arts•meme arts•meme
12 December 2012

Jack Cole, Hollywood director

Cole directing Diamonds-1000

The choreographer Jack Cole not only created the delicious dance numbers in GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES (1954); he directed them. [...]

28 June 2011

George Chakiris remembers West Side Story in advance of 50th anniversary screening @ Hollywood Bowl

George+Chakiris

Prior to next week’s “West Side Story” night at the Hollywood Bowl — a screening of the ten-Oscar-winning, Bernstein-Robbins-Sondheim-Laurent film celebrating its 50th year anniversary — it’s a great pleasure to post L.A. renaissance guy Tom Gregory’s lovely interview with Bernardo, er… the wonderful George Chakiris. [...]

10 November 2010

Jack Cole & Marilyn Monroe reunite at Jacob’s Pillow

cole-monroe

It was my great honor to join a panel at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival on Saturday, August 14, 2010, to honor the peerless jazz choreographer Jack Cole, whom I revere and about whom I have written. As a former Denishawn dancer, Cole had a distinct history at “The Pillow.” Here I contribute a snippet about Cole’s choreography for Marilyn Monroe in “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.” [...]

24 June 2010

Jane Russell remembers “Gentleman” Jack Cole

MM-JANE, gentlemen-small

Jane Russell speaks at Hollywood Heritage about choreographer Jack Cole, who coached her and Marilyn Monroe in Howard Hawk’s comic masterpiece, “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.” She says Cole directed the film’s dance sequences. [...]

6 August 2009

Marilyn dances . . .

JC marilyn and Gwen

Marilyn Monroe’s six-movie collaboration with Jack Cole began with 1953’s “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes,” the breakthrough film that made her a superstar. Yet the man behind the icon has been forgotten – an odd missing puzzle piece in view of Monroe’s staying power. [...]