Sylvia Lewis is an American actress, dancer and choreographer.

Career

Sylvia Lewis was born in York, Pennsylvania. She first performed as a young child in the last days of vaudeville in Baltimore, Maryland. She received her first classical training as a scholarship student at the Peabody Conservatory of Music, studying dance, voice and piano. She went to Hollywood at the age of twelve. Lewis began her film career in ''

Singin' in the Rain ''Singin' in the Rain'' is a 1952 American musical romantic comedy film directed and choreographed by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen, starring Kelly, Donald O'Connor, and Debbie Reynolds and featuring Jean Hagen, Millard Mitchell and Cyd C ...

'' and '' Red Garters'' as a dancer, then in '' Drums of Tahiti'' as an actress. Later, she added choreography on her list of credits, which began while she was a regular featured character on the ABC

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed ...

Where's Raymond? ''Where's Raymond?'' is an American sitcom that aired on ABC, starring Ray Bolger. The series aired from October 1953 to April 22, 1955. The series' title was spurred by Bolger's Broadway stage hit ''Where's Charley?''. In the 1954–1955 seaso ...

'', in which she played a dancer named Sylvia who partnered series star

Ray Bolger Raymond Wallace Bolger (January 10, 1904 – January 15, 1987) was an American actor, dancer, singer, vaudevillian and stage performer (particularly musical theatre) who started in the silent-film era. Bolger was a major Broadway performer in ...

. Lewis appeared in the 1961 film The Ladies Man where she danced with star

Jerry Lewis Jerry Lewis (born Joseph Levitch; March 16, 1926 – August 20, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, singer, filmmaker and humanitarian. As his contributions to comedy and charity made him a global figure in pop culture, Lewis was nickn ...

. Lewis was one of several actresses considered for the role of Princess Aouda in ''

Around the World in 80 Days ''Around the World in Eighty Days'' (french: link=no, Le tour du monde en quatre-vingts jours) is an adventure novel by the French writer Jules Verne, first published in French in 1872. In the story, Phileas Fogg of London and his newly employ ...

'' (1956) after Shirley MacLaine rejected it twice. Lewis tested for the role twice, before MacLaine eventually accepted it. Lewis has choreographed many television shows since the 1950s, including '' Who's the Boss?'' and '' Married... with Children''.

Guest appearance In show business, a guest appearance is the participation of an outsider performer (such as a musician or actor) in an event such as a music record or concert, show, etc., when the performer does not belong to the regular band, cast, or other ...

s on shows like ''

The Dick Van Dyke Show ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' is an American television sitcom created by Carl Reiner that initially aired on CBS from October 3, 1961 to June 1, 1966, with a total of 158 half-hour episodes spanning five seasons. It was produced by Calvada Prod ...

'', ''

The Beverly Hillbillies ''The Beverly Hillbillies'' is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on CBS from 1962 to 1971. It had an ensemble cast featuring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer Jr. as the Clampetts, a poor, backwoods family ...

'' and '' Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.'', along with a stage career on both coasts, earned her a reputation as a triple-threat performer. In 1995 she appeared in the Fabulous Palm Springs Follies as July at age 63.

Filmography

*'' The Las Vegas Story'' (1952) *'' Harem Girl'' (1952) *''

'' (1952) *''

She's Working Her Way Through College ''She's Working Her Way Through College'' is a 1952 American comedy film produced by Warner Bros. A musical comedy in Technicolor, it is directed by H. Bruce Humberstone and stars Virginia Mayo and Ronald Reagan. The screenplay is based on the 19 ...

'' (1952) *'' Just for You'' (1952) *''

Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fairy tales, consist ...

'' (1952) *''

Androcles and the Lion Androcles ( el, Ἀνδροκλῆς, alternatively spelled Androclus in Latin), is the main character of a common folktale about a man befriending a lion. The tale is included in the Aarne–Thompson classification system as type 156. The ...

'' (1952) *'' Siren of Bagdad'' (1953) *'' Cruisin' Down the River'' (1953) *''

Those Redheads from Seattle ''Those Redheads from Seattle'' is a 1953 American musical western film produced in 3-D directed by Lewis R. Foster and starring Rhonda Fleming, Gene Barry and Agnes Moorehead, and released by Paramount Pictures. It was the first 3-D musical. Pl ...

'' (1953) *''

Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centers on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central chara ...

'' (1953) *'' Drums of Tahiti'' (1954) *'' Red Garters'' (1954) *'' Bedlam in Paradise'' (1955) *'' The Lieutenant Wore Skirts'' (1956) *'' The Conqueror'' (1956) *''

Cha-Cha-Cha Boom! ''Cha-Cha-Cha Boom!'' is a 1956 American musical film starring Dámaso Pérez Prado, Stephen Dunne, the Mary Kaye Trio, Helen Grayco, Luis Arcaraz and his Orchestra, Lucerto Bárcenas, and Manny López and his Orchestra. It was produced by Sam ...

'' (1956) *'' The Ladies Man'' (1961) * '' Hook, Line, and Sinker'' (1969)

Television work

*''

The Colgate Comedy Hour ''The Colgate Comedy Hour'' was an American comedy-musical variety series that aired live on the NBC network from 1950 to 1955. The show featured many notable comedians and entertainers of the era as guest stars. Many of the scripts of the series ...

'' (1951–1952) (Supporting player / dancer) *''

'' (1953–1955) (Series regular) *''

The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show ''The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show'', sometimes called ''The Burns and Allen Show'', was a half-hour television situation comedy broadcast from 1950 to 1958 on CBS. It starred George Burns and Gracie Allen, one of the most enduring acts ...

'' (1956) (Guest appearance) *''

The Bob Cummings Show ''The Bob Cummings Show'' (also known in reruns as ''Love That Bob'') is an American sitcom starring Bob Cummings, which was broadcast from January 2, 1955, to September 15, 1959. The program began with a half-season run on NBC, then ran for ...

'' (1956–1958) (Series regular / 2 Guest appearances) *''

Steve Canyon ''Steve Canyon'' is an American adventure comic strip by writer-artist Milton Caniff. Launched shortly after Caniff retired from his previous strip, '' Terry and the Pirates'', ''Steve Canyon'' ran from January 13, 1947, until June 4, 1988. It ...

'' (1958) (Guest appearance) *'' The Dennis O'Keefe Show'' (1959) (Guest appearance) *''

Zorro Zorro ( Spanish for 'fox') is a fictional character created in 1919 by American pulp writer Johnston McCulley, appearing in works set in the Pueblo of Los Angeles in Alta California. He is typically portrayed as a dashing masked vigilant ...

'' (1959) (Guest appearance) *''

Peter Gunn ''Peter Gunn'' is an American private eye television series, starring Craig Stevens as Peter Gunn with Lola Albright as his girlfriend, Edie Hart. The series aired on NBC from September 22, 1958, to 1960 and on ABC in 1960–1961. The ser ...

'' (1959) (Guest appearance) *''

Johnny Staccato ''Johnny Staccato'' is an American private detective television series starring John Cassavetes which ran for 27 episodes on NBC from September 10, 1959 through March 24, 1960. Synopsis Titular character Johnny Staccato, played by John Cassave ...

'' (1959) (Guest appearance) *''The New Steve Allen Show'' (1959) (Sketch performer) *''

'' (1963) (Guest appearance) *'' The Danny Kaye Show'' (1963) (Guest appearance) *'' Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.'' (1965) (Guest appearance) *''

'' (1965) (Guest appearance) *''

The Andy Griffith Show ''The Andy Griffith Show '' is an American situation comedy television series that aired on CBS from October 3, 1960, to April 1, 1968, with a total of 249 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons—159 in black and white and 90 in color. Th ...

'' (1965) (Guest appearance) *'' The Jerry Lewis Show'' (1967) (Sketch performer)

References

External links

* *
Official Sylvia Lewis Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, Sylvia American female dancers American dancers American television actresses American film actresses American musical theatre actresses American choreographers People from York, Pennsylvania Living people 21st-century American women Year of birth missing (living people)