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Quote by Gene Kelly

“I had been asked to open a nightclub in Atlantic City. They offered me a ridiculous amount of money. They literally overpaid me. So I did one show a night. Then they asked me back by popular demand. So I went back. Then I said, "To hell with this." I was only doing it for the money, and I was doing easy routines. It's just too much work to get up every day and practice.”

Quote by Gene Kelly

Author

Gene Kelly, an American dancer, actor, and director, was born on August 23, 1912, and passed away on February 2, 1996. He is renowned for his unique dance style and film performances, and is considered one of the most influential dancers in the history of cinema. more

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“At the time the quickest way to establish yourself as an American was to throw a little bit of tap into your dance - even when it wasn't called for. But what also helped me was the fact that I was dancing in roles that I had played.”

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“I never played a rich man, I never played a prince. And to play a sailor or longshoreman you had to make your dance more eclectic and varied, but still keep it indigenous to your nationality, upbringing, and background.”

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“In the 1930s there was this tendency in Hollywood to portray everyone as rich. Even if they were doing a poor man's dance, they were all so nicely clothed, gowned, coiffured. That's why I decided to wear white socks, loafers, T-shirts, and blue jeans. I had a sociopolitical context in front of me: I was a child of the Depression who danced in a way that would represent the common man.”

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“I don't even want to discuss Flashdance. I'm no critic, but that's an interesting phenomenon, that picture.”

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“I don't understand the whole concept of doubles. They used to do that in the early sound films in Hollywood, but I thought we had gotten rid of that. Now not only do you have doubles, but as in Flashdance, you have triples, quadruples. From my point of view it is bad for the art.”

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“As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being.”