National Dance Day: Interview with Norma Miller and Susan Glatzer

Norma Miller and Susan Glatzer on media day in April 2017

Today is National Dance Day and I’d like to share with you two interviews I did with dancer Norma Miller, the Queen of Swing, and Susan Glatzer, director of the swing dancing documentary Alive and Kicking which I reviewed back in April.

Norma Miller with other members of Whitey's Lindy Hoppers. Photo source: Norma Miller's official website

"Give me a beat!" - Norma Miller

At 97 years old, Norma Miller is still as feisty as ever. The legendary swing dancer is the last surviving member of Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers which also included the late great Frankie Manning. She started dancing at the age of 5 and quickly became an attraction whether it was on the sidewalks of Harlem or in the Savoy Ballroom. In my phone conversation with Norma Miller she explained, "the Savoy Ballroom was the first integrated place in America. And it was a place where we could go in every night and dance and we didn't have to pay to come in."At the tender age of twelve, she and her mother lived across from the Savoy Ballroom and Miller could often be found dancing just outside it. She was invited in and soon started enchanting eager audiences with her moves.

Miller then caught the eye of Herbert White, also known as "Whitey" and he invited her to become one of his dancers. On becoming one of Whitey's Lindy Hoppers Miller told me, "that became the professional act that came out of the Savoy Ballroom. We were traveling for [the] Whitey's Lindy Hoppers [in] 1937." Whitey's troupe of talented swing dancers traveled the world and it wasn't long before she got to Hollywood. Miller remembers:

"We went all the way. We crossed the country. We played every Paramount theater. From New York City all the way out to the West Coast. And it was at the West Coast that the people that was making a movie called A Day at the Races saw us at the theater and called back the cast so they could put the Lindy Hop in there. And that was the first time America saw the Lindy Hop."

When I asked her if she had fun making A Day at the Races (1937) Miller enthusiastically replied "of course!". 

In a few years time she'd be back in Hollywood. Norma Miller told me "that was 1941 that was a different act. We were at the time traveling with [Ole] Olsen and [Chic] Johnson. We were part of their package." She was in a fantastic swing dancing seen in the otherwise odd little movie Hellzapoppin' (1941). In it she dances with Frankie Manning. I told Miller that the scene was the best part of the movie. She replied, "Did you see the whole movie?" When I told her yes she said, 'now you know why it was the best thing!"

It IS rather a strange film!

The Lindy Hop of Norma Miller's generation was different from swing dancing today. Miller said, "The Lindy Hop is a professional dance. What you do today is social dancing. It's the greatest means of people communicating. There's nothing better than swing dancing because everybody can do it." Miller hopes people will watch the documentary Alive and Kicking, she's one of three swing dancing legends interviewed in the film. Miller told me, "if they like it, it'll give them a jump start so that people can get out and dance again."

Buy the DVD: Amazon - Barnes and Noble - Best Buy - Deep Discount 

Stream/Digital Download: iTunes - Fandango - Vudu - and elsewhere

Susan Glatzer's documentary was five years in the making and originally she wasn't supposed to direct it. In my conversation with Glatzer,  she told me:

 "I've been a swing dancer for 19 years... At first I wasn't going to be directing it. I wanted to have somebody else direct it. And they were always busy. So I started and that's how it happened. As I started filming I realized that there were things I wanted to say about our society today. I really did feel like dancing was such a good way of expressing it. Of coming together and how the dance brings people together. We get to relate on a human level. I think that we isolate a lot and I do think that the internet has turned it into us and them a lot more than we naturally are."

In the documentary, Glatzer interviews legends like the aforementioned Norma Miller and Frankie Manning as well as Dawn Hampton who passed away late last year. When I asked her what she learned from interviewing these rock stars of swing dancing, she one word for me: "humility". She went on to say,

"Dawn, she knew how to live life. She knew how see the grace and the beauty in every situation. She saw gratitude in so many things. That's way beyond the dance. Frankie [Manning] was the same way. There's the Frankie Manning Foundation and part of their mission is to grow the swing community and introduce the dance to people. A big part of it is to carry on his outlook on his life which was about kindness and everyone is welcome to swing dance. I don't care how young, old, what size, shape, race. It doesn't matter. Everyone is welcome. Carrying on that kind of way of looking at other individuals. In a way that we do not do much of these days. Where we see other people as human beings who are potential friends as opposed to the other faction."

Also in the documentary are the young professional swing dancers who make this dance not only their profession but their lifestyle. Many of them got hooked on swing dancing from seeing clips from classic films. On how old movies influenced the swing dancing revival in the home video era, Glatzer says,

"they saw all these old movies and they were like who are these people and how do we find them? They started researching and they found the original dancers. But my generation when I started dancing in the '90s. If you got your hands on a fourth generation VHS copy of Groovy Movie or Hellzapoppin' that was considered so amazing. You would watch it and re-watch it again and try to learn the moves. And now everything is out there on YouTube. You had to work hard for it back in the day. It really did come with seeing those old movies again."

Alive and Kicking is an amazing documentary that captures the spirit of not only swing dancing but a lively and thriving community. My last question for Glatzer was what she hoped people would take away from watching this documentary. She responded, "if they are just discovering this music and this dance and they want to explore that, that would be amazing. I do think that we live lives of quiet desperation. So few of us have a source of joy in our lives. I hope that it encourages people to find whatever is the source of joy for themselves."

Thank you to Norma Miller and Susan Glatzer for taking the time out to talk to me and to Caitlin Rose for coordinating.

Undercurrent (1946)

In 1946 Robert Mitchum was under contract to RKO. They had loaned him out to MGM for two pictures Undercurrent (1946) and Desire Me (1947) which were filmed back-to-back. He had relatively small roles in both as the third person in a romantic melodrama. Both films turned out to be box office failures. Not that this hurt Mitchum's career trajectory at all. In fact, placing Mitchum in movies with the type of high-caliber stars that were missing from RKO's line-up, in this case MGM heavyweights Greer Garson in Desire Me and Katharine Hepburn and Robert Taylor in Undercurrent, was incredible exposure for Mitchum. And the following year he'd make Out of the Past (1947) which would help secure him a spot as a popular leading man in Hollywood.

Katharine Hepburn, Robert Taylor and Robert Mitchum's shadow in a publicity shot for MGM

Directed by Vincente Minnelli, Undercurrent (1946) is part film noir, part neurotic melodrama. Katharine Hepburn stars as Ann, a scientist and 30-something daughter of well-respected Professor Hamilton (Edmund Gwenn) whom she lovingly refers to as Dink. She's a tomboy, wears pants, loves chemistry, and doesn't fuss too much over her appearance. But in the world she lives in she's really just a dowdy woman on the verge of spinsterhood. When charming young inventor Alan Garroway (Robert Taylor) comes to visit Professor Hamilton, Ann is soon swept away by his romantic gestures. Garroway is attracted to Ann much in the same way he would be to a new idea for an invention. He sees possibility to transform her into a glamorous socialite. All seems well in their marriage until it becomes apparent that Garroway harbors dark secrets. He's severed his relationship with his brother Michael Garroway (Robert Mitchum) and in conversation with Ann he paints the picture of unforgivable sibling betrayal. Ann believes him until she discovers Alan's first lie and things begins to unfold. Ann suffers the internal battle between her love for Alan and her desire for the truth. Is Alan really the man she fell in love with? And where is Michael?

Katharine Hepburn and Robert Mitchum in Undercurrent (1946)

 "Is there good swimming?" - Ann

"No, riptide." - Michael

"Looks very calm." - Ann

"You can't always see that undercurrent." - Michael

"Like life." - Ann

Clearly I watched this movie for one reason: Robert Mitchum. While his character Michael is central to the story, Mitchum himself doesn't appear until 62 minute mark of a 2 hour movie and his total screen time is probably less than 10 minutes. Needless to say this was a disappointment for me but I was grateful for to check off another Mitchum movie off my to-be-watched list.

While it's categorized as a film noir, I like the term "neurotic melodrama" a lot better. It really captures the overall theme of the movie. The build up of tension is slow and methodical. None of the roles suited the main players. Ann was a weak role for Katharine Hepburn whom we all know shines when she has strong characters to play. Mitchum as the mysterious brother was also a weak character for him. Robert Taylor's performance was decent. I grew more fearful of his character as the story progressed so I thought that was an effective part of the movie. I think this film is worth watching for the main players, the melodrama and the build up of tension. This was Jayne Meadows film debut. She plays Sylvia Benton, a no-nonsense socialite who was unwillingly caught in a love triangle with the two brothers. She has a small but fantastic part as the tough woman who opens Ann's eyes to what's happening around her. Clinton Sundberg plays Taylor's right-hand man. Marjorie Main has a small role in the beginning of the film as the Hamilton's maid and mother figure to Ann.

This movie was a departure for Minnelli so he wasn't the only one on set who out of his element. From what I've read, Hepburn and Mitchum didn't get along which could be why there is very little to no tenderness between them in what should be tender scenes in the film. In an interview with Dick Lochte, Mitchum remembered overhearing Hepburn refer to him as a "cheap flash actor." This was the only time they worked together which was probably for the best.

The film didn't perform well in theaters. In 1947 playwright Fay Elhert sued MGM for using the title of his play, one he submitted to MGM for consideration, for this movie. Laraine Day had been promised the title role of Ann in exchange for her appearing in Keep Your Powder Dry (1945). MGM didn't hold up their end of the bargain and Day severed her contract with them.

I'm conflicted about this movie. I want to like it but something pulls me back. I can't quite put my finger on it. It could be shorter with even more tension. Maybe other actors better suited to the roles would have improved the film for me. But otherwise it's just an ordinary movie that I just happened to enjoy but not too much.

If you've seen this film I would love to know what you think!

I watched this film on iTunes. I missed an opportunity to see it at the Brattle Theatre as part of their Robert Mitchum centennial repertory series but hope to catch another screening soon.

Sources:
TCMDB
Robert Mitchum: Baby I Don't Care by Lee Server
Mitchum in His Own Words edited by Jerry Roberts

Obit. Life on a Deadline (2016)

"Obits have next to nothing to do with the death and absolutely everything to do with the life." - Margalit Fox
 
Classic film enthusiasts are well-acquainted with obituaries. The deaths of our beloved stars are a common occurrence. When someone dies we take the time to reflect on their life. Reading obits on and offline is one of the ways we celebrate the life and mourn the loss. When I first started this blog I always knew that I didn't want to write obits. At first I would post little tributes instead with just a few words and a picture or two. Even then it became too much and I abandoned the practice. I have the utmost respect for those who regularly write obits even more so now that I watched the new documentary Obit. Life on a Deadline (2016).


Directed by Vanessa Gould, Obit. takes a deep dive into the work by the obit team at The New York Times. Talking heads include current and former obit writers Bruce Weber, Margalit Fox, William Grimes, Douglas Martin, Paul Vitello, their boss William McDonald as well archivist Jeff Roth and various others who contribute to the The New York Times obits.

Newspaper obit writers are a dying breed. Once considered to be the most boring section of a newspaper, today's writers have breathed new life into this form of journalism. The New York Times obit team focuses on writing pieces that educate, illuminate and entertain. They capture the essence of a life while also telling the reader an enthralling story. While they try to do justice to a life there is also the need for impartiality. These writers are not afraid to explore the negatives along with the positives. There is a keen eye on research. Obit writers race against the clock to pull together as much information as they can in a short amount of time. This means calling family members of the deceased, speed reading clips that are pulled from The New York Times' "Morgue" and using other resources to build the skeleton of the obit. Then there are the creative minds of these writers whose talent for the written word weave the tales of lives well-lived or not at all.

Scene from Obit. Photo source: Kino Lorber

One minute into Obit. and I was hooked. I was utterly fascinated by the process of researching and writing an obit. Viewers follow the writers on a typical day at the office but we also get to hear about some of their previous work too. The position of an obit writer used to be the lowest rung on the totem pole of a newspaper; a job relegated to someone on their way out. I get the sense that while The New York Times obit team isn't one of the top departments it is still respected.

"There's a tremendous amount of pressure to be as prepared as you can, knowing that you'll never be prepared." - William McDonald

We get a peak at how the obit team pitches for a page one piece (either a top story or a "refer", a call out to the obit section on the bottom of the front page). Viewers get to see the "Morgue" where decades worth of news clippings arranged by subject and subject matter. There are insights on how photographs are selected, how the length of obits are decided on and how they approach advances, obits written ahead of a person's death. There is also a spotlight on individual obits for figures like adventurer John Fairfax, author David Foster Wallace, Marshall Lytle of Bill Haley and the Comets, stunt pilot Elinor Smith, actress Farrah Fawcett and singer Michael Jackson. These were fascinating and we learn quite a bit about the process.

Archivist Jeff Roth in the "Morgue" - Photo source: Kino Lorber

I was hoping this documentary had more classic film related figures but alas it did not. The only person mentioned was Elizabeth Taylor who's obit was a big deal for the team. There are some clips of movie stars like Lauren Bacall and Marilyn Monroe but none are focused on. I think it's still worth the time of classic film fans to watch this documentary especially if you're like me and read obituaries on a regular basis.

Obit. Life on a Deadline (2016) is an illuminating and informative documentary on the writers who give the recently deceased one final send-off. This is a must-see!

Obit. (2016) will be available from Kino Lorber on DVD and Blu-Ray on August 1st. You can pre-order the movie by using the buy links below.

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Kino Lorber

Thank you to Kino Lorber for sending me the Blu-Ray to review!