Joan Mc Cracken

Joan Mc Cracken

Joan McCracken (December 31, 1917 – November 1, 1961) was an American dancer, actress, and comedian who became famous for her role as Silvie ("The Girl Who Falls Down") in the original 1943 production of Oklahoma!. By age 11, she was studying dance with Catherine Littlefield. She dropped out of high school to join Littlefield's ballet company. She was a student of George Balanchine in the first year of the School of American Ballet (SAB).

McCracken toured Europe and danced at Radio City Music Hall as a Rockette before creating the role of Sylvie.

By 1947, McCracken was studying acting with Bobby Lewis, Group Theatre alumnus and soon-to-be Actors Studio co-founder (along with fellow alumni Elia Kazan and Cheryl Crawford). That fall, at Lewis' invitation, McCracken would became one of the Studio's charter members.

Earlier that year, McCracken had made a strong impression in the remake of Good News, with her portrayal of vivacious Babe Doolittle. Her number "Pass That Peace Pipe" was a standout, but her movie career never took off. According to her biographer, she told Truman Capote about her reactions to her brother's death, and he "used her violent tantrum in the Bloomer Girl dressing room as the model for a scene in his popular novella Breakfast at Tiffany's.