I am fortunate to have met Gwen Verdon in an airport around 1993. She seemed genuinely touched that I knew her name when I told her I loved her work. She was still slim, beautiful and very gracious.
@sewgatormomm
4 жыл бұрын
So talented at 16! But, wow, the creepiness of that old guy and all those young girls.
@gregoryschmidt1233
3 жыл бұрын
YEah. The "Good old days". yikes.
@lindas.martin2806
3 жыл бұрын
Nothing has changed. :-(
@chiedu90069
5 жыл бұрын
She stands out even at 16.
@cynthianolder8587
5 жыл бұрын
First time I ever saw her do ballet-she was great
@JudgeJulieLit
5 жыл бұрын
Graceful executing traditional moves, but mechanical and predictable as a musicbox figurine.
@pertelote4526
5 жыл бұрын
She was not great, just relatively well trained; take a look at some professional ballet dancers from that era, they were much better. It was not her field of expertise, she excelled at something entirely different.
@joeapple100
5 жыл бұрын
@@pertelote4526 WHAT WAS THAT?
@pertelote4526
5 жыл бұрын
@@joeapple100 If you are asking me what Verdon's professional field of expertise was, take a look at the dance routines choreographed for her by Bob Fosse. She was no Fonteyn, Plisetskaya or Makarova, though; her strength used to lie elsewhere.
@MrCrowebobby
Жыл бұрын
@@joeapple100 She was a famous child tap dancer.
@noelquentin57
Жыл бұрын
By today's standards, this is really creepy, even with the wonderful Gwen Verdon. She was 16 and absolutely looked it, especially compared to the highly stylized, intentionally doll-like chorus girls parading past the old guy singer while he glances at each one until Gwen appears, al youthful innocence and perkiness. - The "male gaze" demonstration and the song lyrics - OMG.
@SilverGram
5 жыл бұрын
She was just perfect.
@donnatlaw6172
3 жыл бұрын
Yes. That's all. Perfect. Sigh...
@prahslra
9 жыл бұрын
Lola's not sure what she wants yet.
@coreycox2345
5 жыл бұрын
Seems correct, Andrew. That came later.
@ginnylorenz5265
3 жыл бұрын
Dear Andrew, 5 years after your comment, you've given me a great laugh. Thank you!!!!!
@erpollock
4 жыл бұрын
She had a glow that was entirely natural, she had sincerity, whereas the showgirls were acting. She was real. And the ballet training! Luckily she found her real talent - or Fosse found it for her.
@mga2890
4 жыл бұрын
Absolutely wonderful and such grace and beauty.
@bobashby3106
3 жыл бұрын
Exactly the sort of number that Sondheim referenced in "Beautiful Girls" near the beginning of "Follies."
@margicates553
3 жыл бұрын
And In the musical singing in the rain
@latejanaurbana1589
5 жыл бұрын
Gwen is perfection.
@memelc5655
3 жыл бұрын
She looked like music box ballerina 🩰 ❤️🙏🏼
@kimsmith1383
5 жыл бұрын
This is AMAZING! 😍 Thank you for sharing this!
@nonenoneonenonenone
6 жыл бұрын
How lovely and classical.
@milesmontemore5060
6 жыл бұрын
Bob Fosse would sometimes call her Miss VerDUN. Now I know why. They misspelled her name in the credits. Thanks.
@lohphat
5 жыл бұрын
It may also be in reference to the WWII battle at Verdun -- they did have some epic quarrels.
@pertelote4526
5 жыл бұрын
@@lohphat The battle was in 1916 :-)
@kimsmith1383
5 жыл бұрын
@@pertelote4526, so, then, it was a battle in WWI.
@angelasieg5099
Жыл бұрын
She was so lovely and talented. Her whole body and every movement is graceful.
@CaresinVerse
5 жыл бұрын
She was great. Hope the singer in the film did not see her as the “girl of his heart”. He looked like he could be her grandfather.
@pertelote4526
5 жыл бұрын
He was 49 at that time.
@kimsmith1383
5 жыл бұрын
He may have only been 49, but she was 16. Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. Ugh. 😱
@HeavenLeeMadeOnEtsy
3 жыл бұрын
Ikr? So creepy. Lol
@Twisterjoe
3 жыл бұрын
HE would have been the Emcee at a follies show. It was not meant that he was cruising the gals, but that he was presenting the girls of memory. Check out "Those Beautiful Girls" from Follies. kzitem.info/news/bejne/jpuV3JOajXSYiGk
@kittkat42
4 жыл бұрын
Okay, Gwen Vernon was the best thing in here. I recognized her right away. She seems really young here and unsure. Everything else seemed forced.
@HeavenLeeMadeOnEtsy
3 жыл бұрын
Yes, I agree. She seemed very awkward, but then again I was a " studio" mom for a good 15 years. This may have been her first " real" job and her nerves where getting the best of her?
@hurricanekate6839
5 жыл бұрын
She's wonderful; the rest is dreadful but it's (presumably) what was popular at the time.
@JudgeJulieLit
5 жыл бұрын
A Busby Berkeleyesque mannequin parade.
@pertelote4526
5 жыл бұрын
@@JudgeJulieLit Such parades of beautiful girls were very common in musicals in the 1940s and 1950s.
@WhiteCamry
4 жыл бұрын
@@pertelote4526 Even before then; Florenz Ziegfeld had such shows on Broadway in the 1910s & 1920s.
@patriciahayes7315
3 жыл бұрын
She was mature looking for a 16-year-old. And you can see that she definitely studied ballet before she moved on to modern dance.
@MrCrowebobby
3 жыл бұрын
She was a child tap dancer even before that.
@hermajesty52
3 жыл бұрын
MOST great jazz/modern dancers have ballet as a base. That is the something extra that makes them so versatile. If you are competent at ballet there is pretty much no genre of dance you cannot do.
@noracharles9366
Жыл бұрын
Gospel truth ❤
@april7619
Жыл бұрын
You are exactly right!!
@victoriavale9902
4 жыл бұрын
The final close up ~Awkward! Neither of them look comfortable. LOL
@latejanaurbana1589
5 жыл бұрын
Love the costumes
@gigid9606
5 жыл бұрын
did you ever notice the music back that day all sounds like a "Little Rascals" show?
@normasarno27
3 жыл бұрын
This is amazing!!!!❤️❤️
@oldgypsytap
3 жыл бұрын
What a gem...what a hoot!
@muffassa6739
3 жыл бұрын
What a wonderful ballerina
@jrbaskind
9 ай бұрын
It’s too bad nobody thought of getting a commentary from Ms. Verdon while she was still around. I think it would have been fascinating.
@pertelote4526
5 жыл бұрын
Classical ballet was not her forte, for sure she was no Margot Fonteyn material ;-) On the other hand, the technique of ballet dancers has changed beyond recognition since then so her performance can be compared only to that of her peers.
@HeavenLeeMadeOnEtsy
3 жыл бұрын
I noticed that also, but as a mom of a former competitive dancer you must remember she was only 16 and probably awkwardly trying to be " perfect" in her movements. She also looks as if they didn't know how to choreograph her to show her at her best. I think Fosse, since he knew her body did her talent justice
@carolwillmont7424
Жыл бұрын
So sweet !
@salliemae7476
4 жыл бұрын
Not her best but she found her rhythm when she was paired with her future hubby Bob Fosse.
@MrCrowebobby
Жыл бұрын
She was great before she met him, just not yet famous.
@HeavenLeeMadeOnEtsy
3 жыл бұрын
The watermark was unfortunately placed
@brandemour
6 жыл бұрын
Had no idea she did pointe
@lohphat
5 жыл бұрын
Most great jazz/musical theater dancers have a strong ballet foundation. Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor were great because of their own core ballet training.
@cactusbound
5 жыл бұрын
What a surprise. Didn’t know she did pointe either. And the following year her life would change forever.
@MrCrowebobby
3 жыл бұрын
@@lohphat You're talking uneducated nonsense. O'Connor had no ballet training.
@lohphat
3 жыл бұрын
@@MrCrowebobby Yes he did. They all had basic training. How do I know? My dance teacher worked with him on several shows. Basic ballet training was a requirement for professional dancer in the movies. Even Astaire had basic ballet training.
@MrCrowebobby
3 жыл бұрын
@@lohphat He may have taken a few classes, but he had no core ballet training and it certainly didn't affect his tap dancing. I was also a professional dancer with tap as my specialty. I also had many ballet classes, but they never affected my tap in any way. A "little ballet" doesn't go a long way, as you'll know if you've studied it. And O'Connor was never under contract as a "dancer."
@shawni321
3 жыл бұрын
I shudder to think of how fast she had to grow up. This looks earlier than 1941.
@hannahwebster5606
5 жыл бұрын
A year later she had a kid
@l.b.2592
3 жыл бұрын
Courtesy of a family "friend"
@mjrussell414
3 жыл бұрын
Once a cutie, always a cutie
@Arkelk2010
Жыл бұрын
I am guessing this was a "short" to be shown before the main feature. Looks under-rehearsed. But fun the see a young Gwen Verdon in the spotlight.
@noracharles9366
Жыл бұрын
❤❤❤❤❤❤
@XPRT10R
Жыл бұрын
The inevitable Roscoe...
@StephenFlynn-xl2fw
3 ай бұрын
Imagine being a never-handsome never-talented male singer on his downward spiral. Walking home from this gig to his sixth-floor walkup and sprinkling King of Kings whisky on his cornflakes.
@jcsgodmother
5 жыл бұрын
can hardly recognize her.
@maxjohnson5546
3 жыл бұрын
Isn't that a bit young for the guy singing?
@superchitownhustler
4 жыл бұрын
That would be child molestation now.
@jan2224
5 жыл бұрын
Kindy of creepy with the old guy.
@pertelote4526
5 жыл бұрын
But he is only 49 here, he was born in 1892; ok, perhaps he is old by your standards ;-)
@jan2224
5 жыл бұрын
49 with a 16 year old? Yeah. CREEPY.
@pertelote4526
5 жыл бұрын
@@jan2224 They were not together as a couple, I believe, they performed in the same featurette :-)
@jan2224
5 жыл бұрын
@@pertelote4526 I get that. But it looks creepy. I have been a performer and director. It doesn't matter what their personal lives were. I would never put a 49 year old and 16 year old together on stage like that, no matter how good they are. Just looks creepy. Just my humble opinion
@pertelote4526
5 жыл бұрын
@@jan2224 I respect your opinion and your professional choices but I beg to differ because I am trying to see a broader cultural context here. I remember I did have a slightly odd feeling while watching Astaire and Hepburn in "Funny Face" (30 years' difference), Bogart and Hepburn in "Sabrina" (the same) or Chevalier and Caron (43 years) but I accepted those somewhat mismatched couples as part of the then entertainment convention. On the other hand, I have never batted an eyelid watching an operatic performance in which the lead tenor/bass was middle aged but the corps de ballet, by its very nature, was much younger. Regards :-)
@pablopaul6371
3 жыл бұрын
She is best in burlesque
@edadan
4 жыл бұрын
That was really creepy.
@bobs2272
5 жыл бұрын
Pedophilia was a thing then?
@MrCrowebobby
Жыл бұрын
She didn't look and wasn't suppose to be 16 in the film . . . and that wouldn't count as pedophilia in any case.
@SuperDolly64
Жыл бұрын
Isnt this considered paedophillia these days?
@grandexandi
4 жыл бұрын
lol women walking with their arms open like that looks ridiculous
@djr6876
4 жыл бұрын
Classic Showgirl walk
@raymundoyanez3282
3 жыл бұрын
Classic ZIGFELD SHOWGIRL! WALK!! TO SHOW OFF ! USUALLY! ELABORATE! And HEAVY! COSTUMES!!!!!
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