Yesterday we saw fragments of the lost 1918 version of ‘Salome’ starring Theda Bara. Today we jump ahead thirty-five years (it feels like thirty-five centuries) to the 1953 version starring Rita Hayworth. Above I’ve posted the ‘Dance of the Seven Veils’ scene which was choreographed by Valerie Bettis, a well
Let’s keep this short (work-wise) and lovely (in every other way) week simple. I’m going to post only Fred Astaire dance numbers all week, specifically ones that might be a bit more obscure to those who mostly know the Ginger Rogers-era Fred. He made two movies with Rita Hayworth–”You’ll Never
Tough guy actor George Raft began his career in the cabarets of Times Square in the 1920s as a ‘hoofer’, period slang for a male dancer who didn’t specialize in formal dance. Hoofers were a breed unto themselves, generally self-taught street-wise kids whose athleticism and panache could land them in
Jerry Lewis’s ‘The Ladies Man’ (1961) is one of his most inventive and, simultaneously, unfunny films. Indeed, most of the comedy falls flat because of the films stylistic advances and ideas, which conversely still feel fresh, interesting and even startlingly good. The big deal in this movie is the massive