Tula Ellice Finklea
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Cyd Charisse starred in Singin’ in the Rain 1952 and The Band Wagon 1953, two National Film Registry musicals. She began ballet after polio, joined the Ballet Russe at 13, and later earned the National Medal of Arts in 2006.
Names, aliases, and relatives of Cyd Charisse — birth name, kin, and personal ties.
Cyd Charisse by the numbers — life, work, and family.
Cyd Charisse — early life, career, personal life, and legacy.
Cyd Charisse, born Tula Ellice Finklea on March 8, 1921, in Amarillo, Texas, began ballet lessons as a frail child recovering from polio, on the advice of her father. By age 13, she joined the Ballet Russe, touring under Russian-sounding stage names like Maria Istomina and Felia Sidorova. Her Russian ballet training set her apart from other Hollywood dancers.
Cyd Charisse made her film debut in Something to Shout About 1943 billed as Lily Norwood. She caught MGM’s attention after an uncredited dance with Fred Astaire in Ziegfeld Follies 1945, earning a seven-year contract. Her breakthrough came opposite Gene Kelly in Singin’ in the Rain 1952, followed by The Band Wagon 1953 with Astaire. She lost out on roles in Easter Parade 1948 due to a knee injury and An American in Paris 1951 due to pregnancy. As musicals declined in the 1960s, she transitioned to television and nightclub performances with her second husband, singer Tony Martin.
Cyd Charisse married her former dance teacher, Nico Charisse, in Paris in 1939. They had a son, Nico Jr., before divorcing in 1947. In 1948 she married singer Tony Martin, with whom she performed as a song-and-dance duo. They had a son, Tony Martin Jr. She was a practicing Methodist, despite being interred in a Jewish cemetery. Her daughter-in-law Sheila Charisse died in the 1979 American Airlines Flight 191 crash.
Cyd Charisse’s performances in Singin’ in the Rain and The Band Wagon — both National Film Registry inductees — define MGM’s golden age of musicals. Fred Astaire called her beautiful dynamite in his 1959 memoir. She was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 2006. In 1990 she appeared in Janet Jackson’s music video Alright, introducing her to a younger audience. Few dancers have starred with both Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly; Cyd Charisse is among them.
Every award, honor, and recognition received by Cyd Charisse — Grammys, hall-of-fame inductions, civic honors, lifetime achievements.
A wall of memorable lines from Cyd Charisse — lyrics, interviews, and off-the-cuff remarks captured over a lifetime.
If I Had to Give up Either Acting or Dancing, I’d Choose to Keep Dancing.
Little-known facts about Cyd Charisse — origins, oddities, and behind-the-scenes details from a public life.
Her husband could tell who she had been dancing with by her bruises: if covered, it was Gene Kelly; if not, Fred Astaire.
Although one of the greatest female dancers in movie musical history, her singing was almost always dubbed, most notably by Carol Richards in Brigadoon 1954 and a young Vikki Carr in The Silencers 1966.
She met first husband Nico Charisse as a very young dancer; they married in Paris in 1939 when she was still a teenager.
She and husband Tony Martin became a popular song-and-dance couple on television and in nightclubs after their film heyday.
Fred Astaire, in his 1959 memoir Steps in Time, referred to Cyd as beautiful dynamite.
She danced with the Ballet Russe under the names Maria Istomina and Felia Sidorova.
Her dark looks initially had her cast as ethnic beauties, such as Ricardo Montalban’s fiancée in Fiesta 1947 and a Polynesian in On an Island with You 1948.
She got her start in Hollywood when Ballet Russe star David Lichine was hired by Columbia Pictures for a ballet sequence in Something to Shout About 1943; she appeared billed as Lily Norwood and attracted attention.
While in France on tour with the ballet in 1939, she and Nico Charisse eloped; they had one son before divorcing in 1947.
Her father, Ernest, encouraged her early ballet lessons to build up her strength after a bout with polio.
Unlike many top female dancers in the era of movie musicals, she was trained as a ballerina in the Russian tradition.
Her daughter-in-law, Sheila Charisse, was killed in the May 25, 1979 crash of American Airlines Flight 191.
She took the name Cyd from her brother, who originally called her Sid; she convinced her agent to keep the name with the present spelling.
In 1952, she had a $5-million insurance policy on her legs.
She lost out on two major MGM roles: Easter Parade 1948 due to a knee injury, and An American in Paris 1951 due to pregnancy.
Her mother was Lela Norwood Finklea; she grew up in the Texas dust-bowl town of Amarillo.
Although interred in a Jewish cemetery, she was a practicing Methodist; her funeral was presided over by a United Methodist Church pastor.
She was awarded the American National Medal of the Arts in 2006 by the National Endowment of the Arts.
Had two sons: Nicholas Charisse born 1942 and Tony Martin Jr. 1950-2011.
Before her feature film debut, she appeared in at least six Soundies; her actual film debut may have been in Escort Girl 1941.
She is one of several prima ballerinas to appear in a popular hip-hop music video: Janet Jackson’s Alright 1990.
She was cast as the other woman in Marilyn Monroe’s last unfinished film Something’s Got to Give 1962.
During a family vacation in Los Angeles at age 12, she enrolled in ballet classes where one teacher was Nico Charisse.
Two of her films are in the National Film Registry: Singin’ in the Rain 1952 and The Band Wagon 1953.
At age 70, she made a disastrous Broadway debut as a replacement in Grand Hotel; she could not sing and had been dubbed in all her films.
She is one of the few actresses to have danced with both Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly in movies, along with Judy Garland, Rita Hayworth, and others.
She was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on February 8, 1960.
She joined the Ballet Russe at age 14 and toured under Russian-sounding names like Natacha Tulaelis and Celia Siderova.
Her first speaking part was in The Harvey Girls directed by George Sidney.
She was offered the lead role of Jo Stockton in Funny Face 1957 but declined; Audrey Hepburn played it.
Appeared with Ricardo Montalban in six films including Fiesta 1947 and On an Island with You 1948.
In the TV movie Call Her Mom 1972, she was originally to play a role but was replaced by Ann Miller.
Appeared with Gene Kelly in eight films including Thousands Cheer 1943 and Singin’ in the Rain 1952.
She was initially pursued for the role of Lola in Damn Yankees 1958 but Gwen Verdon recreated her stage role.
She was inducted into the Texas Film Hall of Fame in Austin in March 2002.
She was an honorary member of the National Federation of Republican Women.
Appeared with Fred Astaire in three films: Ziegfeld Follies 1945, The Band Wagon 1953, and Silk Stockings 1957.
In June 2021, she was honored as Turner Classic Movies Star of the Month.
Starred in a Soundies production singing This Love of Mine in 1942.
Aunt, by marriage, of actress Nana Visitor.
Quick answers to the questions readers ask most about Cyd Charisse.
Celebrities similar to Cyd Charisse — same craft, ranked by reach.
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