In Remembrance: Peggy Ryan

     Peggy Ryan, the tap dancer who partnered with Donald O’Connor in a dozen film musicals has passed away in Las Vegas on Saturday October 30, 2004. She was 80.

     Born Margaret O’Rene Ryan on August 28, 1924 in Long Beach, California, Ryan grew up in a show business family. By the age of three she was dancing in her parents’ vaudeville act, the Dancing Ryan. She made her motion picture debut at age 6 in the Warner Brothers musical short The Wedding Of Jack And Jill (1937). The film also marked the debut of the Three Gumm Sisters, one of whom would change her name and attain stardom as Judy Garland.

     In 1937, Ryan was spotted George Murphy who convinced director Ralph Murphy (no relation) to cast her in his new film at Universal Pictures, the musical Top Of The Town, where she performed a dance number opposite Murphy.

     Following Top Of The Town, Ryan filmed the drama Women Men Marry (1937) at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios. She then made The Flying Irishman (1939) at RKO Studios and She Married A Cop (1939) at Republic Pictures.

     After a pair of pictures at 20^th Century Fox, The Grapes Of Wrath and Sailor’s Lady ( both 1940), Ryan landed back at Universal Pictures where she was cast opposite Donald O’Connor in What’s Cooking? (1942) which headlined the singing group the Andrews Sisters. The two were paired in the following two Andrews Sisters films- Private Buckaroo and Give Out, Sisters (both 1942).

     The two were then paired in another eight films over the following three years including When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again (1943), Top Man (1944), Chip Off The Old Block (1944), The Merry Monahans (1944) and Bowery To Broadway (1944). There last film together was 1945’s Patrick The Great. She also appeared in the Here Comes The Co-Eds (1945) with comedy team Abott and Costello. Ryan would go on to star in another pair of musicals for Universal- That’s The Spirit and On Stage Everybody (both 1945). Her final film for the studio was the comedy Men In Her Diary (1945).

     In 1945 she married James Cross and retired from the screen from motion pictures. She re-emerged in 1949 for a pair of musicals- There’s A Girl In My Heart with Lee Bowman and Shamrock Hill with dancer Ray MacDonald.

     Her last film was 1953’s All Ashore with Mickey Rooney and MacDonald. Shortly after the completion of the picture she married MacDonald. They spent time traveling the world performing in various stage revues. They divorced in 1957 and in the following year moved to Hawaii following her marriage to novelist Eddie Sherman, where she taught dancing at the University of Hawaii. In 1969 she landed a recurring role on the television series Hawaii Five-O and stayed with the series through 1976. She stayed close friends with O’Connor and re-teamed with him for his stage show Me And My Shadow in 1987 at the Los Angeles Greek Theater.