Cyd Charisse American actress and dancer Date of Birth: 08.03.1922 Country: USA

Biography of Cyd Charisse

Cyd Charisse, an American actress and dancer, was born in 1922 in Texas. Her parents enrolled her in ballet classes after she recovered from polio. At the age of 14, she was accepted into the American Ballet Russe corps de ballet. During World War II, the ballet company disbanded, and Cyd Charisse, then known as Tula Ellis, got married and changed her name to Cyd Charisse.

Later, she caught the attention of filmmakers and went on to appear in over 50 films and television shows. However, her main genre in the film industry became musicals. She had the opportunity to work alongside remarkable artists such as Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly. Cyd Charisse gained true popularity after starring in films like "Singin' in the Rain," "Brigadoon," and "Silk Stockings," where she played leading roles.

By the end of the 1950s, when the era of movie musicals came to an end, Cyd Charisse stopped dancing on screen. Over the next 30 years, she occasionally appeared in dramatic films, made television appearances, and in 1992, she made her Broadway debut as an aging ballerina in the play "Grand Hotel." Cyd Charisse is considered one of the brightest movie stars of the mid-20th century. Her name was included in the Guinness Book of World Records as the possessor of the most valuable legs in the world, which were insured for $5 million.

Cyd Charisse passed away on June 17, 2008, in Los Angeles due to heart failure.