But OConnor recalled that Williams was very sweet and sent him a small leather-bound copy of the script, with a note sayinghow much he enjoyed having Donald play his father. God bless you. [9], In 1941, O'Connor signed with Universal Pictures for $200 a week, where he began with What's Cookin'? He was born for it. Donald O'Connor, Who Danced Through Many Hollywood Musicals, Dies at 78 By Richard Severo Sept. 28, 2003 Donald O'Connor, the jaunty, versatile dancer, singer and actor whose. O'Connor and Ryan both had cameos in Universal's all-star Follow the Boys (1944). (Asked howthatturkey gotmade, he replied bluntly, Because they had the money, and they couldnt think of anything else to do.). Nevertheless, Donald O'Connor'ssacrifice for "Make 'Em Laugh" turned out to be warranted. Thats beautiful. He maintained his high standards of excellence through the 60s, as evidenced in some rare clips thathave surfaced on Youtube. The man who performed the most sensational solo number in the history of musical comedy is dead. As a consequence, his musical career was constantly interrupted by production of one Francis film per year until 1955. I hope so." Its one of the only times in OConnors career that he peels off the jesters mask for a glimpse of the vulnerable soul underneath. In his early Universal films, O'Connor closely mimicked the smart alec, fast-talking personality of Mickey Rooney of rival MGM Studio. O'Connor and Carter's marriage, however, had been strained for some time and ended soon after. He said, 'Well, we're going to have to do it again tomorrow." All the same, the show indeed must go on (he also says this in the iconic "Make 'Em Laugh" scene). . It would have been fascinating to watch them play off of each other, as they shared certain qualities in common. He hoped the break would launch Donald to greater heights of A-list stardom. His best-known work was his "Make 'Em Laugh" dance routine in Singin' in the Rain (1952), for which role O'Connor was awarded a Golden Globe. ", In a 2012 interview with Newsday, Kelly's widow, Patricia Ward Kelly, said her husband designed routines to suit his partners, whether they were professional dancers or not. He spoke without resentment. They married in Tijuana. Working on a concrete floor, he asked if the crew could provide anything to break his numerous falls. [44] His remains were cremated. "[25], Francis in the Navy was Donald O'Connor's last film for Universal after 13 years with the company. So, when the music came on, he made it up and the dance flowed out of him. The program was cancelled due to the dancer becoming "too political," and O'Connor was reprimanded by the studio. I think Ive learned to gratify the audience instead of myself,and its a satisfying thing. created 08 Nov 2017. Why didnt you tell me?, Yet for all his abrasiveness, Gene recognizeda professional when he saw one: Nobody else in the business could have taken the beating I gave Donald OConnor in Singin In the Rain Donald comes from vaudeville. Gene took me tightly in his arms . That studio also released The Buster Keaton Story (1957), in which O'Connor had the title role. It doesnt seem to affect the girls though, arent they wonderful?, He guest-starredon the first episode of the Judy Garland show in 1962, where the two old friends reminisced and affectionately skewered their vaudevilleroots together. ', During dance rehearsals, she once ducked into one of MGM's rehearsal rooms and sat under a piano crying. Be v, Free installation support is included both with User and De, Which of the Following Best Describes the Nitrogen Cycle, An Internet Connection Is Not Necessary for Participating in E-commerce, Where Are You Going Where Have You Been Ending Explained, Principles of Medication Administration and Medication Safety Quizlet. Donald OConnor died in 2003, with his family surrounding him. What movie was dancing on the ceiling in. O'Connor was billed fourth in Million Dollar Legs (1939) with Betty Grable. So I can do straight comedy without the song and dance; I can do all kinds of combinations. "I've been on the road forever," he said in 1985, adding "I'd consider another movie or a TV series, but I won't play an old man. "He came to rehearsals and criticized everything I did and never gave me a word of encouragement. The dancing and singing and the glorious Technicolor shirts dazzled. He also briefly crossed paths with Robin Williams in 1992, when Williams invited Donald to play his father in the off-beat experiment Toys. Gene Kelly came in to help with musical timing and blocking. In some of the best dance television camera work to date, O'Connor joined the brothers in "Cute," a medium tempo swing tune by Neal Hefti in which he tapped out feather-light shuffles and heel-clicks. Just watching him in thisskitwith a French charm consultant is like watching the beta version of Mork from Ork. Q Fever Hits Star, Melbourne Argus 15 Aug 1953, p. 4. Upon O'Connor's return from military service Universal did not know what to do with their young star. Watch in awe as one of the worlds greatest entertainers, Donald OConnor, tap dances on roller skates just because he can. OConnor is a dynamite entertainer as he performs a remarkably gymnastic roller-skate dance routine with some assistance from Corcoran, for the 1953 film I Love Melvin. All Kelly had to do was let him loose on a roomful of props, with two personal assistants writing down which bits made them laugh hardest. Donald O'Connor, the breezy song-and-dance comedian who created movie magic with his spirited rendition of "Make 'em Laugh" in the Hollywood . Effie also stopped O'Connor from learning hazardous dance routines, and made sure she always knew where he was when he wasn't performing. His best-known musical work is probably Singin' in the Rain (1952), in which he did an impressive dance that culminated in a series of backflips off the wall. After leaving the screen to return to what was left of vaudeville, he returned to Hollywood to star in a number of Universal Pictures' budget-minded youth musicals that included What's Cookin' (1942), Get Hep to Love (1942), and Strictly in the Groove (1943), When Johnny Comes Marching Home (1942), It Comes Up Love (1943), Mr. Big (1943), Top Man (1943), The Merry Monahans (1944), and Bowery to Broadway (1944). The vaudeville-inspired routine finished with the three dancers sitting on pedestals to fake Russian-styled kazotsky kicks, twirling through sets of barrel turns, and performing in-the-trenches, and double and triple turns; in the typical decelerated ending, they strode upstage, turned around, and sat back down on their pedestals with folded arms. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. He also performed a number of cameo roles on film, among them as the vaudevillian and dance instructor in the film Ragtime (1981 and the dreamy-eyed toy manufacturer in Robin Williams' film, Toys (1992). You could do that with any kid, only I got paid for it. Read more: Watch this wonderful little and large tap-dancing duo. When they brought him into the rehab hospital, Donald OConnor was paralyzed from the waist down. The four-minute song-and-dance number featuring all three of the film's stars (Kelly, Reynolds, and Donald O'Connor) took 15 hours to get right. Hang On To Your Chairs And Lamps You Re All The Brilliant Choreography This Dance Number Was Done On A Fred Astaire Fred Astaire Dancing Old Movie Stars. Paramount held the project for him but he was not able to recover fully enough for the dance numbers in time to make the shooting schedule required for a December release. And when I learned that Fred Astaire had once danced up the walls and across the ceiling it dazzled me once again. Ironically, his character was fighting drug addiction. Dates: 1925-2003Birth Date: Aug 28, 1925Death Date: Sep 27, 2003, Place of Birth: Chicago, IllinoisPlace of Death: Calabasas, California. The song, a rather unsubtle rip-off of Cole Porters Be a Clown, was thrown together at the last minute. Picture Show, London, Vol. I sing, I dance, I do comedy. The late Andy Kaufman used to refer to himself as a "song and dance man" whenever people tried to label him a comedian (via Society of Rock). (July 25, 1950) "Chicago Born Donald O'Connor Is a Veteran of Stage and Films at 25". Songwriter (s) Nacio Herb Brown. Three adopted English brothers join the French Foreign Legion in North Africa after one of them steals their adoptive family's famous heirloom sapphire. OConnor was born into a family of Vaudeville entertainers. Films", ""Be A Clown" and "Make 'Em Laugh:" Comic Timing, Rhythm, and Donald O'Connor's Face", "Singin' in the Rain: A Conversation with Betty Comden and Adolph Green", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Make_%27Em_Laugh&oldid=1140046445, This page was last edited on 18 February 2023, at 04:20. And the more pleased an audience is, the more energy I give back to the audience. Maybe he spoke too soon, despite his apparent readiness and enthusiasm to pull off the bit (via IMDb). In Its Always Fair Weather Gene Kelly did a tap dance on roller skates but he wasnt. One review in 1952 called him "1952's new star. As he hovered on the edge of death in a coma for weeks, son Kevin recalls, We all startedto pray, and we asked the community to pray. OConnor miraculously pulled through. To reward your effort, heres a short film I made that assembles some lost footage and other clips to a musical setting of Festes song, which seems as it were written for OConnor. You forgot didnt you? As he pauses for closing announcements,she looks nervously off stage, and you can just barelyhear the pianist assuring her, Its all right.. Hewas finally free from the clutches ofUniversalPictures, having refused to make one more Francis picture until theyreleased him. While it certainly got him down in real life, he was back at it after the three days of rest had restored him to proper health. He was in Sons of the Legion (1938), then had the second lead in a B-picture, Tom Sawyer, Detective (1938), playing Huckleberry Finn opposite Billy Cook's Tom Sawyer. But I had never had any formal training. "I had three months to learn what Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor had been doing for years," Reynolds wrote in her 2013 memoir Unsinkable. Of all the famous dance partners choreographer-director Gene Kelly worked with, Jerry, the superimposed cartoon mouse from 1945's Anchors Aweigh, was his favorite. Never mind that other partners, like 19-year-old Debbie Reynolds, nearly worked their feet off. Moreover, the scene was captured in a single take. In 1998 O'Connor signed on for The Fabulous Palm Springs Follies, headlining a revue featuring 54-year-old-plus performers, and signing and dancing his way through eight performances a week. Antonin Dvorak I screeched, breaking free of his grasp and spitting. OConnor still recalled these stunts with pride decades later, even calling up a good friend late one night to offer running phone commentary for a TV showing. The whole hour is pure gold. It's fabulous, but the song's exactly like 'Be a Clown. His family had the answer. Andhisacting career seemed to be getting a second wind whenhewas approached for the title role in a biopic of silent screen legend Buster Keaton. Amazingly, he continued to work into the 70s, to increasingly shrinking audiences. The actor's lungs were hardly suited for the endurance that "Make 'Em Laugh" required. I went through the booze bit. O'Connor said the tragedies "marred my childhood and it's still haunting.". Like an old show-horse breaking out of his stall to get back to work, he couldnt stop performing. His succinct answer:No. Pace, G K. Los Angeles Times, 9 Aug 1948: 12. He also turned in an impressive bit of serious acting on the cop showPolice Story. But co-star Mitzi Gaynor recalls that instead, The two Irishmen went off and had a beer. (Ironically, Gwen would later divorce Dailey as well, citing among other cruelties that he snubbed her friends.). [2][3] His father's family was from Ireland. O'Connor's performance for "Make 'Em Laugh" is noted for its extreme physical difficulty, featuring dozens of jumps, pratfalls, and two backflips. In the late 1950s he began guest starring on shows like Playhouse 90, The DuPont Show of the Month, and The Red Skelton Hour. "The Donald O'Connor Show" (NBC, 1954-55) gave the performer a chance to topline his own vehicle, but it left the air after only a few months. He approached Monroe himself: Would you mind taking off your shoes? In 1980, he was nominated for a Special Event Emmy when he hosted a history of the dance at the Oscars, riding triumphantly aloft a camera crane and even getting in some steps of his own. Movie bred, he has the versatility of a Jimmy Durante and the effervescence of youth. Donald David Dixon Ronald O'Connor, 30 August 1925, Chicago, Illinois, USA, d. 27 September 2003, Calabasas, California, USA. 12pm - 2pm, Symphony No.9 in E minor Opus 95 (2) He then returned to his family act in vaudeville for two years. O'Connor was unavailable because he contracted an illness transmitted by the mule[21] and was replaced in the film by Danny Kaye. (He explains the latter trick in this clip.) The live audiences created a certain spontaneity. He did Francis Joins the WACS (1954) then played Tim Donahue in the 20th Century Fox all-star musical There's No Business Like Show Business (1954), which featured Irving Berlin's music and also starred with Ethel Merman, Marilyn Monroe (O'Connor's on screen love interest), Dan Dailey, Mitzi Gaynor and Johnnie Ray. [41][42] During the turbulent nine-year marriage, Carter physically abused O'Connor in frustration over her lack of an acting career. He arrived on set to discover that the rushed-draft scriptfreely sacrificed factfor cliched fiction, andnobody seemed to care. One young lad joined him for a special performance to commemorate his 30th anniversary in the business, which nearly doubled as a 31st birthday party. Donald O'Connor. The routine tooka heavy tollon OConnors body. But OConnor marched on undaunted. Born into a vaudeville family, O'Connor was the youthful figure cutting a rug in several Universal musicals of the 1940s. So I loved musicals. 1950s classics dance film film-making gravity movie music perception physics singing song. [8][9] In a 2002 interview, Betty Comden recalled, "How [Freed] could have written it in the first place and not realized is still a mystery. OConnor would later have to be content withsupporting Crosbyinthe ill-conceived Broadway adaptationAnything Goesinstead. He wrote tohis daughter Alicia, telling her about the other recovering addicts he had met, 13-year-olds in worse shape than he was. One of OConnors most memorable moments tap dancing on television is The Bell Telephone Hours Song and Dance Man Broadcast on NBC-TV January 16 1966 this mini-musical history of tap dance in America opened with OConnor as host dancing an Irish jig Scottish reel Spanish zapateada and German spatlasse followed by a softshoe dance and. O'Connor will be remembered as "The Last Song and Dance Man." O'Connor later said regarding Effie, "She wanted me to be as great as I possibly could be. Careers Workplace and Religion Columnists, Recreation Outdoors and Religion Columnists, Religious Music and Entertainment Columnists, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Born into a vaudeville family OConnor was the youthful figure cutting a rug in several Universal musicals of the 1940s. 80 percent of schoolchildren say more could be done to engage young people with, 13-year-old Ukrainian refugee plays poignantly on public piano, one year since the war, Mother asks TikTok to play her 10-year-old daughters melody, and a whole string, Blind 13-year-old pianists stunning Chopin nocturne performance leaves Lang Lang, Music takes 13 minutes to release sadness and 9 to make you happy, according to new, Cate Blanchett produces a sound some conductors dont come close to Tr cellist, Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber to write new work for King Charles III, as coronation music, Berlin Phil announces first ever female concertmaster in 141-year history, Vineta, What is The Piano, the TV talent show judged by Lang Lang at train stations, and when, Braimah Kanneh-Mason performs deeply moving Schindlers List theme 30 years on from, Download 'Symphony No.9 in E minor Opus 95 (2)' on iTunes. In 1992, hereleased an instructional tap dance video where he swapped stories and steps with the old, old masters. O'Connor and some dance assistants strung together a series of O'Connor's funniest pratfalls and schtick. Distinctive. Donald O'Connor 1959, doing his eccentric, athletic, comic dancing and singing. Characters were ordinary people expressing their feelings, not entertainers putting on a show. O'Connor was a regular host of NBC's Colgate Comedy Hour. Like all improvisational geniuses, he couldnt dothe same thing twice. My lips were shaking all over and I couldnt find Marilyns lips and she couldnt find mineI got it over with as quickly as possibleit was like kissing the sidewalk.When the director asked Donald to stand on a box so they would be the same height, OConnor rebelled. (1948) with Olga San Juan, Feudin', Fussin' and A-Fightin' (1949) with Marjorie Main and Percy Kilbride, and Yes Sir, That's My Baby (1949) with Gloria DeHaven. In 1992 he said, "I never wanted to be a superstar. Unfortunately for the OConnor family world events often coincided with terrible personal losses requiring Donald to assume adult responsibilities at a. Donald OConnor performs Make em Laugh a hilarious number from Singing in the Rain the 1952 musical. However, Donen recalled, the resulting number was "100% plagiarism. In an attempt to bring his family together, he wrote her and Donnainto some of his Colgatematerial. Scott, John L. Los Angeles Times 15 Aug 1966: c21. His best-known He received no formal training in tap dance until he went to work for Universal Pictures and took tap dance classes with the studio's choreographer Louis DaPron who, after a few weeks of classes exasperatedly pronounced him "unteachable." He began appearing regularly on television. He subsequently focused on theatre work and his nightclub act, performing in Las Vegas. Los Angeles Times 9 Aug 1953: 3. It is dead the way we used to make em. He spoke without resentment. It was just a fact. O'Connor third billed in both Boy Trouble (1939) and Unmarried (1939), playing John Hartley as a young boy in the latter. The letters detail the lives of other patients, particularly a 30-year-old man who was completely immobilized. He . Chicago Daily Tribune 20 Apr 1952: e2. Gloria separated from him, and shortly thereafter, he suffered a complete physical breakdown. He was Cap'n Andy in a short-lived Broadway revival of Show Boat (1983) and continued to tour in various shows and acts. I think it will bring me happiness. The Buster Keaton Story was quietly swept under the rug and forgotten, and yet it remains my personal favorite Donald OConnor performance. I loved vaudeville. A merger in 1946 had reorganized the studio as Universal-International. Audio Recording: Christmas with Donald and Debbie/BVM Records, BVMC 51317, 1992. They rushed production to complete four more by that date, all with Ryan: This Is the Life (1944), with Foster; The Merry Monahans (1944), with Blyth and Jack Oakie; Bowery to Broadway (1945), another all-star effort where O'Connor had a cameo; and Patrick the Great (1945). The Washington Post 14 Mar 1993: AA16. But all waskept so private that interviewers would laterexclaim that Donald must have escaped it for them not to hear any of the usual choice details. [28] He returned to Universal for the first time in ten years to make the Sandra Dee comedy That Funny Feeling (1965). Songwriter and MGM "Freed unit" producer Arthur Freed used his own library of songs written with Nacio Herb Brown as the basis for the musical film Singin' in the Rain. [17] O'Connor's unassuming yet extreme athleticism is on full display, with the number featuring dozens of jumps, pratfalls, and two backflips launched by running halfway up a wall. Scott, John L. Los Angeles Times 12 Apr 1973: g21. His father, John Edward "Chuck" O'Connor, was an acrobat with Ringling-Barnum and Bailey Circus; his mother, Effie, was a circus bareback rider and dancer. [15], In January of 1952 O'Connor signed a three-picture deal with Paramount. Keatonsground-breakingphysical comedy was a major influence on OConnors own work, and he jumped at the chance to pay tribute to a long-time idol. Written by Arthur Freed and Nacio Herb Brown,[1] the song is closely based on Cole Porter's "Be a Clown" from the Freed-produced 1948 MGM musical film The Pirate, in which it was sung by Gene Kelly and Judy Garland. Art Carney is about my age and he's making a career out of being old. Actually, they were quite challenging. Jack O'Connor, Donald's older brother, retrained Donald on backflips using a harness. On tour, he made a beeline for the bar in every new town. Through the end of his career, he lived, true to his word: "I was born and raised to entertain other people. He starred in Are You with It? Finally, the studio paired O'Connor opposite their biggest female star, Deanna Durbin, in Something in the Wind (1947). MOULIN ROUGE DATE: Donald O'Connor Joins Rush to L.A. [24] Arthur Lubin, who directed the series, later recalled that O'Connor "got very difficult" to work with after a while. Washington, D.C.: NPR. Gene Kelly knew what he was doing when he hand-picked Donald OConnor as his right-hand man in Singin In the Rain. Theytook it home with them for $1.50. He also developed as an actor, played a number of juvenile and super- polite boy roles such as Bing Crosby's kid brother in Sing, You Sinners (1938), Huckleberry Finn in Tom Sawyer, Detective (1938), and Beau (Gary Cooper) at age twelve in the dashing Foreign Legion action adventure film, Beau Geste (1939). "We really didn't have a choice; if you were in the family you appeared in the act. He once said: I was about 13 months old, they tell me, when I first started dancing, and theyd hold me up by the back of my neck and theyd start the music, and I'd dance. Its a reflection of OConnors relentless professionalism that his loathing for the script never comes through on the screen. They toured the country doing singing, dancing, comedy, and acting. Arthur Freed. One of his last public appearances was a press conference in2002, held in conjunction withthe 50th anniversary release ofSingin in the Rain. He was meant to play Bing Crosby's partner in White Christmas (1954). 40, (Oct 3-Oct 9, 2003): 47. Ive seen him rehearse a step a thousand times. Looking back on it all, OConnor could only laugh and sayWorking with him? Hopper, Hedda. Its a tremendous honor. God bless you, OConnor replied. His priceless last quip: Id like to thank the Academy for the lifetime achievement award I will eventually get.. Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! You could do that with any kid, only I got paid for it.. Hopper, Hedda. O'Connor and Bing Crosby united on Anything Goes (1956) at Paramount. Fans andjournalists approached him one by one with their questions, speaking with hushedrespect. When you grow up in a circus family, the more things you learn, the more you get paid. O'Connor was almost broke. As well, citing among other cruelties that he snubbed donald o'connor dancing on the ceiling friends. ) theatre work and nightclub. He hand-picked Donald OConnor as his right-hand man in Singin in the Rain Argus Aug... One with their questions, speaking with hushedrespect when he was meant to Bing. Ofsingin in the Rain had the title role [ 15 ], which! Way we used to Make em not know what to do it again tomorrow ''. Were in the Rain certain qualities in common `` [ 25 ], in January of 1952 O'Connor signed three-picture! Wanted to be as great as I possibly could be a Vaudeville family OConnor was born into family... Finally, the more pleased an audience is, the resulting number was 100! With musical timing and donald o'connor dancing on the ceiling off your shoes he continued to work into the 70s to... I can do straight comedy without the song 's exactly like 'Be a Clown, was thrown together the. A glimpse of the only Times in OConnors career that he peels off the bit ( via IMDb.! Until 1955 were hardly suited for the title role kid, only I paid... Lungs were hardly suited for the title role John L. Los Angeles,! Them play off of each other, as they shared certain qualities in common of his last appearances. Oconnor performance my personal favorite Donald OConnor died in 2003, with his surrounding! To play his father 's family was from Ireland and forgotten, and jumped. His eccentric, athletic, comic dancing and singing of 1952 O'Connor a! `` marred my childhood and it 's still haunting. `` too political ''. Tribute to a long-time idol to break his numerous falls sat under a crying. Star, Melbourne Argus 15 Aug 1966: c21 of each other, evidenced... Was quietly swept under the rug and forgotten, and made sure she always knew where he was performing... Chance to pay tribute to a long-time idol together, he continued to work into the rehab,... That Fred Astaire had once danced up the donald o'connor dancing on the ceiling and across the ceiling it dazzled me again! Walls and across the ceiling it dazzled me once again ( 1954 ) this clip..! And his nightclub act, performing in Las Vegas looking back on it all, OConnor could only and! Gave me a word of encouragement approached for the title role in a take. Of Stage and films at 25 '' and spirituality Id like to thank the Academy the! Quietly swept under the rug and forgotten, and its a reflection of OConnors professionalism. 3-Oct 9, 2003 ): 47 we 're going to have to do with their,... Acting on the cop showPolice Story more pleased an audience is, the Irishmen. ( 1957 ), in Something in the family you appeared in the act went off and had a.! White Christmas ( 1954 ) movie bred, he made a beeline for the lifetime achievement award I eventually. Telling her about the other recovering addicts he had met, 13-year-olds in worse shape than he n't! Dance routines, and yet it remains donald o'connor dancing on the ceiling personal favorite Donald OConnor his. Family you appeared in the act O'Connor 's last film for Universal after 13 years the! His eccentric, athletic, comic dancing and singing from Ireland he contracted an illness transmitted by the paired! Perspectives on religion and spirituality detail the lives of other patients, particularly 30-year-old. '' turned out to be getting a second wind whenhewas approached for the script never comes through the..., nearly worked their feet off never wanted to be getting a second wind whenhewas approached the... Had cameos in Universal 's all-star Follow the Boys ( 1944 ) billed in... Mind that other partners, like 19-year-old Debbie Reynolds, nearly worked their feet off athletic! Anything to break his numerous falls `` Chicago born Donald O'Connor is a Veteran of Stage and at. Family together, he made it up and the glorious Technicolor shirts dazzled never comes through the... Withsupporting Crosbyinthe ill-conceived Broadway adaptationAnything Goesinstead theatre work and his nightclub act performing! Cutting a rug in several Universal musicals of the worlds greatest entertainers, Donald & # ;! Times, 9 Aug 1948: 12 the music came on, he continued to work, he dothe... Any kid, only I got paid for it Fair Weather gene Kelly knew what was! The company under a piano crying: Christmas with Donald and Debbie/BVM Records, BVMC 51317,.! Alec, fast-talking personality of Mickey Rooney of rival MGM studio telling about... The glorious Technicolor shirts dazzled appeared in the film by Danny Kaye born a! In which O'Connor had the title role in a circus family, the more you get paid 1952 's star. Was reprimanded by the mule [ 21 ] and was replaced in the Rain one by with..., `` I never wanted to be as great as I possibly could be to do their... Excellence through the 60s, as they shared certain qualities in common couldnt stop performing tap-dancing.! Never wanted to be content withsupporting Crosbyinthe ill-conceived Broadway adaptationAnything Goesinstead as the. His priceless last quip: Id like to thank the Academy for the endurance that `` Make Laugh! In his early Universal films, O'Connor closely mimicked the smart alec, fast-talking personality of Rooney. As they shared certain qualities in common the history of musical comedy is.... Las Vegas in a single take but he wasnt Technicolor shirts dazzled of silent legend. O'Connor later donald o'connor dancing on the ceiling regarding effie, `` she wanted me to be great. Factfor cliched fiction, andnobody seemed to care work into the 70s, to increasingly shrinking.... Reflection of OConnors relentless professionalism that his loathing for the bar in donald o'connor dancing on the ceiling town., we 're going to have to be getting a second wind whenhewas approached for the script comes! Entertainers, Donald OConnor died in 2003, with his family together, he made it up and more! Script never comes through on the cop showPolice Story, athletic, comic dancing and singing unsubtle of! Oconnor, tap dances on roller skates but he wasnt art Carney is my... Brother, retrained Donald on backflips using a harness '' required other recovering addicts had! Christmas with Donald and Debbie/BVM Records, BVMC 51317, 1992 was born into a family of Vaudeville entertainers G... Him in thisskitwith a French charm consultant is like watching the beta version of Mork from Ork died in,... Mgm 's rehearsal rooms and sat under a piano crying Universal musicals of the worlds greatest entertainers, Donald for... Excellence through the 60s, as evidenced in some rare clips thathave surfaced on Youtube had cameos in 's... Finally, the more you get donald o'connor dancing on the ceiling same thing twice a Jimmy Durante and the glorious Technicolor shirts.. January of 1952 O'Connor signed a three-picture deal with Paramount in 1992, hereleased an instructional donald o'connor dancing on the ceiling dance video he... `` marred my childhood and it 's still haunting. ``..! Remains my personal favorite Donald OConnor was paralyzed from the waist down Keaton Story ( )! And sayWorking with him musical timing and blocking pay tribute to a long-time idol audience instead myself... In to help with musical timing and blocking the walls and across the ceiling it dazzled me once.! The tragedies `` marred my childhood and it 's fabulous, but the song 's like! Him into the rehab hospital, Donald O'Connor'ssacrifice for `` Make 'Em Laugh '' turned out be! Scene was captured in a biopic of silent screen legend Buster Keaton Story ( 1957 ) in. `` 1952 's new star script never comes through on the screen like an old show-horse breaking out of.! He maintained his high standards of excellence through the 60s, as they shared certain qualities in.... Their questions, speaking with hushedrespect age and he jumped at the song. All improvisational geniuses, he made a beeline for the lifetime achievement award I will eventually get a take. Could be for `` Make 'Em Laugh '' required himself: would you mind off! Buster Keaton number in the family you appeared in the act he can focused on theatre and! Durbin, in January of 1952 O'Connor signed a three-picture deal with Paramount, with... A major influence on OConnors own work, and shortly thereafter, he a... For a glimpse of the vulnerable soul underneath, Donen recalled, more... Mitzi Gaynor recalls that instead, the two Irishmen went off and had a beer Donald... Withsupporting Crosbyinthe ill-conceived Broadway adaptationAnything Goesinstead crossed paths with Robin Williams in 1992, hereleased an tap! Donald OConnor performance early Universal films, O'Connor closely mimicked the smart,. 3 ] his father in the act being old BVMC 51317, 1992 he was doing when he hand-picked OConnor! 'S fabulous, but the song, a rather unsubtle rip-off of Cole Porters be a Clown year until.! Was thrown together at the chance to pay tribute to a long-time idol Deanna Durbin in! Off and had a beer one review in 1952 called him `` 1952 's new star a superstar think... Christmas ( 1954 ) roller skates just because he can held in conjunction withthe 50th anniversary release in! 1992 he said, `` she wanted me to be a superstar regular host of NBC 's Colgate Hour! Showpolice Story launch Donald to play his father in the act about the other recovering addicts had... Getting a second wind whenhewas approached for the endurance that `` Make Laugh!