Classic Cancan

Friday, April 12, 2013

Lady for a Night

I have lost the information for this photo, although it is from an auction by Jay Parrino's The Mint. I can tell from the costumes that this is a publicity photo for "Lady for a Night", which features a very good cancan scene.

The Mint is a major seller of older photographic images and has an active store on EBay, where you can find a huge number of stills from the golden era of Hollywood.

Check them out at:

http://myworld.ebay.com/jp-themint/&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2754

Use the search function here for "lady for a night" for other photos from this film.

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

A superb photo

of a classic period cancan is available at this INA.fr website:

http://photo.ina.fr/volumeLR/ina_volume20101011/51005213_34438362/m_181387858_0.jpg

http://photo.ina.fr/detail/181387858_scene-du-french-cancan-au-moulin-rouge-dans-une-reconstitution-televisee-de-la-vie-de-toulouse-lautrec-par-gilles-margaritis

The caption says it is a French Cancan at the Moulin Rouge for a 1953 television reconstruction of the life of Toulouse Lautrec by Gilles Margaritis. The photographer was Daniel Fallot.

A Modern Classic

A still photo of the dancers from the Theatre de Monnaie's production of Orpheus in the Underworld. You've probably seen the video, but it's worth watching again:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JL9p20loMJ0

This performance is available on DVD and would be a great addition to your collection.

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Bal Tabarin 1953

The dancers of Bal Tabarin perform a synchronised grand écart. This photo is from a brief article about the fire that gutted the historic music hall:

http://www.news.com.au/world-old/fire-rips-through-200-year-old-paris-dance-hall/story-e6frfkyi-1226026466715

Monday, April 8, 2013

Lilo as La Mome Pistache

convinces the Court with Defendant's Exhibit 1 in the original 1953 Broadway production of "Can-Can". This great photo is from an EBay auction:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-1953-Dancer-Actress-Lilo-Broadway-CAN-CAN-Courtroom-Photo-by-Darby-4-/160956100895?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2579bb311f&nma=true&si=9Ttr1DXsKbN5NpksiRGsfrtSpSI%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

Be sure to go to the above EBay listing for the full-sized version of the photo.

The photographer was Eileen Darby.

Sunday, April 7, 2013

Strictly Amateur

... but no less delightful for that. This performance was for the Walthamstow Carnival in a home grown show called "Maypole":

See the story at:

http://widgeripoo.net/artwork/archive_seventeen

Saturday, April 6, 2013

More Sorority Hi-jinks

This time it's the Kappa Deltas of Southwestern College during a rush week skit at the "Pink Garter" saloon.

The full story can be found at:

http://stage.commercialappeal.com/photos/2008/sep/25/79234/

Friday, April 5, 2013

1930s Sorority Hi-jinks

The sisters of the Alpha Omicron Pi sorority chapter at Indiana spell out their cheer for the football team, and add some cheer for us too.

This is another gem from the Google Cultural Institute.

This shot was found at:

http://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/asset-viewer/MgEPKeywBiXOjA?hl=en#!asset-viewer:l.id=FwEUROlSoo_zsw&hl=en

Myron Davis was the photographer for this photo.

See the posting at 3-29-13 for more information about Google Cultural Institute.

I Sense Someone Is Watching Me

A private moment captured forever. This photo graced the cover of the January 1948 edition of Noir et Blanc magazine.

See the auction at Del Campe:

http://www.delcampe.net/page/item/id,108329718,var,NOIR-ET-BLANC-152-7-Janvier-1948-French-Cancan-Charlie-Chaplin-Cinema-en-France,language,E.html

Thursday, April 4, 2013

Moulin Rouge 1950s

A dancer from the Mouilin Rouge in the 1950's wearing one of the awful wigs they fitted them out with for one of their numbers. The stockings have been discarded in favor of tights too.

From a Del Campe auction:

http://collections.delcampe.net/page/item/id,178404860,var,Photographie-argentique--French-Cancan--18-x-24-cm--Danse--Music-Hall--Erotisme--Charme--Pin-Up,language,E,adult,accept.html

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

A Classic Performance

I'm not sure of the venue of this performance though. The stage looks different from the Bal Tabarin. The photo is from a French EBay auction that does not provide much background information about the photo:

http://www.ebay.fr/itm/Denis-Stock-FRENCH-CANCAN-Un-spectacle-de-French-Cancan-17-5-x-25-cm-Tirag-/350606367524?pt=FR_SK_dvd_Photo&hash=item51a1c49b24

If anyone can tell us more about this, please post or let me know.

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Google Cultural Institute - Bal Tabarin

Yet another example of what's available at the Google Cultural Institute. These shots are from the Bal Tabarin of 1947. The bottom photo is the original and gives a sense of the layout of the famous music hall. The top photo is cropped to emphasize the dancers.

This shot was found using the search term "Bal Tabarin":

http://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/asset-viewer/MgEPKeywBiXOjA?hl=en#!browse:f.text=bal%20tabarin&hl=en

The site does not provide the name of the photographer for this photo.

See the posting at 3-29-13 for more information about Google Cultural Institute.

Monday, April 1, 2013

Google Cultural Institute

Another example of what's available at the Google Cultural Institute if you broaden your search. She's not doing the cancan per se, but this really is a great image of a ballet dancer from a period when what was underneath the costume was itself part of the costume.

This shot was found using the search term "Ballet Russe":

http://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/asset-viewer/MgEPKeywBiXOjA?hl=en#!asset-viewer:l.id=CwEOZrW8TmWt4Q&hl=en&urlStub=Ballet%20Russe

The site does not provide the name of the dancer or the photographer for this photo.

See the posting at 3-29-13 for more information about Google Cultural Institute.