Ginger Rogers Centennial
The fabulous Ginger Rogers, one of my all-time favorite actresses, was born on this date a century ago.
Ginger was born Virginia Katherine McMath on July 16, 1911, in Independence, Missouri.
It goes without saying that Ginger could do it all: musicals, comedy, drama -- she was even fluent in Pig Latin!
Choosing a list of favorite Ginger Rogers films is difficult, but there are several which I find extra-special, and as it happens, cumulatively they represent very different sides of Ginger.

STAGE DOOR (1937) is a terrific film about aspiring actresses in a New York boarding house. Ginger trades barbs and one-liners with Katharine Hepburn, Eve Arden, Gail Patrick, Ann Miller, and Lucille Ball (who was a distant relation). This is one of those "gateway" movies my daughters show friends who don't typically watch old black and white movies. These actresses -- and their great script -- never go out of style.

Ginger's most befuddled leading man of all time might have been Ray Milland in THE MAJOR AND THE MINOR (1942), as he spends much of the movie believing Ginger is a child. The fact that both actors can completely sell this concept and have it be a tasteful, hilarious movie is quite a testament to their talent, along with that of director Billy Wilder, who cowrote the script.

For more Ginger fun, here's a YouTube video of an appearance on WHAT'S MY LINE? And here's another one, with a different strategy to disguise her voice. She appeared on the show several times -- as a matter of fact, WHAT'S MY LINE? panelist Bennett Cerf was married to Ginger's cousin, Phyllis.
Other bloggers paying tribute to Ginger on the centennial of her birth: True Classics, Une Cinephile, Noir and Chick Flicks, Caftan Woman, Fedoras and High Heels, Carole & Co., and Gingerology. Please feel free to share links to other Ginger Centennial blog posts in the comments.


Related post: TCM Star of the Month: Ginger Rogers (March 2010).
July 16, 2013 Update: Additional reviews: LADY IN THE DARK (1944) and THE GROOM WORE SPURS (1951).
July 16, 2014 Update: Another review: STAGE DOOR (1937).
Update: Here are additional reviews of YOU SAID A MOUTHFUL (1932), A SHRIEK IN THE NIGHT (1933), FLYING DOWN TO RIO (1933), PROFESSIONAL SWEETHEART (1933), UPPERWORLD (1934), ROMANCE IN MANHATTAN (1935), SWING TIME (1936), SHALL WE DANCE (1937), ONCE UPON A HONEYMOON (1942), WEEK-END AT THE WALDORF (1945), STORM WARNING (1951), and OH, MEN! OH, WOMEN! (1957).
Update: I had the honor of paying my respects to Ginger Rogers when I visited her final resting place at Oakwood Memorial Park.
5 Comments:
Great tribute Laura. Thanks for posting the links back to the reviews. Alot of these films I haven't seen yet. Tom
Thanks, Tom! I hope you'll enjoy exploring some of these films. :) Lots of great stuff to watch!
Best wishes,
Laura
Wonderful tribute and an interesting read.
It has been too long since I last saw "I'll Be Seeing You". Thanks for reminding me of that bittersweet film.
I'm so glad to hear about "Stage Door" pulling folks toward the classics. Tell your daughters to keep up the good work!
Great post, Laura! These are some of my all-time Ginger favorites, too! In fact, I just wrote a guest post for Sophie of Waitin' On a Sunny Day (that will be posted tomorrow) and it was pretty much comprised of these exact same films! Except you did a lot better explaining them! :D
Thank you both! It's really fun to see my kids' friends enjoying the classics. (Now that I think of it, BACHELOR MOTHER has gone over well too...) Audrey, I'll be looking for your post!
Best wishes,
Laura
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