Ann Miller: "A Man Is A Brother To A Mule" - with link!
Ann Miller: "A Man Is A Brother To A Mule" - with link!
MasterLcZ
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/12/03
#1Ann Miller: "A Man Is A Brother To A Mule" - with link!
Posted: 10/25/07 at 11:05am
From 1946. Right before she taps her way over to MGM.
Choreographed by the great Jack Cole.
Ann at her slinkiest. Chorus boys in the tightest pants.
That's Jack!
Till the music perks up...
That's Annie!
The Thrill Of Brazil!
#2re: Ann Miller: 'Man Is Brother To a Mule'
Posted: 10/25/07 at 7:05pmLink?
MasterLcZ
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/12/03
#2re: Ann Miller: 'A Man Is A Brother To a Mule'
Posted: 10/26/07 at 8:08pm
Aha! I updated my post and the link went pppffft. All fixed.
Thank's for the heads-up,ArtsScallion!
#3re: Ann Miller: 'A Man Is A Brother To a Mule'
Posted: 10/26/07 at 9:22pm
Muchacha caliente santa!!!
Ann Miller is amazing. I think she is truly one of the most under appreciated golden era stars. She shoulda been big, I tell ya!
Gracias, MasterLcZ.
DG
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/2/05
#4re: Ann Miller: 'A Man Is A Brother To a Mule'
Posted: 10/26/07 at 9:34pm
I suppose it's a toss-up between her and Eleanor Powell as to who's the greatest female tapper. I just love her.
And, although I can't claim much objectivity - it's in my gay manual that I like her - she seems like a pretty accepted and recognized star to me!
Miss.Vanessi
Stand-by Joined: 1/1/07
#5re: Ann Miller: 'A Man Is A Brother To a Mule'
Posted: 10/27/07 at 1:28am
She shoulda been big, I tell ya!
I'd imagine Patti LuPone was thinking the exact opposite about Annie's trademark wigs when she had to sit behind her at the Tonys.
Anyway, I think, when compared to some other MGM musical stars, Ann Miller is one of the most recognizable. In her day, she should have been cast in less second lead roles, sure, but being her own personal PR system for nearly 50 years paid off for her in the end.
#6re: Ann Miller: 'A Man Is A Brother To a Mule'
Posted: 10/27/07 at 9:12am
Ann changed studios several times during her career, which is why she isn't often recognized as one of the biggy movie stars of the Golden Age. That, plus the fact that she seldom played leading roles in A-list movies. She was usually the second or third female lead.
She started out at RKO (lying about her age by 3 years). She was 15 and told them she was 18, so she could work regulary and get better roles. Her first big breaks there were in Stage Door and then (on loan-out) in You Can't Take It With You. After she left RKO, she made a bunch of B-movie musicals for Columbia. Then, finally in 1948 she arrived at the studio where she SHOULD have been from the start: MGM. They tried her out on one film "Easter Parade," and quickly signed her to a contract. That's where she made her most memorable and widely recognized films.
I would say she was "second" to Eleanor Powell, for two main reasons: Eleanor was a big star and a leading lady in films, not a second banana, and she paved the way over a full decade before Ann Miller came along and established herself as "tops in taps."
I like 'em both, truthfully. It's like comparing Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire. Why bother?
They're both the best.
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
#7re: Ann Miller: 'A Man Is A Brother To a Mule'
Posted: 10/27/07 at 9:19am
What a great clip, too, BTW!
I love seeing Fosse's biggest influence as a choreographer. You can see the genesis of where he got many of his steps and movement from.
Pretty brilliant. So's Annie's big tap break! Her feet were smokin'.
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
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