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Americana: The Movies and Dancing of Eleanor Powell
Americana: The Movies and Dancing of Eleanor Powell

Americana: The Movies and Dancing of Eleanor Powell

A bit of American history here. Watch this fantastic video (click on the pic…while the video is up on YouTube) of Mrs. Powell dancing in an old black and white movie:

Picture from Sean Axmaker’s Blog. Quite a production!! (The number can also be viewed on ClassicMovieFavorites.com.) Mrs. Powell taps, she does kick-and-laybacks, she jumps, she kicks, and she ends the dance number doing more consecutive turns than I can count! Someone left a comment on the YouTube site where the video is posted, claiming that Fred Astaire had said “[Eleanor] put em down like a man. No ricky stuff with Ellie. She really knocked out a dance in a class by herself.” Update (1-5-09): Another commenter claimed that one Jerry Ames said: “An abundance of virtuosity wrapped in a radiance of joy reflected the fabulous dancing of Eleanor Powell. Her speed and dexterity displayed in luminous, seemingly effortless performances, produced a dazzling tapestry of rhythm that remains unsurpassed.” The sequence might use some editing for length, but overall I’m amazed and I love it — the dancing is fantastic, the music is fun, and the spirit is like none today: it’s the characteristic joie de vivre, joy of life, of the 1920’s. Hollywood seems to me to be too corrupt in its philosophy and sense of life to do anything as joyful, pure, innocent, and loving of human life as this. There is a Website devoted to Elanor Powell, which has her bio, pictures, a list of her movies, video clips you could watch. The Internet Movie Data Base also lists Mrs. Powell’s screen credits.

Picture from DoctorMacro1.net.

You can see a tap dance routine from the movie “Honolulu” and — wow!!! — check out this clip from “All Ashore!!” There is also a fun video on YouTube of Fred Astaire and Mrs. Powell tap dancing. All the videos are highly recommended: they are fun, they are pure joy, and they are pure benevolence toward humanity and the world. Again, watch while they last; they are videos on YouTube.

On a different subject, check out this nice video of the Boswell Sisters

If there is a copyright issue with the video clips or pictures, please let me know!!

2 Comments

  1. Nema

    MISS Powell! Mrs. Powell was her mother, Blanche. Eleanor’s only marriage was to Glenn Ford – thus she was Mrs. Ford. After their divorce she had her maiden name legally restored, and was once again Miss Powell.

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