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One of the movies' most feverishly inventive minds was set loose during the Great Depression at Warner Bros., where choreographer Busby Berkeley (1895-1976) enlisted that studio's great technical facilities and pool of musical talent to create numbers that dazzled escapism-hungry audiences. Berkeley, born in Los Angeles, was a top Broadway dance director before being imported to Hollywood by producer Samuel Goldwyn in 1930. Extravagant and erotic, his mass choreography for such Warner Bros. movies as 42nd Street (1933) and Dames (1934) had moviegoers bug-eyed.
Berkeley was not only an inspired choreographer but a daring technical innovator. Best-known of all his effects was the "Berkeley top shot," where he literally took the camera through the soundstage roof to create his trademark overhead view of dancers in kaleidoscopic patterns. In addition to choreographing, Berkeley began directing feature films in the early 1930s; among his directorial credits are Hollywood Hotel (1937) at Warner Bros. and Babes in Arms (1939) and Strike Up the Band (1940) at MGM.
 
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31 Days of Oscar Highlights for March 1
Among the many award-winning films scheduled on this day are Days of Heaven, Terrence Malick's visually eloquent tale of migrant workers, plus Richard III, (1955), Little Big Man (1970), Quo Vadis (1951) and 6 more.
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