MARY ANN

Before I knew Mary Ann Niles, she had been married to Bob Fosse (his first wife) and they were a popular dance team of the day, appearing  in numerous TV shows such at "The Colgate Comedy Hour," "The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show" and even "Omnibus."

After their divorce, Mary Ann went on to appear in a number of Broadway musicals as well as a hit movie in the dancing chorus.  These included "Carnival" (61), "The Unsinkable Molly Brown" with Debbie Reynolds (64), "Flora, the Red Menace" with Liza Minnelli (65), "No, No, Nanette" with Ruby Keeler (71), and acting as Dance Captain for "Irene" with Debbie Reynolds (73).   Her last Broadway show was "Ballroom" in 1978. Below is a photo with Vincent Gardenia and Dorothy Louden at center and my fiend Dick Corrigan on the far right. (Mary Ann is in there somewhere.)


And how did we meet?  One night after a performance of "No, No Nanette,"  Mary Ann and a few friends from the show came into the bar where I worked on West 48th Street.  It was a place named the "Big Spender" where a lot of the theatrical gypsies would come for a drink after their individual performances.   That night, Mary Ann who knew how to have a good time closed the place.   Not falling down, but rather drunk none-the-less.  When it was time to go, I walked her to the corner and hailed her a cab.  A day or two later, she returned to "the scene of the crime" and said   "That was very nice of you to get me a cab.  I've decided that we can be friends."  And indeed we were up until her death in 1987.  (As a side note, she died of cancer and Bob Fosse paid all of her medical bills right up to the end.)








And on a lighter note, let's have a story.   There was a small "mom and pop" run Italian restaurant on Ninth Avenue just south of 57th Street.  The name escapes me but it had a nice reputation for genuine home-made food and we went there frequently.  On one occasion, I think there were five of us, Mary Ann, her friend Nora, Fabian and I and another mutual friend, Ray George.  Now I should point out that Mary Ann could be quite "animated," especially with a drink or two and in those times, she had a mouth that would "make a sailor blush."  This particular night was no exception.  More than once she referred to someone as an " a**hole" or a "c***sucker" or she might note that someone had a "tit" job, etc.  You get the picture.   So did the next booth.  A rather staid gentleman who was dining with his wife finally turned to us and said,  "My dear lady, we came here to have dinner, not an anatomy lesson."  You could have heard a pin drop.   And if you listened closely, you would have heard Mary Ann mutter under her breath. "Sack of shit."  She was one of a kind and I miss her.












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