Donald O'Connor

Donald David Dixon Ronald O’Connor (August 28, 1925 – September 27, 2003) was an American dancer, singer, and actor who came to fame in a series of movies in which he co-starred alternately with Gloria Jean, Peggy Ryan, and Francis the Talking Mule. Perhaps his most famous performance was as Gene Kelly's friend and colleague in Singin’ in the Rain (1952).

O'Connor broke into films in 1937, usually playing impetuous kids. He scored a huge personal success opposite Bing Crosby in Sing, You Sinners, and even at age 12 displayed excellent comedic timing. Paramount Pictures kept him busy in both A and B pictures, including Tom Sawyer, Detective and Beau Geste, until 1940, when the now-adolescent O'Connor had outgrown kid roles. He returned to vaudeville for more than a year.

In 1942 O'Connor joined Universal Pictures' troupe of talented teenagers. He received gradually larger roles in four of the studio's Gloria Jean musicals, and achieved stardom at 17 with Mister Big (1943), co-starring Gloria Jean and comic dancer Peggy Ryan. O'Connor and Ryan's energetic routines invited comparisons with M-G-M's pairing of Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland.

O'Connor was drafted into the armed forces in 1944. Before he reported for duty, Universal rushed him through the production of three feature films, produced simultaneously and released while the actor was overseas. Upon his return, Universal (now reorganized as Universal-International) cast him in lightweight musicals and comedies. In 1949, he was given the leading role in Francis, the whimsical story of a sad-sack soldier befriended by a talking mule. The film was a huge success, and a mixed blessing for O'Connor: the momentum of his musical career was constantly interrupted because the studio insisted on his making one "Francis" picture a year until 1955.

It was because of Francis that O'Connor missed out on a plum role: Bing Crosby's sidekick in White Christmas. O'Connor was forced to bow out when he contracted an illness transmitted by the mule. He was replaced in the film by Danny Kaye. However, his role as Cosmo the piano player in Singin' in the Rain would earn him the Golden Globe award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Comedy or Musical.

In 1954 O'Connor he appeared in There's No Business Like Show Business (1954), which featured an all-star cast, including Marilyn Monroe, Dan Dailey, Ethel Merman, Mitzi Gaynor, with whow he also appeared in Anything Goes in 1955. He attempted to shed his boy-next-door image with a more dramatic role in the 1957 biopic The Buster Keaton Story. However, as the 1950s came to a close, O'Connor came across fewer and fewer parts.

After overcoming a drinking problem in the 1970s, he had a huge career boost when he hosted the Oscars, which earned him two Primetime Emmy nominations. He appeared as a gaslight-era entertainer in the 1981 film Ragtime, notable for similar encore performances by James Cagney and Pat O'Brien. O'Connor also appeared in the short-lived Bring Back Birdie on Broadway in 1981, and continued to make film and television appearances into the 1990s. Donald O'Connor's last feature film was the Jack Lemmon-Walter Matthau comedy Out to Sea, in which he played a dance host on a cruise ship. O’Connor was still making public appearances well into 2003.

He died from congestive heart failure on September 27, 2003 at the age of 78. Among his last words, he is reported to have expressed tongue-in-cheek thanks to the Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement that he expected to win at some future date. He was cremated at the Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles.

He was survived by his wife of over 40 years, Gloria, and four children.