So far, none of the obits I've seen for Ann Miller have mentioned what was to me her most impressive credit. She was a wonderful star of musical comedy on stage and screen, but she also starred in what was, at the time of its filming, the most expensive TV commercial ever made. In 1970, Stan Freberg wrote, produced and directed a spot for Great American Soups that proved more memorable than the product. Ann played a housewife who broke into a Busby Berkeley style production number when her husband (played by Dave Willock) asked her what was for dinner. One of the costliest parts of the spot came when a giant Great American Soup can came up from below the floor and Ms. Miller tap-danced on top of it.
To accomplish this, they had to cut a hole in the floor of a soundstage at the Samuel Goldwyn Studio and install an elevator…but to Stan, no expense was too great, especially when someone else was paying for it. The sponsor may not have been too happy but Ann later credited the commercial with revitalizing her career in the seventies. She remained a star 'til the end, playing on Broadway and in regional productions. Many of the latter were productions of the musical, Follies, where she often sang Stephen Sondheim's defiant "I'm Still Here," a song which could have been sub-titled "The Ann Miller Story." Sad to say, she's not still here…but what a life that woman had.