WSS Film Trivia

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 8:02pm

Watching a new DVD I just got , All Singing All Dancing which is great

One little bit of trivia was that originally the role of Tony in the film version of WSS was to go to, are you ready for this, Elvis. His manager, Colonel Tom Parker, turned it down as he did not want him playing a hoodlum.Imagine the movie if he had played it.

It also has interviews with, among other Rita Moreno & George Chakiris. Many careers went nowhere after WSS. Besides Chakiris nothing happened for Tamblyn & Beymer.

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 8:03pm

Yeah, because nobody had ever heard any of these things before...

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 8:05pm

Did you take an extra nasty pill today? Chill out son. Maybe not everyone is as smart & brilliant as you are.

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 8:07pm

I think I might have ODd on nasty pills.

Say, do you ever get the feeling that your hands are made of sand...?
...no, grandma, no! No! No! Don't you remember Paris? Don't you remember Paris, George?

[AndAllThatJazz22]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 8:09pm

Thanks roxy,

We didn't know this or anything.

[Drunk Chita Rivera]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 8:10pm

Shut up PiraguaGuy2! Who do you think you are acting like that. You have no right to be that nasty. I in fact did not know that and was very interested to hear. Thank you Mr Roxy!

[dramamama611]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 8:10pm

I had never heard that Elvis was wanted for the role!

This goes with the same imaginings as if Shirley Temply played Dorothy in Wizard of Oz!!!

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 8:11pm

[BNN]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 8:28pm

In the beginning of the Promenade, Velma goes the wrong way in the circle, and I laugh everytime.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 8:39pm

Elvis was among a long list of 'in consideration' to play Tony. He was just a name on a list and was never anywhere NEAR actually getting cast in the role. Colonel Parker's comments were just that -- comments.

Among the many on that list were: Warren Beatty (Natalie Wood's co-star in SPLENDOR IN THE GRASS), Bobby Darin, Tab Hunter, Anthony Perkins and a slew of others.

I have the casting notes by Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise and the list is quite interesting, but again... they're just names on a 'in consideration' list.

Robbins fought quite hard for Chita (for Anita) but after her screen-test was shown it was quite obvious the camera and her did not get along. She did her screen-test while BYE BYE BIRDIE was doing its out-of-town run.

[Weez]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 8:47pm

nothing happened for Tamblyn & Beymer

I hasten to point out that 'Twin Peaks' isn't exactly nothing. And I LOVE that both these men were in it. XD

[vfd88]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 8:53pm

BNN - I notice that too! It's hilarious, and I always thought it was intentional.

[Boq101]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 9:59pm

Anthony Perkins should have had the role.

Maybe it's because I have a complete crush on pictures of him from back then.

I hate the guy in the film, wanna push him and Natalie Wood off the fire escape...

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 11/10/08 at 12:40am

"Anthony Perkins should have had the role."
Amen to that
It would have been a totally different film.

From Presley bios and Wood's also,
Elvis would have done the role if the Colonel hadn't steped in.
And that too would have been a totally different film.

Beymer was always the odd guy out in this film.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 11/10/08 at 1:32am

Posted: 11/10/08 at 4:06am

What's All Singing, All Dancing?

I love Anthony Perkins but I don't think he'd suit WSS--Beymer already is a bit too much of a wuss for the role, really.

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/10/08 at 9:06am

Tamblyn and Beymer were both regulars on the TV series Twin Peaks.

And the biggest competition for Beymer (as Tony) was Warren Beatty. Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins actually went to see the daily rushes for "Splendor In the Grass" to check out Beatty on film, and see if he was right.

That's how they found Natalie Wood quite accidentally for Maria. Beatty didn't register on them much that day, because they were too busy looking at Natalie.

[??]

Posted: 11/10/08 at 9:18am

Elvis Presley was actually quite an intuitive and an excellent actor. Had he not have been booked into a string of 60's, quick cash, movie musicals - I believe he would have proven himself quite capable. He was the original choice to play opposite Streisand is the "Star is Born" remake. The role was offered yet Tom Parker turned it down simply because he wouldn't get top billing. What a shame, for both us and Elvis as it was probably his last chance to break the concert routine.

Anyway, back to WSS. If you watch Elvis's early films, particular King Creole and Jailhouse Rock, he really shows some serious acting chops (King Creole was originally written for James Dean). I really think he would have made an excellent Tony, and, and this may be a huge uproar to some, I believe he would have completely wiped the floor with anyone vocally.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 11/10/08 at 10:11am

The CORRECT title is: HOLLYWOOD SINGING AND DANCING: A MUSICAL HISTORY. It has already aired on PBS and was released 10/14/08 as a 2-disc Special Edition on standard DVD. It runs 150 minutes, so it is quite extensive.

Here is the backcover info:

Hollywood Singing And Dancing: A Musical History is perhaps the most entertaining and comprehensive film about the Hollywood musical ever produced. This celebration of song and dance begins with Busby Berkeley's exquisite black and white choreographed extravaganzas that lightened the dark days of the Depression, continues through the rousing wartime songfests into the heyday of the great MGM spectaculars, and on to the present day, exploring recent smash hits like CHICAGO and DREAMGIRLS. Hosted by Academy Award winning stage, screen and television icon, Shirley Jones, it is a wonderfully entertaining historical document illustrated by extraordinary clips and fabulous interviews.

[WOSQ]

Posted: 11/10/08 at 10:26am

Russ Tamblyn didn't need to go anywhere because he was coming from somewhere. He and Natalie Wood were the names in the cast. Tamblyn was already an Oscar nominee and had been one of the "Seven Brothers". He had a career already. If anything he was a bit long in the tooth to play Riff.

And nothing set my little 11 year old heart aflutter more than George Chakiris in those tight tight jeans.

Poor Richard Beymer. He had major roles in several big releases and audiences did not cotton to him at all. West Side Story, Five Finger Exercise, Hemingway's Adventures of a Young Man, The Stripper and then he essentially disappeared.

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/10/08 at 11:21am

Beymer was in the film of "The Diary of Anne Frank" too.

And the producers were nervous about having all "no name dancers" in the supporting roles, so they pushed hard for Russ Tamblyn and Rita Moreno. Both were thought to be too old, especially Rita, who was 30. But they were spending a lot of money on the film and wanted a few recognizable faces in it.

Natalie was a star, so they were fine there (and very grateful that she wanted to do it).

Richard Beymer was an up-and-coming actor. He'd had a few decent roles, but he wasn't a "name" by any means. Just someone new on the scene who was showing a lot of promise (which was the same status Warren Beatty had at that time).

Rita wasn't a big star either, but she was a solid supporting player in films, with featured roles in Singin' in the Rain and The King and I (particularly) under her belt. The big trick there was convincing them that she didn't look too old.

Russ Tamblyn had been a solid regular at MGM with work in Father of the Bride, Seven Brides, Hit the Deck and a starring role in Tom Thumb. But he had recently (three years earlier) been nominated for an Oscar for Peyton Place. They had to dub him in WSS, since he didn't sing (with Tucker Smith, incidentally, who also played Ice in the movie).

And George Chakiris had been a chorus dancer in many films (White Christmas, There's No Business Like Show Business, Brigadoon, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes), as well as Broadway shows. He worked regularly, but no one really knew who he was, back then. He was a "no name dancer" that stepped out of the chorus to win an Oscar for this movie!

Updated On: 11/10/08 at 11:21 AM

[PalJoey]

Posted: 11/10/08 at 11:59am

In the beginning of the Promenade, Velma goes the wrong way in the circle, and I laugh everytime.

I always assumed it was intentional too. As Graziella says, "I and Velma AIN'T DUMB!"

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/10/08 at 12:02pm

I kinda hate it when everything is done perfectly.

This is a dance, where the kids are playing a game they've never played before and don't really want to play it.

If they looked like they all knew exactly what they were doing right then, I'd call THAT a mistake.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 11/10/08 at 12:28pm

Exactly.

Its right up there with Sheila in A CHORUS LINE missing steps during the opening audition.

That's exactly why Robbins blocked the Promenade that way. Watch it again and it clearly shows Velma totally NOT wanting to go along with this whole thing (continually looking at Graziella; hands on the hips, etc.). Robbins had her start in the wrong direction to simply pull focus to the sequence, etc. Her attitude is reflected quite overtly, even when the music ends and she's facing Bernardo. Her stepping back and away from Bernardo speaks volumes. This prompts everyone else to reach out for their original partners and not the ones they were facing when the music stopped. These little tiny visual details are what singled-out Jerome Robbins and even Bob Fosse with their choreographic styles.

What you guys thought for years to simply be a faux pas was always intended. Sorry, fellas.

Watch it AGAIN: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=II2uaRmlQNg

[Trish2]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 12:02am

True, Chakiris was just a chorus dancer before he hit it with WSS. But, you can certainly see his potential in the production numbers in WHITE CHRISTMAS. Of all the dancers, he stands out the most-amazing charisma.