* En anglais uniquement
b. Fredric N. Kelly, 29 June 1916, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, d. 15 March 2000, Tucson, Arizona, USA. One of the Five Dancing Kellys, his younger brother was Gene Kelly. The two boys also worked together as a song and dance act and Fred also appeared as a solo act. Although younger by four years, it fell to him to persuade Gene to persist with his dancing and also helped instruct him. Through the 30s he danced professionally, taught dance and staged and choreographed dance routines for numerous Hollywood films. In 1940 he appeared on Broadway as a cast replacement for Gene in a brief revival of The Time Of Your Life at the Booth Theatre. This show, which was choreographed by Gene, was written by William Saroyan who co-directed with Eddie Dowling, the latter also appearing in an acting role. Also in the cast were William Bendix and Celeste Holm.
Kelly’s next Broadway credit was My Romance (1948), which he choreographed. The show ran at the Shubert Theatre and then at the Adelphi Theatre for a total of 95 performances. With music by Sigmund Romberg and book and lyrics by Rowland Leigh, the cast included Luella Gear, Anne Jeffreys, Bill Berrian and Nat Burns. The 40s also found him working extensively in early television and he was also active in New York’s clubland where he is credited with inventing, or at least popularizing, a dance performed by showgirls with Tito Puente’s band, the cha cha.
During military service in World War II Kelly visited the UK where he offered dance instruction to the Royal princesses, Elizabeth and Margaret. Through the 40s he worked often in Hollywood, directing several minor films. Although much of Kelly’s later life was spent out of the spotlight he remained very active, mainly running the Fred Kelly Dance Studio in Oradell, New Jersey, where one of his young students was John Travolta. Kelly emerged from this relative obscurity to appear again on Broadway in 1971, understudying several roles in Follies in which he appeared on stage as Willy Wheeler.