Teri Garr — the Oscar-nominated star of Tootsie, Young Frankenstein, and Close Encounters of the Third Kind — was one of film's most beloved comedic actresses. But before the fame, she was one of Hollywood's most prolific dancers.

What led her there?

A family tragedy — and a Rockette legacy — would set her on a path toward the soundstages of 1960s Hollywood.

She danced in nine Elvis Presley movies, appeared in What a Way to Go! (choreographed by Gene Kelly), and performed behind music legends like The Supremes and Chuck Berry.

By her twenties, she was a regular face on screens big and small — from beach musicals to variety shows — working nonstop under choreographers David Winters and Toni Basil.=

In this episode of The Rest of the Story on the Hey, Dancer! podcast, we dive deep into her dance life — the side of Teri Garr's story rarely told — and how those early years shaped the performer she became.

It's the story of how one of Hollywood's most recognized faces built her career the hardest way possible: one eight-count at a time.

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