Times Staff Writer. OConnor is a dynamite entertainer as he performs a remarkably gymnastic roller-skate dance routine with some assistance from Corcoran, for the 1953 film I Love Melvin. Country Living editors select each product featured. musical work is probably. Berlin had pitched the song to him with childlike eagerness, but OConnor pretended to waffle on it until he could surprise the composer with the finished routine. His childrenquietly auctioned off his belongings to the public. He subsequently focused on theatre work and his nightclub act, performing in Las Vegas. Stage O'Connor and some dance assistants strung together a series of O'Connor's funniest pratfalls and schtick. In one number,he strives to conceal his frustration with the live bandwhenthe intro isnt gelling, but theres a hint of steel in his mild-mannered rebuke: Wait for me, will you please?, OConnors TV career would fizzle in parallel with his film career. [24] Arthur Lubin, who directed the series, later recalled that O'Connor "got very difficult" to work with after a while. "[37], In 1998, he received a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs, California, Walk of Stars. September 27, 2003 / 9:06 PM / AP Entertainer Donald O'Connor, who combined comedy and acrobatics in the show-stopping "Make 'Em Laugh" number in the classic movie "Singin' in the Rain," died. One by one, the collectible items found a homea baby grand piano, a Rolls Royce, tap shoes, memorabilia. [4], O'Connor later said, "I was about 13 months old, they tell me, when I first started dancing, and they'd hold me up by the back of my neck and they'd start the music, and I'd dance. Cagney_Seen. He maintained his high standards of excellence through the 60s, as evidenced in some rare clips thathave surfaced on Youtube. All Kelly had to do was let him loose on a roomful of props, with two personal assistants writing down which bits made them laugh hardest. He spent his childhood . I capture your attention without giving you time to think about it. He somehow managed to pull it off, though not without a degree of minor consequence (per IMDb). You could do that with any kid, only I got paid for it.. In a baffling move, this film also paired OConnor with none other than Marilyn Monroe. Apparently, the iconic choreographer was quite the exacting director. What was that?" Singin in the Rain from the movie Singin in the Rain 1952. (May 25, 1997). After all of that work, Kelly, who was also the film's co-director, ended up selecting the first take for the finished movie. I didn't have a short cut like the other dancers do. "I was smoking four packs of cigarettes a day then, and getting up those walls was murder,"O'Connor said while reflecting upon the scene and its staggering effect upon him. He was famous for his versatility, knack for physical comedy and acrobatic dancing style. He began appearing regularly on television. 54th Academy Awards. In any case, O'Connor's execution of "Make 'Em Laugh" and overall contribution to "Singin' in the Rain" as a whole distinguished him as one of the greatest physical comedians and performers of the past century. Fans filed through the estate sale by the thousands. "We really didn't have a choice; if you were in the family you appeared in the act. OConnor comes in as the priestand rebukesthe father sternly, but without ever raising his voice. Written by Arthur Freed and Nacio Herb Brown, [1] the song is closely based on Cole Porter 's "Be a Clown" from the Freed-produced 1948 MGM . Donald OConnor was the last of the song and dance men. You could do that with any kid, only I got paid for it. Bergan, Ronald. That year marked the beginning of his accelerated descent into full-blown alcoholism. Scott, John L. Los Angeles Times 1 Mar 1959: f3. One of his finest TV moments was a guest appearance on the Bell Telephone Hour in which he demonstrated thehistoryoftap dancing, by then itselfa fading art: Ever the gentleman on stage,he was prompt to deflect applause away from himself, commenting at the end of one live number, You know, Ive never learned howto dance without getting out of breath, isnt that ridiculous? In one tense scene, Daileys father character smacked OConnor as the bad boy who comes home drunk. . When Lockwood becomes attracted to young. O'Connor was almost broke. After Francis Covers the Big Town (1953), Universal put O'Connor in a musical in colour, Walking My Baby Back Home (1953) with Janet Leigh. Itwas like the audience wanted to hang on forever to great performers and delightful memories from the golden age of song-and-dance. But in 1998, anothershow-stoppingconcert runwith the Palm Springs Follies nearly killed the consummate entertainer when he came down with viral pneumonia. OConnor married his second wife, actress Gloria Noble, in 1956; they remained together until his death in 2003. Finally, the studio paired O'Connor opposite their biggest female star, Deanna Durbin, in Something in the Wind (1947). His best-known musical work is probably Singin in the Rain 1952 in which he did an impressive dance that culminated in a series of backflips off the wall. Ittook an extra specialty dancer to helpcover all the numbers. That film featured his widely known rendition of "Make 'Em Laugh", which he choreographed with help from the assistant dance directors and his brother. Born into a vaudeville family OConnor was the youthful figure cutting a rug in several Universal musicals of the 1940s. and shoved his tongue down my throat."Eeew! Unfortunately for the OConnor family world events often coincided with terrible personal losses requiring Donald to assume adult responsibilities at a. Donald OConnor performs Make em Laugh a hilarious number from Singing in the Rain the 1952 musical. Director: William A. Wellman | Stars: Gary Cooper, Ray Milland, Robert Preston, Brian Donlevy Votes: 6,231 Beau Geste as a Child 11. Reynolds wrote: 'The camera closed in. IN STEP WITH: Donald O'Connor He would never look back again. O'Connor was still making public appearances well into 2003. The New York Times, 8 Feb 1944: 12. 62, Iss. Download 'Symphony No.9 in E minor Opus 95 (2)' on iTunes, 11 June 2021, 17:23 | Updated: 11 June 2021, 17:27. However, Donen recalled, the resulting number was "100% plagiarism. Thank you sir. The routine tooka heavy tollon OConnors body. It was just oh so laborious for me. [8][9] In a 2002 interview, Betty Comden recalled, "How [Freed] could have written it in the first place and not realized is still a mystery. So I loved musicals. Obituaries: Donald O'Connor, 78, comic and dancer ", "AFI List of Top 100 Songs From U.S. Anonymous. "[5], Contrasting the Vaudevillian style of dance with that of ballet and musicals he observed, "All hoofers, they dance from the waist down. His son Fred later recalled, I was very blessed to have my dad as my dad We were never without anything, and the things we really wanted, he told us These are things that you have to work for. And Im glad he did. Daughter Alicia fondly remembered how he would delight the children with quicksilver impressions, saying that You never knew who was coming to dinner. But as OConnor danced closer tothe line between drinker and alcoholic, he fought a rising fear that like his father and brother, hewould not live to the age of 50. Effie also stopped O'Connor from learning hazardous dance routines, and made sure she always knew where he was when he wasn't performing. In Its Always Fair Weather Gene Kelly did a tap dance on roller skates but he wasnt. Donald O'Connor Returns to Universal Classic FM Requests Unfortunately,as thesong-and-dance musical itself faded out of style, this was not to be. Upon O'Connor's return from military service Universal did not know what to do with their young star. The Brussels Symphony Orchestra recorded some of his work, and in 1956 he conducted the Los Angeles Philharmonic in a performance of his first symphony, Reflections d'Un Comique.[26]. He bought a theatre, the Donald O'Connor Theatre, and would perform in it with his children. I hope so." I loved vaudeville. '"[10], Last edited on 18 February 2023, at 04:20, "Aren't the show tunes "Be a Clown" and "Make 'Em Laugh" suspiciously similar? "[5], When O'Connor was only two years old, he and his seven-year-old sister, Arlene, were hit by a car while crossing the street outside a theater in Hartford, Connecticut; Donald survived, but his sister died. However, the art of song and dance had its pioneers long before Kaufman ever stepped up before a crowd. In 1975, the BBC asked Donald OConnorif the musical was dead. Characters were ordinary people expressing their feelings, not entertainers putting on a show. He is the only one actually dancing in the scene, so the task of amusing the audience essentially fell solely upon him. [29], He did episodes of Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre, Vacation Playhouse, ABC Stage 67 and The Jackie Gleason Show. They are provided in a historical context. When asked how he came to dance as he did in Singin in the Rain, he explained that actor Gene Kelly, who co-directed and starred in the classic 1952 film, told him he could do anything he wanted. The live audiences created a certain spontaneity. O'Connor and Carter's marriage, however, had been strained for some time and ended soon after. When you grow up in a circus family, the more things you learn, the more you get paid. O'Connor and Ryan both had cameos in Universal's all-star Follow the Boys (1944). Donald O'Connor to Marry. (Photo by John Swope/Getty Images) Save. Hang on to your chairs and lamps. I've heard laughter and applause and known a lot of sorrow. He painfullydisappointeda full house in March of 1979 when he was given only 7 days to rehearse for The Music Man. After desperately skipping and improvising his way through Weve Got Trouble, he stopped the conductor: This is such a lovely song, I hate to louse it up. Two Broadway flops followed in quick succession. One of his last public appearances was a press conference in2002, held in conjunction withthe 50th anniversary release ofSingin in the Rain. Hewas finally free from the clutches ofUniversalPictures, having refused to make one more Francis picture until theyreleased him. In real life, OConnor was still under the illusion that he could manage his own. YOUNG DONALD O'CONNOR MAKES GOOD IN VIDEO a list of 22 titles. Back Stage; New York Vol. It was the early 1950s, and I was an innocent kid who had never been French-kissed. "They had to bank one wall so I could make it up and then through another wall. Just watching him in thisskitwith a French charm consultant is like watching the beta version of Mork from Ork. In retrospect, the film might have been more fittingly titled The Donald OConnor Story, as it eerily foreshadowedthe actors own future. O'Connor was billed fourth in Million Dollar Legs (1939) with Betty Grable. And the more pleased an audience is, the more energy I get from it and give back to the audience., OConnor savored the 90s like a long, loving goodbye. So, when the music came on, he made it up and the dance flowed out of him. Films", ""Be A Clown" and "Make 'Em Laugh:" Comic Timing, Rhythm, and Donald O'Connor's Face", "Singin' in the Rain: A Conversation with Betty Comden and Adolph Green", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Make_%27Em_Laugh&oldid=1140046445, This page was last edited on 18 February 2023, at 04:20. Here-married in 1956, to Gloria Noble. All throughout, the then 27-year-old actor can be seen leaping, tumbling, falling, flying, and frolicking across the set in an elaborate dance routine that demanded some serious fluidity and precision. A few weeks later, his father died of a heart attack while dancing on stage in Brockton, Massachusetts. It was just a fact. That number, along with the cheerily strutted "Good Morning," danced with Debbie Reynolds and Kelly, and the vaudeville-inspired "Fit As a Fiddle (And Ready for Love)" danced with Kelly, rewarded him with a Golden Globe Award (over Kelly) for his performance. Weekend All Things Considered; Washington, D.C.: 1. His best-known musical work is probably Singin' in the Rain (1952), in which he did an impressive dance that culminated in a series of backflips off the wall. He wrote tohis daughter Alicia, telling her about the other recovering addicts he had met, 13-year-olds in worse shape than he was. He was billed fifth in Sing You Sinners (1938) playing Bing Crosby's and MacMurray's younger brother.[10]. Donald was honored with a retrospective at New York's Lincoln Center and an honorary degree from Boston University. Hopper, Hedda. Both the O'Connors struggled to remember where and when exactly Donald was born, due to the family's extensive travel. Born into a vaudeville family, O'Connor was the youthful figure cutting a rug in several Universal musicals of the 1940s. He spent the years giving back through quiet philanthropic work, helping anyone from other alcoholicsto people seeking abreak in show business. Antonin Dvorak (1948), Feudin', Fussin' and A-Fightin' (1948), and Yes, Sir, That's My Baby (1949); and these led to Francis (1949), a potboiler about an Army private who finds he is the only person who can carry on a conversation with an otherwise taciturn mule; the film proved to be a big hit with the kids and led to five sequels. One of OConnors most memorable moments tap dancing on television is The Bell Telephone Hours Song and Dance Man Broadcast on NBC-TV January 16 1966 this mini-musical history of tap dance in America opened with OConnor as host dancing an Irish jig Scottish reel Spanish zapateada and German spatlasse followed by a softshoe dance and. [17] O'Connor's unassuming yet extreme athleticism is on full display, with the number featuring dozens of jumps, pratfalls, and two backflips launched by running halfway up a wall. In the divorce Carter was given ownership of their home and custody of their daughter. According to Britannica, Donald O'Connor ("Singin' in the Rain") was "reportedly able to dance before he could stand up straight, to sing before he developed a vocabulary, and to play several musical instruments before he learned to read music." The item was OConnors personal Bible. (Candid footage of the reception shows OConnor surreptitiously piling an extra slice of cake on the boys plate.) DONALD O'CONNOR'S MUSICAL JOURNEY KEEPS HIM ON ROAD: [SPORTS FINAL, CN Edition] So I can do straight comedy without the song and dance; I can do all kinds of combinations. She has good timing and a puckish grin. [9], O'Connor signed a contract at Paramount Studios. He was in Sons of the Legion (1938), then had the second lead in a B-picture, Tom Sawyer, Detective (1938), playing Huckleberry Finn opposite Billy Cook's Tom Sawyer. The OConnor Born in 1925 Donald OConnors life spanned the 20th Century with its depressions wars and social upheavals. Donald . I went through the booze bit. Los Angeles Times 3 July 1976: b4. He was meant to play Bing Crosby's partner in White Christmas (1954). He became one of the rotating hosts of The Colgate Comedy Hour and starred in three different incarnations of The Donald O'Connor Show for NBC in 1951 and 1954-55, for which he was nominated for an Emmy (1952) and received the Emmy Award for Outstanding Personality (1953). Scott, John L. Los Angeles Times 12 Apr 1973: g21. He also turned in an impressive bit of serious acting on the cop showPolice Story. [12], He, Ryan, and the Andrews Sisters were in Private Buckaroo (1942) and Give Out, Sisters (1942); then he was co-starred opposite Jean in four films: Get Hep to Love (1942), When Johnny Comes Marching Home (1943), It Comes Up Love (1943), and School for Jive, which showed O'Connor to such good advantage that he became the focal point of the film, retitled Mister Big (1943). Thats beautiful. Quite simple to do rather spectacular., OConnors work in the film has fallen into Kellys shadow over the years,but the critics favored him at the time, andhe stole theGolden Globe for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy right from under Kellys nose. In the late 1950s he began guest starring on shows like Playhouse 90, The DuPont Show of the Month, and The Red Skelton Hour. In 1992, hereleased an instructional tap dance video where he swapped stories and steps with the old, old masters. He continued to perform live.[38]. The dancer was paralyzed from the waist down, but recovered by way of physical therapy. Dale, Steve. Assistants carried her to her dressing room, and doctors put her on bed rest for two days. The Buster Keaton Story was quietly swept under the rug and forgotten, and yet it remains my personal favorite Donald OConnor performance. Unfortunately for the O'Connor family, world events often coincided with terrible personal losses, requiring Donald to assume adult responsibilities at a very young age. A quote from that year sounds uncannily familiar as OConnor describes his own style:Im an illusionist a trickster who quick-changes before your eyes. He chose to keep much of his philanthropy work private. All the while, O'Connor frantically belts his heart out, delivering a supercharged ditty without missing a single note. He also appeared in several productions of Little Me. Como Foi Feita A Famosa Cena De Fred Astaire Dancando Nas Paredes Em Royal Wedding Fred Astaire Danca Fred, Dance On The Ceiling Fred Astaire Fred Astaire Fred Astaire Dancing Tap Dance, Cycling of nitrogen and oxygen that contributes 78 of atmos, He came to fame in a series of films in which he co-starred, What Is The Difference Between E Commerce And, Im going to be doing something a little different this colu, Avoidance of verbal orders for high-alert medicines 4. O'Connor and Ryan were in Top Man (1943), with Susanna Foster, and Chip Off the Old Block (1944), with Ann Blyth. For Singin' in the Rain, however, MGM cultivated a much more sympathetic sidekick persona, and that remained O'Connor's signature image. Fred Astaire Donald OConnor and the queen Cyd Charisse. Herattempts to browbeat and dominate him gradually formed a vicious cycle with his tendency to alcohol abuse. Watch in awe as one of the worlds greatest entertainers, Donald OConnor, tap dances on roller skates just because he can. Apparently, the scene was so physically distressing for the actor, he retired to a hospital bed for three whole days in order to recover from it (via IMDb). Heoften singled these out as his best workand praisedEllen warmly,recallingthat every move we did meant something., Donald barely missed another chance to star opposite Ellen, as Bing Crosbys pal in White Christmas. OConnor still recalled these stunts with pride decades later, even calling up a good friend late one night to offer running phone commentary for a TV showing. The sequencefeaturesO'Connor as the prime subject with very few auxiliary performers contributing to the spectacle. Though Reynolds was accomplishedher song "Aba Daba Honeymoon" from the 1950 movie Two Weeks With Love was a No.3 hitshe had no training in dance. Disillusionment came swiftly. Donald OConnor 1959 doing his eccentric athletic comic dancing and singing. And then, I became what's known as a total dancer. (OConnor: They dont write songs like that anymore! Garland: I think they passed a law against it.) But you can sense that OConnor is slightly on edge throughout. The New York Times described it as one of Hollywoods finest dance moments. " Make 'Em Laugh " is a song first featured in the 1952 MGM musical film Singin' in the Rain, performed by Donald O'Connor as the character Cosmo Brown. In the wake of this career setback, OConnor was hit with another tragic personal blow in the death of his only surviving brother, Jack. "Gene said, 'Do you think you could do that number again?" The whole hour is pure gold. And when I learned that Fred Astaire had once danced up the walls and across the ceiling it dazzled me once again. O'Connor third billed in both Boy Trouble (1939) and Unmarried (1939), playing John Hartley as a young boy in the latter. Watch, itll be marvelous. Like an old show-horse breaking out of his stall to get back to work, he couldnt stop performing. I did triple wings and everything. Obituary: Donald O'Connor: Dynamic dancer and comedian "It's so wonderful if your whole day is rotten, once they start the music, it seems to melt away," the actor once said (per Brainy Quote). With the decline of the studio system by the end of the decade, O'Connor launched himself into the television industry. Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world. Ironically, his character was fighting drug addiction. She did her best. Donald O'Connor Stars in 'Little Me' Donald David Dixon Ronald O'Connor, 30 August 1925, Chicago, Illinois, USA, d. 27 September 2003, Calabasas, California, USA. While it certainly got him down in real life, he was back at it after the three days of rest had restored him to proper health. The actor's lungs were hardly suited for the endurance that "Make 'Em Laugh" required. He appeared in Men with Wings (1938), directed by William Wellman, as Fred MacMurray's character as a boy. With a backlog of seven features, deferred openings kept O'Connor's screen presence uninterrupted during the two years he was overseas with Special Services in the U.S. Army Air Forces. He had guest roles in Murder, She Wrote, Tales from the Crypt, The Building, The Nanny and Frasier, and was in the films Bandit: Bandit's Silver Angel (1994), and Father Frost (1996). O'Connor was stunned at the insignificance of the gift after all the millions of dollars he had made for the studio, and in later life recalled, "What can I say about these people?". a list of 43 titles. Of all the famous dance partners choreographer-director Gene Kelly worked with, Jerry, the superimposed cartoon mouse from 1945's Anchors Aweigh, was his favorite. But OConnor marched on undaunted. His father, John Edward "Chuck" O'Connor, was an acrobat with Ringling-Barnum and Bailey Circus; his mother, Effie, was a circus bareback rider and dancer. If you buy from a link, we may earn a commission. It would exact heavy professional and personal costs. With a happy second marriage and a growing new family, it seemed that he had landed on his feet. And that's quite old for someone to start dancing real heavy, professionally. Chicago Born Donald O'Connor Is a Veteran of Stage and Films at 25 We filmed that whole sequence in one day. O'Connor is a dynamite entertainer as he performs a remarkably gymnastic roller-skate dance routine with some assistance from Corcoran, for the 1953 film I Love Melvin. He instantly picks it up and embraces her with a kiss. He can dance, he can sing, he can act, and he can spout humor, but not yet with the finesse of a veteran. They were billed as the O'Connor Family, the Royal Family of Vaudeville. 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