Buzz by Jeffrey Spivak
Author:Jeffrey Spivak [Spivak, Jeffrey]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-0-8131-2644-9
Publisher: The University Press of Kentucky
Published: 2011-08-14T16:00:00+00:00
With respect and simplicity, Buzz photographed Ann Sothern singing the number in various medium shots. The reprise had Buzz superimposing footage of Paris with its street cafés, Eiffel Tower, and gendarmes into a moving testament that struck an emotional chord in audiences.
Eleanor Powell, the tap-dancing queen of the MGM lot in 1941, gets upstaged by a talented little dog named Buttons in their number together of the title song. The studio had tested several dogs, but none could perform the required movements on camera with any consistency. Powell made it her goal to find a suitable pooch, and as luck had it, a prop man on the set owned one who was receptive to instruction. Powell trained the dog herself, repeating steps, leg raises, and turns until Buttons was proficient enough to warrant a Buzz Berkeley take. The result was absolutely delightful. Eleanor taps around the living room while Buttons follows her lead, walking in and out from between her legs. Buttons stands on his points as Eleanor spins an arched leg around his head. She makes hoops out of her arms, and Buttons leaps through, never missing his mark. It’s a terrific little number carried off with the apparent ease that only time-intensive rehearsals can produce.
“Fascinating Rhythm” is one of the great numbers in Buzz’s MGM career. Split into three distinctive “movements,” the number builds to a dance/music spectacle with the indelible mark of Buzz’s creativity. The first movement features orchestra members in silhouette, flanking singer Connie Russell as she handles the lead. With a great effect that takes the shadows of the Berry Brothers (a talented dance trio) and makes them gigantic, the movement then shifts to the middle passage as the trio displays their intricate dance acrobatics. As they dance offstage, the action shifts to the third movement.
The final section of “Fascinating Rhythm” begins with a close-up of a pianist playing boogie-woogie runs up and down the keyboard. Cut to the tap shoes of Eleanor Powell as she dances across the stage, curtains opening to reveal a different pianist. The tall curtains swirl behind her, opening to a different piano, then another, as Powell continues her tap in a disorienting setting. It looks as if she is straddling three or more revolving sets, all turning in counterpoint to a great effect. How the trick was achieved is seen in the footage shot by a camera high up on the set that recorded the take in progress. The stage was made up of eight rectangular blocks, a piano on each one. As Powell dances across the stage, a stagehand using a movable cart (called a “mule”) pulls a section away as soon as she moves to the next rectangle. Buzz is seen on the floor walking beside the camera as it’s recording Powell’s dance steps. Once all the rectangles are removed, the curtains open to reveal the final set. Buzz, still astride the boom, runs backward as the camera is raised to a new position.
The curtains part, and
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