Juliet Anne Prowse South African dancer Date of Birth: 25.09.1936 Country: USA

1. Biography of Juliet Ann Prowse
2. Early Life and Career
3. Rise to Fame and Collaboration with Frank Sinatra
4. Personal Life and Later Years

Biography of Juliet Ann Prowse

Juliet Ann Prowse was a South African dancer who had an illustrious career spanning over 40 years, performing on stage, in films, and on television. Despite her versatility, dancing remained Prowse's true calling. She was known for her incredible beauty, passionate smile, and mesmerizing long legs.

Early Life and Career

Born in Bombay, India, Prowse grew up in South Africa. She began dancing at the age of 4 and by the time she turned 20, she was already performing in a Parisian club. It was there that she caught the attention of a talent agent, which eventually led to her securing a contract for the role of Claudine in Walter Lang's film 'Can-Can'. After the release of the film, Prowse became truly famous, even on an international level. The film was even watched by Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev, who, unfortunately, did not appreciate Prowse's dance and deemed it too immoral. However, Khrushchev's negative review unintentionally helped the fiery African dancer as the film became incredibly popular in the United States.

Rise to Fame and Collaboration with Frank Sinatra

During the filming of 'Can-Can', Prowse met Frank Sinatra. The magazine 'Time' later stated that the film would not have been worth watching if it weren't for Prowse's electrifying dance performances and Sinatra's successful comedic timing. Prowse would go on to perform with Sinatra multiple times, alongside other invited stars such as Ella Fitzgerald, Peter Lawford, Hermione Gingold, 'The Hi-Lo', 'Red Norvo', Nelson Riddle, and his Orchestra on the 'Frank Sinatra Show'. On the show, Prowse would usually sing either with the chorus of other guests or as a duet with Sinatra himself.

Personal Life and Later Years

In 1962, Sinatra and Prowse announced their engagement, but shortly after, they called it off. According to official reports, Prowse decided to focus on her personal life for a while. Unofficially, she mentioned that her would-be groom was a complicated person, especially after consuming alcohol. After some time, Prowse became friends with another great musician of the time, the King himself, Elvis Presley. They met during the filming of 'G.I. Blues' and soon began a passionate but short-lived romance. However, it became clear that Prowse did not achieve the same level of success in film and television as she had been predicted to. She took this in stride, convincing herself that everything in this world always happens for the best.

Prowse spent some time performing on the stages of Las Vegas, where she was more than generously compensated for her work. However, the demands on her were high, and she never worked as diligently as she did in Vegas. In the late 70s, she participated in the creation of a book on yoga authored by Bikram Choudhury, personally demonstrating several poses described in the book. In the late 80s, Prowse managed to have two disputes with the same leopard. The first "conflict" occurred during the filming of 'Circus of the Stars' in 1989. Shortly thereafter, while on a promotional tour for the film, the leopard attacked Prowse a second time, causing more serious injuries that required stitches and reattachment of her torn ear.

In 1994, Prowse was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She fought against the disease for some time, but on September 14, 1996, it claimed her life.