![]() ![]() In 1942, the dancers at MGM insisted on being placed under contract with the Arthur Freed unit. Like the other dancers and chorus girls of the time, she would until 1942 bounce back and forth from one studio to another, appearing in musical numbers with every major musical star. ![]() Born in Kansas in 1916, she would become a part of Berkeley’s troupe at MGM when he moved over there in 1939 for the Mickey and Judy musicals. She would be featured in close-up in all of the musical numbers she appeared (which was nearly every musical number in the films he made). (images in good resolution 1018x12x1500 pixels)ĭancer Eleanore Bailey posing for the “By A Waterfall.” musical numberĮleanore Bailey (who would also be billed as Eleanor Bayley) was one of Busby Berkeley's main dancing girls. These are unusually sexy pre-Code images. Costumed by Milo Anderson, with her breasts nearly exposed, there is no doubt that Lorraine is portraying a glamorous version of a prostitute. The very salacious “ Shanghai Lil” production number was set in a brothel and opium den, and, though it was made acceptable by the inclusion of Ruby Keeper as a coquette, and a patriotic finale honoring FDR’s “new deal,” the number made no bones about depicting the seamy side of the subject matter. Lorraine Marshall fell into the “Follies Girl” category, and she decorated the Busby Berkeley musical numbers during his tenure at Warner Brothers. These ladies were taller and had the background of being a model and often had little dance ability, but they could move well and wear clothes beautifully, or often, not wear hardly any clothes at all. In the hierarchy of the studio system chorines there were the dancers, who usually, once the musical film came to maturity, could perform any kind of dance required. The name of this beauty is Lorraine Marshall in "Shanghai Lil" number. Starring: Joan Blondell, Dick Powell & Ruby Keeler.Īs Always, Clip Info Is In The Thumbnails One thing is for sure, I still marvel at the spectacle that is a Busby Berkeley piece to this day and I hope you enjoy the following posts. ![]() "42nd Street" reputedly cost upwards of $500k to produce, but grossed millions on its release, and all this during the Great Depression!. ![]() The cost to stage such spectacles must have also gone through the roof, but the studios reaped the rewards when the films were released. Such was his passion to get the perfect shot he was even known to cut through studio rooves to get it. The placement and movement of both camera and dancer together in harmony and instead of filming from fixed positions, his cameras were often mounted on custom built booms and rails, zooming in for great close-ups on his beautiful girls faces, then back out again to reveal stunningly intricate geometrical patterns, formed by the "impossible to count" numbers of bodies taking part in what was often "quite erotic for their day" routines. You would recognise a Busby Berkeley choreographed piece almost instantly. As a follow on from my MGM Girls thread, This one will hopefully include a lot more pictures and clips from Busbys pre "Hays Code" days with Warner Brothers, and as I would like to grow my collection further, I look forward to other members contributions. ![]()
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