October 21
Born Today:
Ted Shawn
Dancer Ted Shawn (1891-1972) was a co-founder of the Denishawn school and company with Ruth St. Denis (1879-1968). Denishawn served as the training ground for modern dance pioneers Martha Graham (1894-1991) and Doris Humphrey (1895-1958), among many others. After leaving Denishawn, he started an all-male dance troupe in the 1930s and founded the USA's oldest dance festival, Jacob’s Pillow, in the 1940s. Check out their website for next summer's line-up.
Also Born Today: Ballerina Lydia Lopokova (1892-1981) danced with the Ballets Russes and married economist John Maynard Keynes. Ballerina Nadia Nerina (1927-2008) was best known for her bravura performance in Frederick Ashton’s La Fille Mal Gardée in 1960. Ballerina Natalia Makarova (1940-) defected from the Kirov in the 1970s to dance in the West. Dancer Paula Kelly (1942-2020) is best known for her role in the movie Sweet Charity (1969).
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Movies: For Me and My Gal released in 1942, My Fair Lady released in 1964