Robert Joseph Banas (September 22, 1933 – July 29, 2024) was an American dancer and actor who worked in films such as ''

West Side Story ''West Side Story'' is a Musical theatre, musical conceived by Jerome Robbins with music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a Book (musical theatre), book by Arthur Laurents. Inspired by William Shakespeare's play ''Romeo an ...

'' (1961), ''

Down and Out in Beverly Hills ''Down and Out in Beverly Hills'' is a 1986 American comedy film co-written and directed by Paul Mazursky, based on the 1919 French play ''Boudu sauvé des eaux'', which was later adapted into the 1932 film '' Boudu sauvé des eaux'' by Jean ...

'' (1986) and ''

Always Always may refer to: Film and television * ''Always'', a 1985 film directed by Henry Jaglom * ''Always'' (1989 film), a 1989 romantic comedy-drama directed by Steven Spielberg * ''Always'' (2011 film), a 2011 South Korean film, also known as ''O ...

'' (1989). He was also a choreographer and dance coach.

Early life

Banas said he began to dance at age five. "I just couldn’t sit still when I’d hear those big bands:

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, Les Brown and

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." During World War II, his father became a military chief inspector for the steel mills in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, while his mother became a propeller inspector for Curtiss-Wright in Erie, Pennsylvania, Erie. In 1942, his father arranged ballroom dance lessons for Banas and his sister Faith. Natalie Wood was his dancing partner in the Michael Panaieff Children’s’ Ballet Company, to which he received a scholarship and in which Jill St. John and Stefanie Powers were members. Banas also attended the Hollywood Professional School.

Career

Banas auditioned for the production of ''Carousel (musical), Carousel'' at the LA Civic Light Opera and was cast as Enoch Snow Jr. After that, he appeared in stage productions of ''Kiss Me Kate'', ''Annie Get Your Gun (musical), Annie Get Your Gun'', ''Brigadoon'', ''Plain and Fancy'', and ''Peter Pan (1954 musical), Peter Pan''. He made appearances in various films, including ''Bye Bye Birdie (1963 film), Bye Bye Birdie'', ''

'', ''The Unsinkable Molly Brown (film), The Unsinkable Molly Brown'' and in ''Mary Poppins (film), Mary Poppins'' as a chimney sweep. . He also made numerous television appearances, including an episode of ''Get Smart''. Banas later became a choreographer and dance teacher in the Los Angeles area. A dance he choreographed for the Shirley Ellis song "The Nitty Gritty (song), The Nitty Gritty" and performed (with five other dancers) on ''The Judy Garland Show'' in 1964 drew him renewed attention on YouTube in the 2010s, where copies of it had been viewed more than 19 million times by November 2024.

Death

Banas died of pneumonia at an assisted living facility in Encino, California, Encino at the age of 90.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Banas, Robert 1933 births 2024 deaths 20th-century American male actors 20th-century American dancers American male film actors American male stage actors American male television actors Male actors from New York City Dancers from New Jersey Deaths from pneumonia in California People from Encino, Los Angeles