Backstage and Broadway: Kiss Me Kate(1953)

(bway2hlwd.blogspot.com)

LOVE ANN MILLER! This is one of my all time favorite numbesr performed by her (next to Lady From The Bayou in Hit The Deck(1955) among others )

Another favorite song of mine, Tom,Dick, or Harry.

CAUTION: It will get stuck in your head!

              Cole Porter's show Kiss Me Kate, a musical remake of The Taming of the Shrew, will star Fred Graham (Howard Keel) as Petruchio. This is sure to be a smash if the leading lady is Lilli Graham (Kathryn Grayson),ahem,Lilli Vanessi to play Kathryn The Shrew.However, convincing Lilli to take the part will not be an easy task considering:

a) Fred and Lilli are no longer "Mr. and Mrs."Plus, it "might interfere with her honeymoon"

as she intends to marry a cattle baron named Tex Callaway.

b)Fred's new "girlfriend" Lois Lane (Ann Miller) will be playing the part of

 Bianca, Kathryn's younger sister.

        As the production of the show proceeds, so does the rekindling of marital fire between

Fred and Lilli. However the plot takes a sharp turn when Lilli accidentally receives flowers that are actually addressed to Lois! Angry and embarrassed, Lilli is determined to leave in the middle of the show and marry her new fiance.

Meanwhile, Lois' real boyfriend Bill Calhoun (Tommy Rall),dancer/part-time gambler, loses $2,000

dollars that he doesn't have. Because of Lois' involvement with Fred, Bill spitefully signs Fred's name on an I.O.U. Naturally the bookie's henchmen Lippy and Slug ( the hilarious Keenan Wynn and James Whitmore)    come looking for Fred. Although livid, Fred uses these goofy gangsters to keep his ex-wife in the show; and from marrying Tex (Willard Parker).Fred gets Slug and Lippy to help him by informing them that he cannot pay the back if the show flops and that it would certainly flop if Lilli left. As it turns out for Lilli, she can't escape the stage nor the love that she and her ex-husband still share. 

There's much to love about this MGM gem:

*This film (and musical no less) was one of the last to hop on the 3-D bandwagon as it began to fade out around 1954. Also, you won't need your red and blue lensed glasses to see the 3-D effects today. You will notice throughout the movie that it seems like they are popping out of the screen.That is due to the directors telling the cast to dance/act/throw things directly at the camera.One of the best illustrations is in the number "Why Can't You Behave?"

*The dance numbers are awesome featuring Bobby Van, Tommy Rall, Ann Miller and a young Bob Fosse (who got permission to choreograph his own parts).Their best work is featured in "From This Moment On." The show wouldn't be complete without the satin and steel pairing of Kathryn Grayson and Howard Keel's amazing voices.

Hope you enjoy this unique classic,

XOXO,

Neah B