Gene Kelly: The Ultimate American in Paris

Gene Kelly redefined the American film musical by creating male protagonists who epitomized masculinity while singing and dancing. Unlike his peer Fred Astaire, Kelly was disinterested in portraying upper-class, effeminate men and actually said that he "didn't want to move or act like a rich man, [he] wanted to dance in a pair of jeans, [he] wanted to dance like the man in the streets" (PBS Special).

Kelly's unique talent for making the most complex dance sequences appear effortless and commonplace is apparent in Vincente Minnelli's 1951 musical hit, An American in Paris. Moreover, Kelly's skill, ideas, and artistic judgement were crucial to the successful planning and production of this film.

Kelly's many contributions to the creation of An American in Paris cannot be overlooked. Indeed, he first recommended the story "about an ex-GI, an aspiring painter who decides to remain in Paris after the war" to producer Arthur Freed and insisted that Vincente Minnelli be hired to direct the picture (Fordin 306). Additionally, Kelly worked in a variety of capacities to ensure that An American in Paris would be the work of art he anticipated and desired. For example, Kelly advised cinematographers John Alton and Alfred Gilks to subordinate fancy filmmaking technique to the choreography. He did not believe in glossing over live performance deficiencies with eye-catching photography. Rather, he insisted that the camera be an unbiased spectator, like a human eye watching the dance number for the first time. Kelly also worked closely with Minelli, Sharaff, and Chaplin, influencing them with his perspectives as an actor and choreographer (Fordin 331).