Fred Norbert Kelly (June 29, 1916–March 15, 2000) was an American choreographer, dancer, actor and director.

Early life

Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1916, Kelly was the youngest of five children of James Patrick Kelly and his wife, Harriet. His father was a sales executive with Thomas Edison's phonograph company, and his mother worked with stock theater as a hobby. She ensured that all of the children took lessons in music and dancing. Kelly began his dance career at the age of four performing with his older siblings known as The Five Dancing Kellys, including famed American actor and dancer Gene Kelly. He began to teach dance at thirteen years old at the family owned Gene Kelly Studio after learning to tap dance from legend

Bill "Bojangles" Robinson Bill Robinson, nicknamed Bojangles (born Luther Robinson; May 25, 1878 – November 25, 1949), was an American tap dancer, actor, and singer, the best known and the most highly paid African-American entertainer in the United States during the f ...

. As a teenager, Kelly traveled around Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia as a magician with two assistants. He also worked on a showboat each summer of his eighth-12th grade years. He attended the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the univers ...

and graduated in 1939.

Stage career

Kelly performed with his older brother Gene as one of the "Kelly Brothers" in Vaudeville. In 1940 Fred replaced Gene in the Broadway production ''

The Time of Your Life ''The Time of Your Life'' is a 1939 five-act play by American playwright William Saroyan. The play is the first drama to win both the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. The play opened on Broadway in 1939. Cha ...

'' written by

William Saroyan William Saroyan (; August 31, 1908 – May 18, 1981) was an Armenian-American novelist, playwright, and short story writer. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1940, and in 1943 won the Academy Award for Best Story for the film ''T ...

, in the role of "Harry the Hoofer" for which he won three Donaldson Awards (precursors of the

Tony Awards The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...

) for this role—one for acting, one for choreography and one for comedy. He also appeared in the Broadway version of ''

This Is the Army ''This Is the Army'' is a 1943 American wartime musical comedy film produced by Hal B. Wallis and Jack L. Warner, and directed by Michael Curtiz, adapted from a wartime stage musical with the same name, designed to boost morale in the U.S. duri ...

''.

Military

After

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the R ...

, Fred enlisted in the Army and served from 1942 to 1945. He was chosen by

Irving Berlin Irving Berlin (born Israel Beilin; yi, ישראל ביילין; May 11, 1888 – September 22, 1989) was a Russian-American composer, songwriter and lyricist. His music forms a large part of the Great American Songbook. Born in Imperial Russ ...

to work on the ''

This is the Army ''This Is the Army'' is a 1943 American wartime musical comedy film produced by Hal B. Wallis and Jack L. Warner, and directed by Michael Curtiz, adapted from a wartime stage musical with the same name, designed to boost morale in the U.S. duri ...

'' production as choreographer and dancer. While performing Kelly also served as head of the medical detachment and was pressed into service in hospitals in England at the beginning of the second

Blitz Blitz, German for "lightning", may refer to: Military uses *Blitzkrieg, blitz campaign, or blitz, a type of military campaign *The Blitz, the German aerial campaign against Britain in the Second World War *, an Imperial German Navy light cruiser b ...

and again in Italy when the big push was on at

Monte Cassino Monte Cassino (today usually spelled Montecassino) is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, in the Latin Valley, Italy, west of Cassino and at an elevation of . Site of the Roman town of Casinum, it is widely known for its abbey, the first ho ...

to push the Germans above Rome.

Film

Fred only performed with his brother Gene in one film, '' Deep in My Heart'' in 1954 in the musical number "I Love to Go Swimmin' with Wimmen".

Teaching

As a dance instructor, Kelly's students included his brother Gene, to whom he taught tap dancing. He also taught ballroom dancing to Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret while he worked with a traveling dance unit during his time in the Army. Kelly operated a dance studio in Oradell, New Jersey, for 25 years.

Personal life

Kelly was married to Dorothy Greenwalt. His obituary in ''The New York Times'' related that their meeting formed the basis for the song "The Boy Next Door" after she told the song's writers the story of how she and Kelly met. They remained married until her death in 1995.

Death

On March 15, 2000, Kelly died of cancer in Tucson at age 83.

Recognition

On April 3, 2004, the University of Pittsburgh dedicated the Fred Kelly Lobby in the Stephen Foster Memorial performing arts center and museum. The university also has a Fred Kelly Award for Outstanding Achievement in Theatre.

References

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kelly, Fred 1916 births 2000 deaths 20th-century American dancers 20th-century American male actors American choreographers American male dancers American male film actors American male stage actors University of Pittsburgh alumni