missed your impish boyishness on screen.
It shines through in every scene,
In happy-go-lucky joviality
And probably accounts for your immortality.
Because on AFI’s list in place 15,
And 4Oth in Bruce’s book you can be seen.
Hey Bob….Steve has a Gene Kelly video….I just added it to our UMR page. Good thoughts on Brando, Moreno, Kelly and Guys and Dolls. It still remains surreal when you mention “my” book. Glad I wrote that book….never thought I would be an author. Good feedback as always.
HI BRUCE:
Thanks for the heads up on Steve’s Gene Kelly video. I can’t recall whether I’ve already seen it as I have now watch so man of Steve’s video. However I am sure it’s worth a 2nd look anyway so I’ll check it out.
Your book is an invaluable reference book which I consult almost daily One of the things that impresses me greatly is that unlike other sources such as AFI your criteria has rightly picked up Crosby, Sinatra, Hope and my Doris as Legends deserving to be ranked; and it excludes much hyped modern figures such as Jennifer Lawrence who can’t seem to consistently open a film that is not part of a self-selling franchise or an ensemble movie. Well done again.
Hi Bob, it might have been better if you posted your comment in the main Gene Kelly page, I think Bruce discards these notifications after a week or so and you’ll lose that entire essay you wrote. [noooooo!]
🙂
I’m not the sentimental type so I don’t wish my film heroes ‘a happy birthday’ decades after they’ve passed on to the great beyond. And I never commemorate their death dates either. Does that make me less of a fan? Probably.
Thanks for the post. And thanks to Bruce for the video share, always appreciated.
Now watch as our comments on this page slowly fade away forever….. [cue sad music]
HI STEVE
Thanks for response. I’ll now transfer my Kelly comment and the exchanges with WH to Eugene’s main page
Charlie Bill Stuart, wherever he is now. might be in a position to appreciate fans still celebrating his birthday. As an actor in his previous life he was aware of for example his life as as slave on a Spanish war galleon hundred of years ago as Judah Ben Hur was on a Roman ship of war.