Busby Berkeley | |
|---|---|
 Busby Berkeleyc. 1935 | |
| Born | Berkeley William Enos (1895-11-29)November 29, 1895 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Died | March 14, 1976(1976-03-14) (aged 80) Palm Desert, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Desert Memorial Park, Cathedral City, California |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1927–1971 |
| Mother | Gertrude Berkeley |
Berkeley William Enos (November 29, 1895 – March 14, 1976),[1] known professionally asBusby Berkeley, was an American film director andmusical choreographer. Berkeley devised elaborate musical production numbers that has often involved complex geometric patterns. His work used large numbers ofshowgirls and props as fantasy elements inkaleidoscopic on-screen performances.
Berkeley was born in Los Angeles, California,[2] to the stage actor Francis Enos (1863–1904,[3] who died when Busby was eight) and the stage actressGertrude Berkeley (1864–1946). Among Gertrude's friends, and a performer in Tim Frawly's Stock company run by Busby Berkeley's father, were actressAmy Busby from whom Berkeley gained the appellation "Buzz" or "Busby"[4][5] and actorWilliam Gillette, then only four years away from playingSherlock Holmes. Whether he was christened Busby Berkeley William Enos,[6] or Berkeley William Enos, with Busby's being a nickname, is unknown[4][7] – the "Child's names" entry on his birth certificate is blank.[6]
In addition to her stage work, Gertrude played mother roles in silent films while Berkeley was still a child. Berkeley made his stage début at five, acting in the company of his performing family.
In 1917, he lived inAthol, Massachusetts, working as an advertising and sales manager.[8] DuringWorld War I, Berkeley served in theU.S. Army as afield artillery lieutenant, drilling 1,200 soldiers in complex choreography.[9]
During the 1920s, Berkeley was a dance director for nearly two dozen Broadway musicals, including hits such asA Connecticut Yankee. As a choreographer, Berkeley was less concerned with the dancing skills of his chorus girls as he was with their ability to form themselves into attractive geometric patterns. His musical numbers were among the larger and better-regimented on Broadway.[10][11]
His earliest film work was inSamuel Goldwyn'sEddie Cantor musicals, where he began developing such techniques as a "parade of faces" (individualizing each chorus girl with a loving close-up), and moving his dancers all over the stage (and often beyond) in as many kaleidoscopic patterns as possible.[12] Berkeley's top shot technique (the kaleidoscope again, this time shot from overhead) appeared seminally in the Cantor films, and also the 1932Universal filmNight World (where he choreographed the number "Who's Your Little Who-Zis?").
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Berkeley's numbers were known for starting in the realm of the stage, but quickly exceeding this space by moving into a time and place that could only be cinematic, to return to shots of an applauding audience and the fall of a curtain. He used one camera to achieve this, instead of the usual four, to retain control over his vision so no director could edit the film.[13] As choreographer, Berkeley was allowed a certain degree of independence in his direction of musical numbers, and they were often markedly distinct from (and sometimes in contrast to) the narrative sections of the films. He often didn't even see the other sections of the picture.[13] The numbers he choreographed were mostly upbeat and focused on decoration as opposed to substance, some costing around $10,000 per minute more than the picture they were in.[13] One dramatic exception was "Remember My Forgotten Man" fromGold Diggers of 1933, which dealt with the mistreatment of World War I veterans during theGreat Depression.[14]
Berkeley's popularity with an entertainment-hungry Depression audience was secured when he choreographed five musicals back-to-back forWarner Bros.:42nd Street,Footlight Parade, the aforementionedGold Diggers of 1933,Dames, andFashions of 1934, as well asIn Caliente andWonder Bar withDolores del Río. Berkeley always denied any deep significance to his work, arguing that his main professional goals were to top himself and never repeat his past accomplishments.
As the outsized musicals in which Berkeley specialized became passé, he turned to straight directing. The result was 1939'sThey Made Me a Criminal, starringJohn Garfield. Although a success at the box office, it was the only non-musical film Berkeley directed.[15] Berkeley had several well-publicized run-ins withMGM stars such asJudy Garland. In 1943, he was removed as director ofGirl Crazy because of disagreements with Garland, but the lavish musical number "I Got Rhythm", which he directed, remained in the picture.[16]
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His next stop was at20th Century-Fox for 1943'sThe Gang's All Here, in which Berkeley choreographedCarmen Miranda's "Lady in the Tutti-Frutti Hat" number. The film made money, but Berkeley and the Fox brass disagreed over budget matters.[11] Berkeley returned to MGM in the late 1940s, where he conceived theTechnicolor finales for the studio'sEsther Williams films. Berkeley's final film as choreographer was MGM'sBilly Rose's Jumbo (1962).
In the late 1960s, the camp craze brought the Berkeley musicals back to the forefront, and he toured the college and lecture circuit giving talks about his career. The 75-year-old Berkeley returned to Broadway to direct a successful revival ofNo No Nanette, starring his oldWarner Brothers colleague and42nd Street starRuby Keeler; both played cameos in the 1970 filmThe Phynx the same year.
In 1937, Berkeley purchased the Guasti Villa, located at 3500 W. Adams Boulevard, in theWest Adams district of Los Angeles.[17] Built in 1910, Berkeley owned the home until 1944.[17] Because of the association with Berkeley, the home is nowLos Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument No. 478.[18]
Berkeley was married six times.[19] His wives included actressesMerna Kennedy,Esther Muir, the starlet Claire James, and Etta Dunn, who survived him. He was involved in analienation of affections lawsuit in 1938 involvingCarole Landis, and he was engaged to Lorraine Stein.[20]
Berkeley drank heavily, often having martinis in his daily bath.
In September 1935, Berkeley was responsible for an automobile crash in which two people were killed and five seriously injured.[21] Badly cut and bruised, he was brought to court on a stretcher,[22] whereTime magazine reported he heard testimony that made him wince:
'Witnesses testified that motorist Berkeley sped downRoosevelt Highway in Los Angeles County one night, changed lanes, crashing headlong into one car, sideswiped another. Some witnesses said they smelled liquor on him'.[21]
The first two trials for second degree murder ended with hung juries; he was acquitted in a third.
After his mother died and his career began to slow, he attempted suicide, slitting his wrists and taking an overdose of sleeping pills in July 1946.[23] He was admitted to a hospital for an extended stay, an experience which severely affected his mental state.[24]
Berkeley died from natural causes on March 14, 1976, in Palm Springs, California at the age of 80.[25] He is buried in theDesert Memorial Park in Cathedral City, California.[1][26]
Berkeley was inducted into theNational Museum of Dance's Mr. & Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney Hall of Fame in 1988.
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In 1910, leading vintner Secondo Guasti commissioned Hudson & Munsell Architects to design the mansion in the Beaux Arts and Italian styles. In 1937, the home was purchased by Busby Berkeley, who turned the basement wine cellar into a film editing studio. Then in 1944, the Los Angeles Physicians Aid Association acquired the property as a retirement home.
The property meets the criteria for HCM designation because it is identified with 'a historic personage,' as the home of well-known film director-choreographer Busby Berkeley.
