MovieChat Forums > White Christmas (1954) Discussion > John Brascia

John Brascia

posted 14 years ago by hellotus
16 replies | jump to latest

John Brascia is the great dancer who is paired with Vera-Ellen in "Mandy," "Choreography," and the "Abraham" rehearsal number ... he is also featured in the "Frankie and Johnny" ballet in "Meet Me in Las Vegas," and I believe I have seen him in another film where he was unbilled.

I've looked him up on imdb of course, but there really isn't much information. With all of the attention that "White Christmas" gets every year, it would be great to know where John Brascia is these days, and if he knows how much his dancing is appreciated.

About a year ago, there was a question here as to whether he was featured in some "I Love Lucy" shows.

I would love to know more about his training and what other dancing work he did in ensuing years. Obviously he worked with Robert Alton

[–] 14 years ago

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[–] view123 13 years ago

LOL! OMG!! I thought I was the only one who appreciated that difficult dance move, ascending the stairs, "blind" as it were, and backward! WOW!

[–] bron-tay 12 years ago

Haha, I always point out that step to the underappreciative of this movie! That and Vera-Ellen's nerve tap in Choreography. I couldn't even drum my fingers like that.

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[–] kathcongdrb1 13 years ago

I agree with you about John Brescia; his bio IS very short. I just read a book on Vera-Ellen and there is almost nothing on him, which is a shame because he is a great dancer. I think he also did some of the choreography for "White Christmas." but was uncredited.

[–] kathymac1443 13 years ago

I left a message on his bio stating I think he was one of the guys dancing outside Marilyn Monroes's room in Niagra. no credit given for him but once you ID him it's hard to not recognize him. I would love to know what has become of him

[–] shepleypr 13 years ago

Thanks for these recent comments ... I'll go back and look at "Niagara" again! In the meantime, I've updated as much info on Wikipedia about him as I could find and posted a link to the Life magazine article about "White Christmas." Happy holidays, and enjoy seeing "White Christmas" again this year!

[–] kathymac1443 13 years ago

let me know if you think it is John in Niagara. I'm very curious

[–] kathymac1443 13 years ago

Just saw Niagara on TCM and I can verify it is definately him dancing outside the room. He has no lines but has the same toothy grin. I wonder why he didn't at least get credit as a dancer.

[–] finn19 12 years ago

Amazing dancer, yes...but do you see the resemblence to Jeff Goldblum?

"...do the smart thing: Let somebody else try FIRST”."
The Doctor

[–] bron-tay 12 years ago

omg YES.

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[–] blackhawkswincup2010 11 years ago

Great dancer. Buck teeth. No work in Hollywood. End of story.

[–] MisterDenton 11 years ago

I'm not a big fan of White Christmas, but I do enjoy having it on in the background during Christmas. I think one of my favourite things about it is John Brascia. I just wish he was featured more heavily - he's a babe.

[–] momsabeach 11 years ago

If you watch WC with Rosie Clooney's commentary, you will see she mentions him a bit

"A daffy woman constantly strives to become a star..."

[–] bonidea 11 years ago

Sadly, John Brascia died in February 2013. I thought he was fabulous in this movie, and don't understand why he wasn't a bigger star. I think he lit up the screen as much as any of the leads.

[–] daddymo 11 years ago

I love the dancing backwards up the stairs' part. I am also amazed by almost the very next move; he dips Vera-Ellen out over the steps. maybe not as difficult as the backwards move, but I always marvel at that and think about how much confidence Vera-Ellen had to have in his strength and ability. One slip and she was falling head over heels down that long flight of stairs.

[–] mojo2004 11 years ago

Sadly, John Brascia died in February 2013. I thought he was fabulous in this movie, and don't understand why he wasn't a bigger star. I think he lit up the screen as much as any of the leads.

Even though I agree with comments here it's a lot harder to understand why George Chakiris (who 's in the club scene with Rosemary Clooney) didn't become a bigger star in Hollywood. Since he won an Oscar for a role where he danced. He also had a few speaking roles in other films after that and was good at drama.

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