Dancing With a Star - Kristin Baggelaar

Yes, it’s true—Elegant and sophiscated Ballroom dancing is back, and bigger than ever. We’ve seen the magazine covers, talk show appearances, huge ratings and the launching of careers. Well the time has come to answer the question. “What’s behind this worldwide ballroom dance phenomenon?” One of the answers is an American dance legend named Maxine Barrat. Her story is the stuff of dreams—riveting, exotic, passionate—fracturing her back as a child; sneaking into Radio City Music Hall as a teenager; meeting the perfect partner Don Loper and dancing into the arms of Gene Kelly in her first Broadway show. A stint at the glamorous Copacabana catapulted Loper ' Barrat to international fame and a role in MGM’s star-studded Thousands Cheer. She reinvented herself as a nightclub singer, donated her time and talents to the war effort and continued her stellar career as a model in the world of fashion. Then a new career in the up-and-coming medium of television. Maxine’s sensational life is interlaced with those of the stars she befriended, from Katharine Hepburn and Ginger Rogers, to those with whom she danced and romanced—from admiring South American caballeros, Hollywood moguls and stars, to an affair with Gone with the Wind matinee idol Clark Gable. Maxine Barrat is a performing arts legend who holds a vital key to the American dance story. She is a real star and it’s time to put Maxine Barrat back on the dance floor.