Early Dance Career
She was only fourteen when she was hired by Nils Granlund, the publicity manager for Loews Theaters, who also served as the stageshow producer for Texas Guinan at Larry Fay's El Fay nightclub, a Speakeasy frequented by gangsters. She was noticed by Broadway producer Charles B. Dillingham, who gave her a role in Bye, Bye, Bonnie (produced by L. Lawrence Weber), which ran for six months. She then appeared in Lucky and as Mamie in The Sidewalks of New York, also produced by Dillingham. In the later show, she was seen by Flo Ziegfeld, who sent her bunch of roses and a note, "May I make you a star?". She would appear in Ziegfeld's Whoopee! in 1928, the same year she married Al Jolson.
The two met in Los Angeles (not at Texas Guinan's as he would claim), where Nils Granlund had sent her to assist in Loew's marketing campaign for The Jazz Singer. Jolson was smitten and immediately proposed. Keeler reportedly initially declined, but later relented. The couple married September 21, 1928 in Port Chester, New York, in a private ceremony performed by Surrogate Judge G. A. Slater of Westchester County, New York. The two had hoped to be wed aboard the White Star Liner RMS Olympic, but were informed that company regulations no longer allowed ship's captains to perform "at sea" ceremonies. The two sailed the following morning for a brief honeymoon before she began her tour with Whoopee! The marriage (during which they adopted a son) was reportedly a rocky one. They moved to California, which took her away from the limelight. In 1929, at the urging of Ziegfeld, Jolson agreed to Keeler's returning to Broadway to star in Show Girl.
In 1933, producer Darryl F. Zanuck cast Keeler in the Warner Bros. musical 42nd Street opposite Dick Powell and Bebe Daniels. The film was a huge success due to Busby Berkeley's lavish innovative choreography. Following 42nd Street, Jack Warner gave Keeler a long-term contract and cast her in Gold Diggers of 1933, Footlight Parade, Dames, and Colleen. Keeler and Jolson starred together in Go Into Your Dance. Frank Tashlin's 1937 cartoon, The Woods Are Full Of Cuckoos, featuring a porcine caricature called "Ruby Squealer".. Jolson and Keeler appeared on Broadway one last time together for the unsuccessful show Hold On To Your Hats in 1940.
Read more about this topic: Ruby Keeler
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