Mercoledi Musicale

There was a time when film glamour meant artfully applied make-up and perhaps a bit of gauze or Vaseline on a lens not botox or photoshop.   It was a time before anorexia became a fashion statement rather than a serious disease, when breasts were lifted by bras or artful taping not implants.   Sure there was artifice but what artifice!

One of the most glamorous was the gorgeous Rita Hayworth; but she was more than glamour she had talent as a dancer and an actress.  Almost born in a trunk as Margarita Carmen Cansino, she had danced with her father in clubs and bistros before making her first film at the age of 16.  She was to become one of the great stars of the 40s and 50s and proved her worth in musicals, dramas and comedies.  Her performance as Gilda was to become iconic as the ultimate femme fatale and the famous striptease scene - despite take-offs on it over the years - still packs quite a punch.

That and several of her other dramatic films (Separate Tables, Miss Sadie Thompson, The Lady from Shanghai) tend to overshadow the musicals she starred in with Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly amongst others.  However Ellen over at et7waage1 on YouTube has put together a wonderful montage of dance clips which fit a popular 1970s disco tune almost perfectly.

 

This is just one of the great compilations that Ellen has put together as a tribute to her favourite movie star. A left click on the link above will take you to the rest.

May 2 - 1952: The world's first ever jet airliner, the De Havilland Comet 1 makes its maiden flight, from London to Johannesburg.