From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Johnnie Lucille Collier (April 12, 1923 – January 22, 2004), known professionally as Ann Miller, was an American dancer, singer and actress. She is best remembered for her work in the Classical Hollywood musical films of the 1940s and 1950s.
At age 13 in 1936, Miller became a showgirl at the Bal Tabarin. She was hired as a dancer in the "Black Cat Club" in San Francisco (she reportedly told them she was 18). It was there that she was discovered by Lucille Ball and talent scout/comic Benny Rubin (although some sources say this occurred at Bal Tabarin). This led Miller to be given a contract with RKO in 1936 at the age of 13 (she had also told them she was 18, and apparently provided a fake birth certificate, procured by her father - with the name "Lucy Ann Collier") and she remained there until 1940.
In 1941, she signed with Columbia Pictures, where, starting with Time Out for Rhythm, she starred in 11 B movie musicals from 1941 to 1945. In July 1945, with World War II still raging in the Pacific, she posed in a bathing suit as a Yank magazine pin-up girl. She ended her contract in 1946 with one "A" film, The Thrill of Brazil. The ad in Life magazine featured Miller's leg in a large, red, bow-tied stocking as the "T" in "Thrill". She finally hit her mark in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musicals such as Easter Parade (1948), On the Town (1949) and Kiss Me Kate (1953).
Miller was famed for her speed in tap dance. Studio publicists concocted press releases claiming she could tap 500 times per minute, but in truth, the sound of ultra-fast "500" taps was looped in later. Because the stage floors were waxed and too slick for regular tap shoes, she had to dance in shoes with rubber treads on the sole. Later she would loop the sound of the taps while watching the film and actually dancing on a "tap board" to match her steps in the film.
Her film career effectively ended in 1956 as the studio system lost steam to television, but she remained active in the theater and on television. She starred on Broadway in the musical Mame in 1969, in which she wowed the audience in a tap number created just for her. In 1979 she astounded audiences in the Broadway show Sugar Babies with fellow MGM veteran Mickey Rooney, which toured the United States extensively after its Broadway run. In 1983, she won the Sarah Siddons Award for her work in Chicago theatre. She appeared in a special 1982 episode of The Love Boat, joined by fellow showbiz legends Ethel Merman, Carol Channing, Della Reese, Van Johnson and Cab Calloway in a storyline that cast them as older relatives of the show's regular characters. Her last stage performance was a 1998 production of Stephen Sondheim's Follies, in which she played hardboiled Carlotta Campion and received rave reviews for her rendition of the song "I'm Still Here".
For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Miller has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6914 Hollywood Blvd. In 1998, a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs, California, Walk of Stars was dedicated to her. To honor Miller's contribution to dance, the Smithsonian Institution displays her favorite pair of tap shoes, which she playfully nicknamed "Moe and Joe".
External links
IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/nm0587900
Wikipedia: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q241701
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Filmography (Movies)
Broadway: Beyond the Golden Age
Character:Self
Release Date:14/08/2021
Hollywood Singing & Dancing: A Musical History - 1970's
Character:Self
Release Date:19/05/2009
Easter Parade: On the Avenue
Character:Self
Release Date:15/03/2005
Judy Garland: By Myself
Character:Self - Actor (voice)
Release Date:25/02/2004
Rita
Character:Self
Release Date:09/09/2003
Broadway's Lost Treasures
Character:Ann (segment "Sugar Babies")
Release Date:10/08/2003
Cole Porter in Hollywood: Too Darn Hot
Character:Self
Release Date:22/04/2003
Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There
Character:Self
Release Date:03/04/2003
Cole Porter in Hollywood: Begin the Beguine
Character:
Release Date:02/01/2003
Inside the Marx Brothers
Character:Self
Release Date:01/01/2003
Gene Kelly: Anatomy of a Dancer
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:24/09/2002
Marlene Dietrich: Her Own Song
Character:Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Release Date:21/03/2002
Mulholland Drive
Character:Coco
Release Date:06/06/2001
Hollywood Musicals of the 40's
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:01/09/2000
Frank Sinatra Memorial
Character:Self
Release Date:16/05/2000
Inside the Dream Factory
Character:Self
Release Date:01/11/1995
That's Entertainment! III
Character:Self - Co-Host / Narrator
Release Date:01/07/1994
Lucy and Desi: A Home Movie
Character:Self
Release Date:14/02/1993
Happy 100th Birthday, Hollywood
Character:Self
Release Date:18/05/1987
That's Dancing!
Character:
Release Date:18/01/1985
Night of 100 Stars
Character:Self
Release Date:08/03/1982
Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
Character:Presidents' Girl 2
Release Date:26/07/1976
That's Entertainment, Part II
Character:(archive footage)
Release Date:16/05/1976
That's Entertainment!
Character:(archive footage)
Release Date:21/06/1974
Dames at Sea
Character:Mona
Release Date:15/11/1971
The Great American Pastime
Character:Doris Patterson
Release Date:28/11/1956
The Opposite Sex
Character:Gloria Dahl
Release Date:15/11/1956
Hit the Deck
Character:Ginger
Release Date:24/02/1955
Deep in My Heart
Character:Performer in Artists and Models
Release Date:09/12/1954
Kiss Me Kate
Character:Lois Lane, "Bianca"
Release Date:26/11/1953
Small Town Girl
Character:Lisa Bellmount
Release Date:10/04/1953
Lovely to Look At
Character:Bubbles Cassidy
Release Date:29/05/1952
Two Tickets to Broadway
Character:Joyce Campbell
Release Date:20/11/1951
Texas Carnival
Character:Sunshine Jackson
Release Date:05/10/1951
Watch the Birdie
Character:Miss Lucky Vista
Release Date:11/12/1950
On the Town
Character:Claire Huddesen
Release Date:08/12/1949
Mighty Manhattan, New York's Wonder City
Character:Self
Release Date:30/07/1949
The Kissing Bandit
Character:Fiesta Specialty Dancer
Release Date:14/11/1948
Easter Parade
Character:Nadine Hale
Release Date:08/07/1948
The Thrill of Brazil
Character:Linda Lorens
Release Date:06/09/1946
Eve Knew Her Apples
Character:Eve Porter
Release Date:12/04/1945
Eadie Was a Lady
Character:Eadie Allen / Edithea Alden
Release Date:24/01/1945
Carolina Blues
Character:Julie Carver
Release Date:20/12/1944
Jam Session
Character:Terry Baxter
Release Date:13/04/1944
Hey, Rookie
Character:Winnie Clark
Release Date:06/04/1944
Sailor's Holiday
Character:
Release Date:24/02/1944
What's Buzzin', Cousin?
Character:Ann Crawford
Release Date:08/07/1943
Reveille with Beverly
Character:Beverly Ross
Release Date:04/02/1943
Priorities on Parade
Character:Donna D'Arcy
Release Date:23/07/1942
True to the Army
Character:Vicki Marlow
Release Date:21/03/1942
Hedda Hopper's Hollywood No. 2
Character:
Release Date:05/12/1941
Go West, Young Lady
Character:Lola
Release Date:27/11/1941
Screen Snapshots Series 21 No. 1
Character:Self
Release Date:15/08/1941
Time Out for Rhythm
Character:Kitty Brown
Release Date:05/06/1941
Hit Parade of 1941
Character:Anabelle Potter
Release Date:14/10/1940
Too Many Girls
Character:Pepe
Release Date:08/10/1940
Melody Ranch
Character:Julie Shelton
Release Date:15/09/1940
Tarnished Angel
Character:Violet McMaster
Release Date:28/10/1938
Room Service
Character:Hilda Manny
Release Date:21/09/1938
You Can't Take It with You
Character:Essie Carmichael
Release Date:01/09/1938
Having Wonderful Time
Character:Vivian (uncredited)
Release Date:01/07/1938
Radio City Revels
Character:Billie
Release Date:11/02/1938
Stage Door
Character:Annie
Release Date:08/10/1937
The Life of the Party
Character:Betty
Release Date:03/09/1937
New Faces of 1937
Character:Ann Miller
Release Date:02/07/1937
The Devil on Horseback
Character:Dancer (uncredited)
Release Date:11/10/1936
The Good Fairy
Character:Girl in Orphanage (uncredited)
Release Date:18/02/1935
Television Appearances
E! True Hollywood Story
Character:
Home Improvement
Character:Mrs. Keeney
The Love Boat
Character:Connie Carruthers
Love, American Style
Character:
The Dick Cavett Show
Character:Self - Guest
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Character:Self (uncredited)
The Hollywood Palace
Character:Self
The Merv Griffin Show
Character:Self
The Mike Douglas Show
Character:Self
The Dinah Shore Chevy Show
Character:Self
Tony Awards
Character:Self - Performer
MGM Parade
Character:Self
What's My Line?
Character:Self - Mystery Guest
The Ed Sullivan Show
Character:Self
Images
