Emile Ardolino
Encyclopedia
Emile Ardolino was an American
film director
, choreographer, and producer, best known for his films Dirty Dancing
(1987) and Sister Act
(1992).
He began his career as an actor in off-Broadway productions, but soon moved to the production side of the business. In 1967, he founded Compton-Ardolino Films with Gardner Compton.
In the 1970s and 1980s Ardolino worked for PBS; his profiles of dancers and choreographers for their Dance in America and Live from Lincoln Center
series won him a total of 17 Emmy Award
nominations. He actually won the Emmy three times.
Ardolino won an Academy Award for Best Documentary
for the 1983
movie He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin'
. He found commercial success with the 1987
sleeper hit Dirty Dancing
, and went on to make several other mainstream films.
Ardolino, who lived openly gay, died in 1993 of complications from AIDS
. He was buried in New York next to his parents, his mother having died in 1975. His last films, The Nutcracker, (based on George Balanchine
's New York City Ballet
version), and the television production of Gypsy starring Bette Midler
in the role created on Broadway by Ethel Merman
, were released and shown posthumously.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
, choreographer, and producer, best known for his films Dirty Dancing
Dirty Dancing
Dirty Dancing is a 1987 American romantic film. Written by Eleanor Bergstein and directed by Emile Ardolino, the film features Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in the lead roles, as well as Cynthia Rhodes and Jerry Orbach...
(1987) and Sister Act
Sister Act
Sister Act is a 1992 American comedy film released by Touchstone Pictures. Directed by Emile Ardolino, it features musical arrangements by Marc Shaiman and stars Whoopi Goldberg as a Reno lounge singer who has been put under protective custody in a San Francisco convent and has to pretend to be a...
(1992).
Biography
Emile Ardolino, son of Italian immigrants Emilio and Ester Ardolino, was born in a neighborhood of Queens. His father – who at the time of Emile's birth was 54 years old – died in 1949, when Emile was 6 years old.He began his career as an actor in off-Broadway productions, but soon moved to the production side of the business. In 1967, he founded Compton-Ardolino Films with Gardner Compton.
In the 1970s and 1980s Ardolino worked for PBS; his profiles of dancers and choreographers for their Dance in America and Live from Lincoln Center
Live from Lincoln Center
Live From Lincoln Center is an ongoing series of musical performances produced by Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in conjunction with Thirteen/WNET in New York City....
series won him a total of 17 Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
nominations. He actually won the Emmy three times.
Ardolino won an Academy Award for Best Documentary
Academy Award for Documentary Feature
The Academy Award for Documentary Feature is among the most prestigious awards for documentary films.- Winners and nominees:Following the Academy's practice, films are listed below by the award year...
for the 1983
1983 in film
-Events:*February 11 - The Rolling Stones concert film Let's Spend the Night Together opens in New York*May 25 - Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, the final film in the original Star Wars trilogy, is released. Like the previous films, it goes on to become the top grossing picture of...
movie He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin'
He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin'
He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin' is a 1983 documentary film directed by Emile Ardolino about Jacques D'Amboise, a noted former American ballet star who had dancing roles in such films as Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and Carousel, and who later became a New York dancing instructor...
. He found commercial success with the 1987
1987 in film
-Events:*January 31 - The Cure for Insomnia premieres at The School of the Art Institute in Chicago, Illinois, to officially become the world's longest film according to Guinness World Records....
sleeper hit Dirty Dancing
Dirty Dancing
Dirty Dancing is a 1987 American romantic film. Written by Eleanor Bergstein and directed by Emile Ardolino, the film features Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in the lead roles, as well as Cynthia Rhodes and Jerry Orbach...
, and went on to make several other mainstream films.
Ardolino, who lived openly gay, died in 1993 of complications from AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
. He was buried in New York next to his parents, his mother having died in 1975. His last films, The Nutcracker, (based on George Balanchine
George Balanchine
George Balanchine , born Giorgi Balanchivadze in Saint Petersburg, Russia, to a Georgian father and a Russian mother, was one of the 20th century's most famous choreographers, a developer of ballet in the United States, co-founder and balletmaster of New York City Ballet...
's New York City Ballet
New York City Ballet
New York City Ballet is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Leon Barzin was the company's first music director. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company...
version), and the television production of Gypsy starring Bette Midler
Bette Midler
Bette Midler is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as The Rose, Ruthless People, Beaches, and For The Boys...
in the role created on Broadway by Ethel Merman
Ethel Merman
Ethel Merman was an American actress and singer. Known primarily for her powerful voice and roles in musical theatre, she has been called "the undisputed First Lady of the musical comedy stage." Among the many standards introduced by Merman in Broadway musicals are "I Got Rhythm", "Everything's...
, were released and shown posthumously.
Awards
- 1969 Obie AwardObie AwardThe Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards given by The Village Voice newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City...
, for film for the Broadway production of Oh! Calcutta!Oh! Calcutta!Oh! Calcutta! is an avant-garde theatrical revue, created by British drama critic Kenneth Tynan. The show, consisting of sketches on sex-related topics, debuted Off-Broadway in 1969 and then in London in 1970. It ran in London for over 3,900 performances, and in New York initially for 1,314... - 17 Emmy Awards Nomination and 1 winning
- 1983 Academy Award, Best Documentary Feature, He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin
Filmography (partial)
- He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin'He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin'He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin' is a 1983 documentary film directed by Emile Ardolino about Jacques D'Amboise, a noted former American ballet star who had dancing roles in such films as Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and Carousel, and who later became a New York dancing instructor...
(1983) - Dirty DancingDirty DancingDirty Dancing is a 1987 American romantic film. Written by Eleanor Bergstein and directed by Emile Ardolino, the film features Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in the lead roles, as well as Cynthia Rhodes and Jerry Orbach...
(1987) - Chances Are (1989)
- Three Men and a Little Lady (1990)
- Sister ActSister ActSister Act is a 1992 American comedy film released by Touchstone Pictures. Directed by Emile Ardolino, it features musical arrangements by Marc Shaiman and stars Whoopi Goldberg as a Reno lounge singer who has been put under protective custody in a San Francisco convent and has to pretend to be a...
(1992) - GypsyGypsy (1993 film)Gypsy is a 1993 musical television film directed by Emile Ardolino. The teleplay by Arthur Laurents is an adaptation of his book of the 1959 stage musical Gypsy: A Musical Fable, which was based on Gypsy: A Memoir by Gypsy Rose Lee....
(1993) (TV movie)