TCM Schedule for Thurs, Aug 28, 2025: Summer Under the Stars - Donald O'Connor

TCM salutes Donald O'Connor on the anniversary of his birthday, August 28, 1925 -- 100 years ago. His best-known work is his "Make 'Em Laugh" dance routine in Singin' in the Rain (1952, airing tonight), for which O'Connor was awarded a Golden Globe. If you've never seen it you're in for a treat (you can also catch it on That's Entertainment (1974), airing today, and of course, on YouTube).

O'Connor was born into a vaudeville family, where he learned to dance, sing, play comedy, and perform slapstick.

He joined a dance act with his mother and elder brother Jack. They were billed as the O'Connor Family, the Royal Family of Vaudeville. They toured the country doing singing, dancing, comedy, and acting. "Our entire family composed an act", he says. "We really didn't have a choice; if you were in the family you appeared in the act. I loved vaudeville. The live audiences created a certain spontaneity."

When they were not touring they stayed with O'Connor's Uncle Bill in Danville, Illinois. O'Connor never went to school, but performed in the Danville High School dramatic club with Dick Van Dyke and Bobby Short.

He later said, "I learned two dance routines. I looked like the world's greatest dancer. I did triple wings and everything. But I had never had any formal training. So, when I went into movies and started working with all those great dancers, I had a terrible time. I couldn't pick up routines because I didn't have any formal training. At the age of 15 — from 15 on, I really had to learn to dance. And that's quite old for someone to start dancing real heavy, professionally."

Contrasting the vaudevillian style of dance with that of ballet and musicals he observed, "All hoofers, they dance from the waist down. And I had to learn to dance from the waist up. And then, I became what's known as a total dancer."

O'Connor began performing in movies in 1937, making his debut at age 11 in Melody for Two appearing with his family act. He was also in Columbia's It Can't Last Forever (1937).

O'Connor signed a contract at Paramount Studios. He appeared in Men with Wings (1938), directed by William Wellman, as Fred MacMurray's character as a boy. He was billed fifth in Sing, You Sinners (1938, airing today) playing Bing Crosby's and MacMurray's younger brother.

FULL BIO: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_O'Connor



DAYTIME (EST)

6:00 AM | That's Entertainment! (1974)
An all-star cast introduces clips from MGM's greatest musicals.
Dir: Jack Haley Jr | Cast: Donald O'Connor, Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Elizabeth Taylor

8:30 AM | Sing, You Sinners (1938)
A brother act is broken up by one sibling's devotion to gambling.
Dir: Wesley Ruggles | Cast: Bing Crosby, Fred MacMurray, Donald O'Connor

10:15 AM | On Your Toes (1939)
A hoofer gets mixed up with a ballet dancer, triggering backstage jealousy.
Dir: Ray Enright | Cast: Zorina, Eddie Albert, Alan Hale

12:00 PM | Beau Geste (1939)
Three brothers in the French foreign legion fight off murderous Arabs and a sadistic sergeant.
Dir: William A. Wellman | Cast: Gary Cooper, Ray Milland, Robert Preston

2:00 PM | Private Buckaroo (1942)
A rebellious young Army recruit falls for the daughter of a retired officer.
Dir: Edward F. Cline | Cast: The Andrews Sisters, Dick Foran, Joe E. Lewis

3:30 PM | The Milkman (1950) TCM PREMIERE
Desperate to escape from his father's influence, a man gets a job with his father's arch-rival.
Dir: Charles Barton | Cast: Donald O'Connor, Jimmy Durante, Piper Laurie

5:00 PM | Double Crossbones (1950) TCM PREMIERE
In the late 1700s, a young man takes up with pirates after he is falsely accused of a theft.
Dir: Charles T. Barton | Cast: Donald O'Connor, Helena Carter, Will Geer

6:30 PM | I Love Melvin (1953)
A photographer's assistant promises to turn a chorus girl into a cover girl.
Dir: Don Weis | Cast: Donald O'Connor, Debbie Reynolds, Una Merkel


PRIME TIME, LATE NIGHT, EARLY MORNING

8:00 PM | Singin' in the Rain (1952)
A silent-screen swashbuckler finds love while adjusting to "talking pictures."
Dir: Stanley Donen, Gene Kelly | Cast: Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor, Debbie Reynolds

10:00 PM | Francis (1950)
A talking mule helps a hapless soldier uncover an enemy agent.
Dir: Arthur Lubin | Cast: Donald O'Connor, Patricia Medina, Zasu Pitts

11:45 PM | There's No Business Like Show Business (1954)
A blonde beauty upsets a show business family.
Dir: Walter Lang | Cast: Ethel Merman, Donald O'Connor, Marilyn Monroe

2:00 AM | That Funny Feeling (1965)
A cleaning girl tries to pass off her workplace as her home, not knowing she's dating her boss.
Dir: Richard Thorpe | Cast: Sandra Dee, Bobby Darin, Donald O'Connor

4:00 AM | Cry for Happy (1961)
Army photographers on leave in Japan take over a geisha house.
Dir: George Marshall | Cast: Glenn Ford, Donald O'Connor, Miiko Taka