"Dancing"

This day in film history ... 86 years ago.

At the bottom of the Depression, Warner Bros., Inc. was making a mint with its musicals, particularly "42nd Street". And M-G-M ... the Tiffany's of movie studios ... knew it had to get into the genre in a bigger way.

On this day in 1933, "Dancing Lady" is released, produced by David O. Seznick, a man with minimal expertise in making musicals but Louis B. Mayer's son-in-law, which counted for something.

"Dancing Lady" ended up a sizable hit, but "Lady" is notable for a bunch of reasons besides its profitable box office.

Reason the First: it introduced Fred Astaire to the motion picture screen. (Okay, SOUND motion pictures; Fred had appeared in one silent.)

Selznick, having just left RKO, knew that Astaire had signed a contract with that studio, and contrived to hire him away for a few weeks. Astaire had relatively little to do in "DL", but he danced with star Joan Crawford and got introduced on-camera by Clark Gable (which Fred considered a fine way to launch his movie career).

Astaire dances with Joan ... but then vanishes./p>

Sadly, since Crawford wasn't the most accomplished of hoofers (putting it mildly), Fred toned himself way down, and Crawford wore a long dress to cover her feet. (Smart move.) But Astaire made Crawford look as good as she was able to look. And at least Fred got seen by a LOT of moviegoers.

Reason the Second: it was the movie Clark Gable was making when he came close to dying.

Gable was a clean freak, showering a couple of times per day. But what Clark WASN'T meticulous about was taking care of his teeth. While "Lady" was in production, he developed a major case of pyorrhea and his entire mouth was infected, which meant his bloodstream and body were infected.

By mid-June, 1933, Gable was in a private hospital, tucked away from prying eyes, fighting for his life. The studio tried to keep the hospitalization secret, but the press found out. M-G-M publicity chief Howard Strickling announced that Gable was there for gall bladder surgery, an appendectomy, and tonsillitis (no mention of bad teeth).

When his infection finally receded, a studio dentist yanked out most of Clark's choppers, and a long period of convalescence, ending with a set of dentures, began. Gable finally returned to the studio on August 29, poorer by $25,000 since Louis Mayer suspended his salary while he was out. (That's Hollywood!)

Reason the Third: "Dancing Lady" featured Ted Healy and his Stooges.

Ted Healy, now mostly forgotten (he died in 1937), developed the Three Stooges -- Moe, Larry, Curly -- as part of his vaudeville act. They were popular stage performers, and were in the first months of a contract with M-G-M doing shorts and features. "Dancing Lady" was the highest-grossing feature in which Healy and the boys appeared. The four parted company the following year, and the Stooges began a looong career making two-reelers for Columbia.

"Dancing Lady" is today considered a lacklustre imitation of Warner musicals of the period, yet it made a profit of $744,000. (Production cost: $923k/theatrical gross: $2.4 million)