Ann Miller
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- April 12, 1923
- Died
- January 22, 2004 (aged 80)
- Birthplace
- Houston, Texas, USA
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Johnnie Lucille Collier (April 12, 1923 – January 22, 2004), known professionally as Ann Miller, was an American dancer, singer and actress. She is best remembered for her work in the Classical Hollywood musical films of the 1940s and 1950s. At age 13 in 1936, Miller became a showgirl at the Bal Tabarin. She was hired as a dancer in the "Black Cat Club" in San Francisco (she reportedly told them she was 18). It was there that she was discovered by Lucille Ball and talent scout/comic Benny Rubin (although some sources say this occurred at Bal Tabarin). This led Miller to be given a contract with RKO in 1936 at the age of 13 (she had also told them she was 18, and apparently provided a fake birth certificate, procured by her father - with the name "Lucy Ann Collier") and she remained there until 1940. In 1941, she signed with Columbia Pictures, where, starting with Time Out for Rhythm, she starred in 11 B movie musicals from 1941 to 1945. In July 1945, with World War II still raging in the Pacific, she posed in a bathing suit as a Yank magazine pin-up girl. She ended her contract in 1946 with one "A" film, The Thrill of Brazil. The ad in Life magazine featured Miller's leg in a large, red, bow-tied stocking as the "T" in "Thrill". She finally hit her mark in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musicals such as Easter Parade (1948), On the Town (1949) and Kiss Me Kate (1953). Miller was famed for her speed in tap dance. Studio publicists concocted press releases claiming she could tap 500 times per minute, but in truth, the sound of ultra-fast "500" taps was looped in later. Because the stage floors were waxed and too slick for regular tap shoes, she had to dance in shoes with rubber treads on the sole. Later she would loop the sound of the taps while watching the film and actually dancing on a "tap board" to match her steps in the film. Her film career effectively ended in 1956 as the studio system lost steam to television, but she remained active in the theater and on television. She starred on Broadway in the musical Mame in 1969, in which she wowed the audience in a tap number created just for her. In 1979 she astounded audiences in the Broadway show Sugar Babies with fellow MGM veteran Mickey Rooney, which toured the United States extensively after its Broadway run. In 1983, she won the Sarah Siddons Award for her work in Chicago theatre. She appeared in a special 1982 episode of The Love Boat, joined by fellow showbiz legends Ethel Merman, Carol Channing, Della Reese, Van Johnson and Cab Calloway in a storyline that cast them as older relatives of the show's regular characters. Her last stage performance was a 1998 production of Stephen Sondheim's Follies, in which she played hardboiled Carlotta Campion and received rave reviews for her rendition of the song "I'm Still Here". For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Miller has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6914 Hollywood Blvd. In 1998, a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs, California, Walk of Stars was dedicated to her. To honor Miller's contribution to dance, the Smithsonian Institution displays her favorite pair of tap shoes, which she playfully nicknamed "Moe and Joe".
Known For
Photos
Filmography
Broadway: Beyond the Golden Age
Movie · as Self
Hollywood Singing & Dancing: A Musical History - 1970's
Movie · as Self
Easter Parade: On the Avenue
Movie · as Self
Judy Garland: By Myself
Movie · as Self - Actor (voice)
Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There
Movie · as Self
Cole Porter in Hollywood: Begin the Beguine
Movie
Cole Porter in Hollywood: Too Darn Hot
Movie · as Self
Inside the Marx Brothers
Movie · as Self
Rita
Movie · as Self
Broadway's Lost Treasures
Movie · as Ann (segment "Sugar Babies")
Gene Kelly: Anatomy of a Dancer
Movie · as Self (archive footage)
Marlene Dietrich: Her Own Song
Movie · as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Mulholland Drive
Movie · as Coco
Hollywood Musicals of the 40's
Movie · as Self (archive footage)
Frank Sinatra Memorial
Movie · as Self
E! True Hollywood Story
TV · 1 ep
Private Screenings
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Inside the Dream Factory
Movie · as Self
That's Entertainment! III
Movie · as Self - Host
Lucy and Desi: A Home Movie
Movie · as Self
Home Improvement
TV · as Mrs. Keeney · 1 ep
Happy 100th Birthday, Hollywood
Movie · as Self
That's Dancing!
Movie
Night of 100 Stars
Movie · as Self
The Love Boat
TV · as Connie Carruthers · 2 eps
Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
Movie · as Presidents' Girl 2
That's Entertainment, Part II
Movie · as (archive footage)
That's Entertainment!
Movie · as (archive footage) (uncredited)
Dames at Sea
Movie · as Mona
Love, American Style
TV · 1 ep
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
TV · as Self (uncredited) · 2 eps
The Dick Cavett Show
TV · as Self - Guest · 2 eps
Mondo Hollywood
Movie
The Hollywood Palace
TV · as Self · 2 eps
The Merv Griffin Show
TV · as Self · 2 eps
The Mike Douglas Show
TV · as Self · 1 ep
The Opposite Sex
Movie · as Gloria Dahl
The Great American Pastime
Movie · as Doris Patterson
The Dinah Shore Chevy Show
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Tony Awards
TV · as Self - Performer · 1 ep
Hit the Deck
Movie · as Ginger
MGM Parade
TV · as Self · 1 ep
Deep in My Heart
Movie · as Performer (segment "Artists and Models")
Kiss Me Kate
Movie · as Lois Lane, "Bianca"
Small Town Girl
Movie · as Lisa Bellmount
Lovely to Look At
Movie · as Bubbles Cassidy
Texas Carnival
Movie · as Sunshine Jackson
Two Tickets to Broadway
Movie · as Joyce Campbell
Watch the Birdie
Movie · as Miss Lucky Vista
What's My Line?
TV · as Self · 1 ep
On the Town
Movie · as Claire Huddesen
Mighty Manhattan, New York's Wonder City
Movie · as Self
Easter Parade
Movie · as Nadine Hale
The Kissing Bandit
Movie · as Fiesta Specialty Dancer
The Ed Sullivan Show
TV · as Self · 2 eps
The Thrill of Brazil
Movie · as Linda Lorens
Eve Knew Her Apples
Movie · as Eve Porter
Eadie Was a Lady
Movie · as Eadie Allen / Edithea Alden
Jam Session
Movie · as Terry Baxter
Carolina Blues
Movie · as Julie Carver
Sailor's Holiday
Movie
Hey, Rookie
Movie · as Winnie Clark
Reveille with Beverly
Movie · as Beverly Ross
What's Buzzin', Cousin?
Movie · as Ann Crawford
True to the Army
Movie · as Vicki Marlow
Priorities on Parade
Movie · as Donna D'Arcy
Time Out for Rhythm
Movie · as Kitty Brown
Screen Snapshots Series 21 No. 1
Movie · as Self
Go West, Young Lady
Movie · as Lola
Hedda Hopper's Hollywood No. 2
Movie
Too Many Girls
Movie · as Pepe
Melody Ranch
Movie · as Julie Shelton
Hit Parade of 1941
Movie · as Anabelle Potter
You Can't Take It with You
Movie · as Essie Carmichael
Room Service
Movie · as Hilda Manny
Having Wonderful Time
Movie · as Vivian (uncredited)
Tarnished Angel
Movie · as Violet McMaster
Radio City Revels
Movie · as Billie
Stage Door
Movie · as Annie
The Life of the Party
Movie · as Betty
New Faces of 1937
Movie · as Ann Miller
The Devil on Horseback
Movie · as Dancer (uncredited)
The Good Fairy
Movie · as Girl in Orphanage (uncredited)