“Hands out. Thumbs up. Elbows in. Knees together. Bent down. Butt out. Head to the side. Tongue out.” These weird instructions are part of a weird song-game my uncle used to play with all the cousins when we were kids. We thought it was hysterical until we were old enough to be “too cool” and we just did it anyway to be nice (but secretly still thought it was a little funny). It really is a game; you can look it up here. It starts off with the music from Singin’ in the Rain, I suppose because it’s a rainy day game. So you sing that tune, and each time get interrupted by the leader with a new instruction, complicating the singing. There are a few YouTube videos of this, but honestly, they are painful to hear because they are trying too hard to have fun. (And also because the backing tracks are horrendous. Seriously, listen at your own risk but I’m not linking them!)
What I will link is this… the actual Singin’ in the Rain scene. Because it’s a classic and I love it. Gene Kelly shot this scene over and over again, to the point of illness, in order to have the definitively perfect version. Even knowing that, I still find his happiness 100% convincing and genuine. Today would have been my uncle’s 63rd birthday, but he passed away two years ago. I hope he’s proverbially singin’ and dancin’ in the rain, but really I’m sharing this because it’s so beautifully silly, and he absolutely loved silly. ♥
Listen here: Singin’ in the Rain * by Arthur Freed and Nacio Herb Brown (1929) * used in the movie of the same name (1952)