- Ava Gardner, Show Boat, 1950. Although the musical was bought for Judy Garland, new Metro chief Dore Schary couldn’t think of anyone finer than Dinah. She tested and MGMusical producer wizard Arthur Freed gave it to her straight. “You’re not a whore. Ava is. When she sings ‘Bill,’ she’s every streetwalker you ever saw.” In her long career, Shore made a mere seven films.
- June Allyson, The Glenn Miller Story, 1953. The singer from Tennessee passed on the bandleader’s wife, Helen Burger – opposite James Stewart. Allyson partnered James Stewart for the second of three films together.
- Deborah Kerr, The King And I, 1955. First thought for Anna Leonowens. Next? Maureen O’Hara. Then, Yul Brynner lobbied for Kerr – the only one who could sing and act. Hah! She was dubbed, of course, by Marni Nixon, the singing voice of ’em all: Audrey Hepburn’s Eliza, Natalie Wood’s Maria, Janet Leigh, Margaret O’Brien. And she even touched up Marilyn Monroe in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.
- Janet Blair, The One and Only Genuine, Original Family Band, 1967. One of the last features Walt Disney had a hand in before his December 1966 death. And, alas, his biggestgflop – never even released in Europe. But then he rejected Shore and Bing Crosby – exactly the kind of guys the musical required. (But Crosby’s demanded cut of the action box-office was not).
Birth year: 1916Death year: 1994Other name: Usual occupation: SingerCasting Calls: 4