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Quote by Gene Kelly

“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.”

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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“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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“First of all, break-dancing has been done for years, though not all of it put together the way it is now. But, actually, the distinctions have been blurring since the 1950s.”

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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.”

“In film, a dancer should always be shot from head to toe, because that way you can see the whole body and that is the art of dancing. Nowadays they shoot the nose. Left nostril. Right nostril. Hand. Foot. Bust. Derrière. The film prevents you from determining who is a good dancer and who is not.”

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“When they do let them sustain on screen from head to toe, though, then you know they must think the person is a good dancer.”

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“The future of dance will always be tied up with the public's acceptance of the star. If they accept the star, then they'll accept the dance.”

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“America now has more and better dancers than they have ever had in the history of the country, but that won't account for the public wants to see.”

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“For a ridiculous analogy, let's take Purple Rain. If you were to put Purple Rain and The Sound of Music on the desk of a producer, he or she would know that the majority of moviegoers would rather listen to Prince. Since they are in the business of making money, no one can blame them. But if it ever came to the decision of making a film like that I'd say, "No." They are very easy films to make, though. In Purple Rain there is nothing complex about the way that they dance. Or sing. It would be a bit boring for an adult to make that film. It just wouldn't test their métier.”

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Author:Gene Kelly