Annette Kellerman

Annette Marie Sarah Kellermann (born July 6, 1887 in Sydney – died November 5, 1975 in Southport, Australia) was an Australian professional swimmer, vaudeville and film star, writer, and advocate for the change of women's swimwear. She is often credited for inventing the sport of synchronised swimming after her 1907 performance of the first water ballet in a glass tank at the New York Hippodrome. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 394 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (421 × 640 pixel, file size: 36 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) This file was transfered from en. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 394 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (421 × 640 pixel, file size: 36 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) This file was transfered from en. ... July 6 is the 187th day of the year (188th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 178 days remaining. ... 1887 (MDCCCLXXXVII) is a common year starting on Saturday (click on link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. ... The Sydney Opera House on Sydney Harbour Sydney (pronounced ) is the most populous city in Australia, with a metropolitan area population of over 4,200,000 people[1]. Sydney is the state capital of New South Wales. ... November 5 is the 309th day of the year (310th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 56 days remaining. ... 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday. ... Southport is a coastal town near the mid-point of the Gold Coast, Australia and has one of the citys largest communities. ... Vaudeville is a style of multi-act theatre which flourished in North America from the 1880s through the 1920s. ... Film is a term that encompasses individual motion pictures, the field of film as an art form, and the motion picture industry. ...

In 1902 she won her first title: Swim Champion of New South Wales. She also appeared in several movies, sometimes as a mermaid. 1902 (MCMII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Capital Sydney Government Constitutional monarchy Governor Professor Marie Bashir Premier Morris Iemma (ALP) Federal representation  - House seats 50  - Senate seats 12 Gross State Product (2004-05)  - Product ($m)  $305,437 (1st)  - Product per capita  $45,153/person (4th) Population (End of March 2006)  - Population  6,817,100 (1st)  - Density  8. ... A mermaid (from the Middle English mere in the obsolete sense sea(as in maritime,the Latin mare, sea) + maid(en)) is a legendary aquatic creature with the head and torso of human female and the tail of a fish. ...

Kellerman was famous for her advocacy of the right of women to wear a one-piece bathing suit, which was a controversial topic in the early 20th century. (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999...

In the early 1900s, women were expected to wear cumbersome dress and pantaloon combinations when swimming... In 1907, at the height of her popularity, Kellermann was arrested on a Boston beach for indecency - she was wearing one of her fitted one-piece costumes [1]

The popularity of her one piece suits resulted in her own line of women's swimwear. The "Annette Kellermans" as they were known, were the first step to modern swimwear.

In 1916 she became the first major actress to do a nude scene when she appeared fully nude in Daughter of the Gods. Made by 20th Century Fox, "Daughter of the Gods" was the first million dollar film production. As with many of Annette Kellerman's films, this is labeled a lost film and no copies are known to exist. Daughter of the Gods (1916) is a silent film notorious for featuring Annette Kellerman in the first ever nude scene by a major star. ... Twentieth (20th) Century Fox Film Corporation (known from 1935 to 1985 as Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation) is one of the major American film studios. ... A lost film is a film which, for any of several reasons, is no longer in existence. ...

The majority of Kellerman's films were aquatic in theme. Many times she would play mermaids named Annette. She was the first actress to wear a swimmable mermaid costume on film, paving the way for future screen sirens such as Glynis Johns, Ann Blyth and Daryl Hannah. In 2006 the aquatic costume company MermaidFX created and sold mermaid costumes based on Annette's original designs. Many of Annette's original costumes and personal items are held by the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, Australia. Glynis Johns (born 5 October 1923) is a Tony Award-winning British stage and film actress, dancer, pianist and singer (notably of Send in the Clowns in Stephen Sondheims A Little Night Music). ... Ann Blyth Ann Marie Blyth (born August 16, 1928 in Mount Kisco, New York) is an American actress and singer, most often cast in Hollywood musicals, but who also succeeded in the dramatic roles she was given. ... Daryl Christine Hannah (born December 3, 1960) is an American film actress. ... MermaidFX is a company that creates mermaid tails and aquatic costumes for television shows, films and commercials. ...

Kellerman appeared in one of the last films made in Prizma Color, Venus of the South Seas (1924), a U. S./New Zealand co-production where one reel of the 55-minute film was in color. "Venus of the South Seas" is the only feature film starring Annette Kellerman known to exist in it's complete form. The Prizma Color system was a technique of color motion picture photography, invented in 1913 by William Van Doren Kelley. ...

In addition to her film and stage career, she wrote several books including "How To Swim", "Physical Beauty and How to Keep It" and a book of children's stories called "Fairy Tales of the South Seas".

She was portrayed by Esther Williams in the 1952 film Million Dollar Mermaid. Her name is on a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, on Hollywood Boulevard. Esther Jane Williams (born August 8, 1921[1] or 1922[2]) was a United States competitive swimmer and movie star, famous for her musical films that featured elaborate performances with swimming and diving. ... Million Dollar Mermaid is a 1952 MGM biographical musical film of the life of Australian swimming star Annette Kellerman. ... A band plays on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. ... Hollywood Boulevard as taken from the Kodak Theatre Hollywood Boulevard is an avenue in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States, beginning at Sunset Boulevard in the east and running northwest to Vermont Avenue, where it straightens out and runs due west to Laurel Canyon Boulevard. ...

An award winning Australian documentary called "The Original Mermaid" about Annette Kellerman was produced in 2002.

References

1. Her Story. Annette Kellerman. The Dawn, Issue 54. Retrieved on 2006 February 26.

For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... February 26 is the 57th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ...

External links

• Annette Kellerman: The Million Dollar Mermaid
• MermaidFX: Annette Kellerman
• Annette Kellerman: Lyrical Composition
• ADB biography
• Annette Kellerman at the Internet Movie Database