The Perfect Wingman

I know what the term "Wingman" means in today's vernacular, a friend who's there to help you in dating, and in the movie "Singin' in the Rain," Donald O'Connor is Gene Kelly's perfect Buck-and-wing-man.

When MGM decided to make "Singin'....," they felt that they needed someone who could keep up with Gene Kelly, one of the two top dancers in the world. I haven't read how Don was chosen from all of the dancers but a more felicitous choice for second lead could not have been made. Don's delightfully goofy presence gives the movie extra charge, as his face and mannerisms help him steal the scene every time he is on screen.

In fact, I do believe that I am going to honor O'Connor with the First Screen Thief award (which I am just now creating, off the top of my head.) It is to Gene Kelly's credit that he lets O'Connor steal the movie out from under him. I am not knocking Gene Kelly; I love his dancing and truly feel that he is one of the top two dancers in film history (fight it out among yourselves), but when I watch "Good Morning," "Moses" and "Good Morning," I am watching Donald O'Connor and not Gene Kelly. He not only keep up with Gene Kelly, but makes it look as effortless and Kelly does. And through it all, he has that delightfully goofy expression and head-bob when he shim-shams that makes Cosmo Brown so endearing.

And he creates another iconic piece of American theater with the song "Make 'Em Laugh." This such a truly wonderful number that never gets old. I could watch this every day and never get tired of it. Enjoy Make 'Em Laugh

The Greatest Musical of All Time

And now we come to it. This is not up for debate: "Singing in the Rain" is the greatest musical, if not the greatest movie of all time. The movie is the amalgamation of everything that makes movies great: great stars, great story, great music and great performances.

(The more I think about it, I realize that I am going to have to post for several days on this film just to do it justice.)

To try to begin, Gene Kelly. One of the two greatest dancers to ever appear on the silver screen. Enthusiasts will argue through eternity as to the artistry of Gene Kelly vs. Fred Astaire, and I won't even try to go there. (Except to say that I think that I will make February Fred Astaire month.)

Gene Kelly's iconic performance of the title song is the stuff of legend. Filmed on a day when he was running a fever of 103, he created the definitive symbol of dance in the movies. The song is an old one (in fact, all the songs from the movie had appeared in numerous MGM movies. The song "Singing in the Rain" was 25 years old, dating back to the movie "Hollywood Revue of 1929.") Do a Google search for "Singing in the Rain" and you will find at the top of the results page are links to this one clip. Again, it is the definitive image of song and dance.

This movie is such an part of the American psyche that a Broadway musical was created to tell the same story, scene by scene, line by line, dance by dance, as the movie. And even though the DVD of "Singing in the Rain" are readily available, audiences flocked to see it performed live. Two years ago, we went to see a production of it at the theater department of Regent University in Virginia Beach, VA. Done by theater students at Regent, it was a wonderful experience to see the show done live, right down to the Rain. There was a 'rain cart' that provided the rain on the stage for the scene of Don Lockwood dancing down the street and jumping in the puddles.

What more can be said? The movie has been voted the #1 musical of all time; the movie has been listed in the top 5 of ALL movies. It is truly great, and the only thing I can to is to leave you with this link: Singing in the Rain