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That's Dancing!

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That's Dancing!
Promotional film poster for the film
Directed byJack Haley, Jr.
Written byJack Haley, Jr.
Produced byJack Haley, Jr.
David Niven, Jr.
StarringGene Kelly
Liza Minnelli
Mikhail Baryshnikov
Sammy Davis, Jr.
Ray Bolger
Music byHenry Mancini
Distributed byMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release date
  • January 18, 1985 (1985-01-18)
Running time
105 minutes
LanguageEnglish

That's Dancing! is a 1985 retrospective documentary produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer that looked back at the history of dancing in film. Unlike the That's Entertainment! series, this film did not focus specifically on MGM films and included more recent performances by the likes of John Travolta (from Saturday Night Fever) and Michael Jackson and from the then-popular films Fame (1980) and Flashdance (1983), as well as classic films from other studios, including Carousel, released by 20th Century Fox, and Oklahoma!, released by Magna Corporation (roadshow) and 20th Century Fox (general release).

A highlight of the film was the first theatrical release of a complete dance routine by Ray Bolger for his "If I Only Had a Brain" number that had been shortened in The Wizard of Oz.

The hosts for this film are Gene Kelly (who also executive produced), Ray Bolger (his last film appearance before his death in 1987), Liza Minnelli, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Mikhail Baryshnikov. Pop singer Kim Carnes was commissioned to sing an original song, "Invitation to Dance", that plays over the closing credits.

This film is sometimes considered part of the That's Entertainment! series, especially since its starting credits contain a card with the That's Entertainment! III title (not to be confused with the 1994 film), but even though it shared studio and producers, it is considered a separate production. Jack Haley, Jr., who wrote, produced and directed the first That's Entertainment! film, also wrote and directed this one, co-producing with longtime friend David Niven, Jr. Haley's father, Jack Haley, had co-starred with Bolger in The Wizard of Oz.

That's Dancing! was not included when the three That's Entertainment! films were released on DVD in 2004; it was instead released on its own in 2007. The DVD includes several behind-the-scenes promotional featurettes from 1985 on the making of the film, as well as its accompanying music video featuring Kim Carnes singing "Invitation to Dance" although the DVD omits both the video and song itself.

Dedication

This film is dedicated to all dancers .... especially those who devoted their lives to the development of their art long before there was a motion picture camera.

Appearances

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