Russ Tamblyn

Was a gymnast at North Hollywood High School. A buoyant dancer and tumbler, Tamblyn began acting in films in 1948. His abilities as an acrobat and gymnast led to his being cast in such spectacular and dynamic dance films as Les sept femmes de Barberousse (1954), Les Aventures de Tom Pouce (1958), and West Side Story (1961) among others.

[on his performance as "Riff" in West Side Story (1961)] Life is so strange. "West Side Story" was one of the high points of my career. Yet, when I first saw it, I was really disappointed in how I came off. Since then, Fred Astaire has told me how much he admired my dancing in it. Now I see it very differently.