My journey ends here...
COLE Jack
John Ewing Richter.
Date of birth : April 27, 1911, New Brunswick, New Jersey.
Date of death : February 17, 1974, Hollywood, California.
Profession dancer, choregrapher (
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,
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Addresses
* 1940 : 59 West 46th Street, New York
* 1950 : 2118 Kew Drive, Los Angeles.
Story
Early on he decided to pursue dance with the Denishawn Dance Company led by Ruth St Denis (
) and Ted Shawn.
He made his first professional appearance in August 1930,
and although he had previously studied ballet, he was entranced by the
Asian influences Denishawn utilized in its choregraphy and costuming.
He also performed with another pair of pioneering modernists, Doris
Humphrey and Charles Weidman but eventually left the modern dance world
for commercial dance career in nightclubs, performing with Alice
Dudley, Anna Austin and Florence Lessing.
He was a performer in Broadway musicals, starting with "The Dream of Sganarelle" in 1933. His first Broadway credit as a choregrapher was "Something's for the Boys" in 1943. He is also credited with choreographing and/or directing the stage musicals "Alice and Kicking", "Magdalena", "Carnival in Flanders", "Zenda", "Foxy", "Kismet", "A
Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the
Forum", "Kean", "Donnybrook!", "Jamaica" (
) and "Man of La Mancha".
He studied the Indian dance form Bharata Natyam and used other ethnic material in his dances. The Jack Cole Dancers performed in nightclubs in the late 1930', including the Rainbow Room.
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Registration card October 16, 1940 
His film works includes "Moon Over Miami" (1941), "Cover Girl", "Tonight and Every Night" (1945), "Gilda" (1946), "Down to Earth" (1947), "The Merry Widow" (1952), "Meet Me After the Show" (1951), "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes", "On the Riviera" (1951), "There's No Business Like Show Business", "The I Dont' Care Girl", "The Thrill of Brazil", "Kismet" (1944), "Les Girls" (1957), "Let's Make Love", "Some Like It Hot", "Three for the Show" (1955)
(
), "Lydia Bailey", "Eadie was a Lady" and
many others.
He was famous for his work with Rita Hayworth, Betty Grable, Jane Russell, Mitzi Gaynor and Marilyn Monroe.
He virtually invented the idiom of American show dancing known as "theatrical jazz dance". He developed a mode of jazz-ethnic-ballet that prevails as the dominant dancing style in today's musicals, films, nightclubs revues, television commercials and music videos.
Cole-style dancing is acrobatic and angular, using small groups of dancers rather than a large company; it is closer to the glittering nightclub floor show rather than to the ballet stage.
Cole is remembered as the prime innovator of the theatrical jazz dance heritage.
One of Cole's most memorable choregraphic highlights is "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend" for Marilyn Monroe in the film musical "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes".
He made a name of himself in Hollywood by establishing a dance-training workshop at Columbia Pictures, his
pupils included Carol Haney (
).
He created the choregraphies of Marilyn's every songs and dancing acts in "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" (1953)
(
,
,
), "River of No Return" (1954), "There's No Business Like Show Business" (1954), "Let's Make Love" (1960).
He worked particularly hard with her in "Let's Make Love" because she was afraid of the dancing numbers.
He anonymously helped her to play "Running Wild" in "Some Like it Hot" (1959).
She had an absolute and inherent confidence in him, and they immediatley became friends. His role was the one of a teacher who guided her step by step during the shootings; he stood beside the camera and performed Marilyn's steps who watched him and reproduced them like in front of a mirror.Dancing rehearsals
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Dubbing 
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Shooting
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Telegram from Jack Cole sent to Marilyn dated February 4, 1960 
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