Who, with 17 films to her credit, became one of the top singing & dancing motion picture stars of all time? Who conquered television with 9 show-stopping spectaculars garnering 17 Emmy® nominations and blockbuster ratings? Whose dazzling triple-threat talents made her arguably the top female nightclub and concert attraction of the era? The answer to all these questions is simply Miss Mitzi Gaynor.
The road that led Mitzi Gaynor to international superstardom began in her native Chicago where she was virtually born into the theater. Her mother was a talented dancer and her father a virtuoso musician. Family members and teachers alike were quick to notice and nurture the natural born performing talent of young Mitzi who relished the hours of dance & performance training she was receiving. Her instructor, the acclaimed ballerina Madame Kathryn Etienne, knew from an early age that the young performer was destined for stardom and encouraged the child’s family to seek that stardom in Hollywood.
The family moved west on a dream, and 12 year old Mitzi was soon discovered by legendary theatrical producer Edwin Lester who selected her for the corps de ballet of the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera. Mitzi honed her craft in countless productions in Los Angeles & San Francisco including Roberta, Naughty Marietta, The Louisiana Purchase, Song Without Words, The Fortune Teller, The Great Waltz and debuted on Broadway with The Gypsy Lady. Mitzi’s vibrant performances were capturing the attention of composers including Cole Porter and Irving Berlin when noted film director Henry Koster and producers Sol Siegel and George Jessel arranged a screen test that resulted in a contract at 20th Century Fox.
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Mitzi Gaynor – The Official Site.
