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Michael Kidd
| Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: Michael Kidd |
| American Theater Guide: Michael Kidd |
Kidd, Michael [né Milton Greenwald] (b. 1919), choreographer and director. Born in New York, he left City College, where he was studying chemical engineering, to become a pupil at a ballet school. He performed with the Eugene Loring Dance Players and the Ballet Theatre before choreographing Finian's Rainbow (1947). His dances were later seen in such musicals as Love Life (1948), Guys and Dolls (1950), Can‐Can (1953), Li'l Abner (1956), Destry Rides Again (1959), Wildcat (1960), Subways Are for Sleeping (1961),
| Dictionary of Dance: Michael Kidd |
Kidd, Michael (b Brooklyn, NY, 12 Aug. 1919). US dancer, choreographer, and director. He studied at the School of American Ballet with Vilzak and Schollar and made his debut in the musical The Eternal Road (1937). He danced with American Ballet and Ballet Caravan (1937-40) then with Loring's Dance Players (1941-2) and with Ballet Theatre (1942-7) where he created a role in Robbins's Interplay (1945) and choreographed his own On Stage! (mus. Dello Joio, 1945). After giving up his career in ballet he became a highly successful choreographer for Broadway and Hollywood, creating the dance and musical numbers for, among others, Finian's Rainbow (1947), Guys and Dolls (1951), Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954), Destry Rides Again (1959), and Hello Dolly! (1969 film version). He also choreographed the television special Baryshnikov in Hollwood (1982).
| Director: Michael Kidd |
- Born: Aug 12, 1915 in Brooklyn, New York
- Died: Dec 23, 2007
- Occupation: Director, Actor
- Active: '30s, '50s-'70s
- Major Genres: Comedy, Musical
- Career Highlights: The Band Wagon, Smile, It's Always Fair Weather
- First Major Screen Credit: Another Dawn (1937)
Biography
American director/choreographer Michael Kidd was deflected from an engineering career when he developed an interest in dance. After a few years of gypsying as a chorus hoofer, Kidd worked his way up to choreographer and presented his first ballet when he was 26. His Broadway work accrued him five Tony Awards, but Kidd's lasting fame is manifested in his film work. Among many other movies, he choreographed Where's Charley? (1952), Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954), Guys and Dolls (1955), Star (1968) and Hello Dolly (1969). In addition to his dance-direction chores, he acted in It's Always Fair Weather (1955), as Gene Kelly's and Dan Dailey's army buddy who becomes a blue-collar husband in civilian life - but not before joining his costars in the fabled "trash can dance." Kidd was grayed up for his role as Pop Popchick in the spoofish Movie, Movie (1978), doubling as choreographer for the climactic "Blansky's Beauties of 1933" sequence. He also was given solo director credit for Merry Andrew (1958), which starred his frequent collaborator Danny Kaye. Michael Kidd's best film role was in Smile (1975) in which he essentially played himself - an outspoken, quick-tempered dance director who was willing to take money out of his own pocket to repair a faulty stage and thus ensure the safety of his dancers. Kidd died at age 92 in late 2007. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide| Filmography: Michael Kidd |
| Wikipedia: Michael Kidd |
| Michael Kidd | |
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| Born | Milton Greenwald August 12, 1915 New York City, New York, USA |
| Died | December 23, 2007 (aged 92) Los Angeles, California, USA |
| Occupation | Choreographer, dancer |
| Spouse(s) | Marie Heater (m.1945) Shelah Hackett (1969-2007) |
Michael Kidd (August 12, 1915 – December 23, 2007) was an American film and stage choreographer.
Contents |
Life and career
Born Milton Greenwald in New York City on the Lower East Side, the son of Abraham Greenwald, an immigrant barber, and his wife Lillian, Michael Kidd moved to Brooklyn with his family and attended New Utrecht High School there. Becoming interested in dance after attending a modern dance performance, he went on to study under Blanche Evan, a dancer and choreographer who was a pioneer in the development of dance therapy. Nonetheless, he pursued chemical engineering at the City College of New York, which he attended from 1936 to mid-1937 before being granted a scholarship to the School of American Ballet.
His work for the 1954 film Seven Brides for Seven Brothers was noted for a series of energetic dances depicting ordinary frontier activities, including a barn raising. He also choreographed Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse in the celebrated Girl Hunt Ballet from the 1953 musical film The Band Wagon.
He was both director and choreographer for the musical comedy film Merry Andrew, starring Danny Kaye.
Kidd's brother was celebrated psychotherapist Dr. Howard Greenwald and he was the uncle of filmmaker and political activist, Robert Greenwald.
Kidd died of cancer at the age 92 at his home in Los Angeles, California
Awards
Kidd won five Tony Awards for choreography, and an honorary Academy Award in 1996 "in recognition of his services to the art of dance in the art of the screen".
Broadway credits
- Filling Station (1939) - ballet - dancer for the role of "The Gangster"
- Billy the Kid (1939) - ballet to the music of Aaron Copland - dancer
- Pocahontas (1939) - ballet to the music of Elliott Carter - dancer cast as an "Indian Man"
- Billy the Kid (1942 revival) - director and dancer
- Interplay (1945) - ballet to the music of Morton Gould and choreography of Jerome Robbins - dancer
- Fancy Free (1946) - ballet the music of Leonard Bernstein and choreography of Jerome Robbins - dancer cast as a "Sailor"
- Finian's Rainbow (1947) - musical - choreographer - Tony Award for Best Choreography
- Hold It! (1948) - musical - choreographer
- Love Life (1948) - musical - choreographer
- Arms and the Girl (1950) - musical - choreographer
- Guys and Dolls (1950) - musical - choreographer - Tony Award for Best Choreography
- Can-Can (1953) - musical - choreographer - Tony Award for Best Choreography
- Li'l Abner (1956) - musical - director, choreographer, and co-producer - Tony Award for Best Choreography
- Destry Rides Again (1959) - musical - director and choreographer - Tony Award Nomination for Best Direction of a Musical and Tony Award for Best Choreography
- Wildcat (1960) - musical - director, choreographer, and co-producer
- Subways Are For Sleeping (1961) - musical - director and choreographer - Tony Award Nomination for Best Choreography
- Here's Love (1963) - musical - choreographer
- Ben Franklin in Paris (1964) - musical - director and choreographer
- Skyscraper (1965) - musical - choreographer - Tony Award Nomination for Best Choreography
- Breakfast at Tiffany's (1966 - never officially opened) - musical - choreographer
- The Rothschilds (1970) - musical - director and choreographer - Tony Award Nominations for Best Direction of a Musical and Best Choreography
- Cyrano (1973) - musical - director and choreographer
- The Music Man (1980 revival) - musical - director and choreographer
- The Goodbye Girl (1993) - musical - Tony Award Nomination for Best Direction of a Musical
References
- Patricia Eliot Tobias (2007-12-24). "Michael Kidd, Choreographer, Dies". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/24/arts/dance/24cnd-kidd.html. Retrieved 2007-12-24.
- Times writers (5 January 2007). "Michael Kidd Obituary". The Times. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article3133344.ece. Retrieved 2008-08-13.
External links
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 | Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more |
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| American Theater Guide. The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. Copyright © 2004 by Oxford University Press, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more |
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| Dictionary of Dance. The Oxford Dictionary of Dance. Copyright © 2000, 2004 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. Read more |
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| Director. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved. Read more |
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Mentioned in
- Li'L Abner (American Theater)
- It's Always Fair Weather (1955 Musical Film)
- Skin Deep (1989 Comedy Film)
- Smile (1975 Comedy Film)
- Li'l Abner [Original Broadway Cast] [Expanded] (2002 Album by Various Artists)
- It's Always Fair Weather [2004 Expanded Edition] (2004 Album by Original Soundtrack)
- It's Always Fair Weather (1955 Album by Original Soundtrack)
- Movie, Movie (1978 Comedy Film)
- The DeMille Dynasty (1998 Film)
- Li'l Abner (Original Broadway Cast Recording) (Classical Album)
- It's Always Fair Weather (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (Classical Album)
- Here's Love (1963 Album by Original Broadway Cast: Laurence Naismith/Craig Stevens/Valerie Lee)
- Arthur Freed (Actor, Musical/Romance)
- Can-Can, musical (Classical Work)
