May 29
Born Today:
Bob Hope
Comedian and entertainer Bob Hope (1903-2003) was an excellent tap dancer. He got his start as a busker at the age of 12 and decided to enter the vaudeville circuit in the 1920s. He performed on Broadway and on the radio in the 1930s and switched to TV in the 1950s, along with movies, including his Road to… series (1940s-1960s) with singer Bing Crosby. He danced in comedic routines for the series and during USO shows for troops overseas between 1941-1991, but his tapping chops can best be seen in a showdown with dancer/actor James Cagney (1899-1986) in The Seven Little Foys (1955). Go check it out.
Also Born Today: Ballerina Charlotte Slottsberg (1760-1800) was one of the first home-grown members of the Royal Swedish Ballet and a favorite partner of dancer Antoine Bournonville (1760-1843). Modern dancer Lillian Powell (1896-1992) danced with Denishawn and Michio Ito (1892-1961), and later appeared in TV shows such as Dragnet. Swing dancer Dean Collins (1917-1984) is given credit for bringing the Lindy Hop from New York to the West Coast, creating West Coast Swing. He danced in several movies, including Hellzapoppin’ (1941) and Springtime in the Rockies (1942). Modern dancer Pearl Lang (1921-2009) performed with Martha Graham from 1942 until the late 1970s and formed her own company, creating over 60 works and teaching students including Pina Bausch (1940-2009) and Madonna (1958-). Dancer Michael Clark (1962-) studied Scottish dance as a youngster and trained at the Royal Ballet before dancing with Ballet Rambert in 1979. He has been producing his own works, which have been described as punk ballet.
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Dance Premiere: L’Apres-midi d’un faune in 1912 and Le Sacre du Printemps in 1913.
Movie: Yankee Doodle Dandy released in 1942
Broadway Premiere: High School Musical in 2007