a woman (& her legs) worth remembering.

She was born Tula Ellice Finklea in Amarillo, Texas, in 1922. She eventually became Cyd Charisse, the dancer and actress for whom ZZ Top's anthem "Legs" might have been penned — for she had legs, man, and she sure knew how to use them.

If you're into the era of the MGM musical, then you might know Cyd Charisse as the vamp seducing Gene Kelly in Singin' in the Rain's "Broadway Melody" ballet sequence (1952), or as Kelly's leading lady in Brigadoon (1954) . . . or maybe as Fred Astaire's partner in The Band Wagon (1953) or Silk Stockings (1957). Regardless, once you've seen the woman hold her own alongside one of these dance masters, it tends to leave you with a breathless "Wow."

Tula's nickname, "Sid" (the spelling later changed by MGM to "Cyd," in order to add an air of mystery), came from one of her sibling's attempts to call her "Sis." She was a sickly child who began dance lessons at six to help build up her strength from a bout of polio. Naturally gifted, she was studying ballet in Los Angeles by 12, and by age 14, was dancing with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo.

World War II led to the breakup of the ballet company, and Cyd returned to LA, quickly being signed as the resident MGM ballet dancer. Her now-famous pairings with Astaire and Kelly followed — in her autobiography, Cyd offered her "honest comparison [of the] dance geniuses. ... I'd say they were the two greatest dancing personalities who were ever on-screen. But it's like comparing apples and oranges. They're both delicious."

Other career highlights include her Broadway debut — at age 70 — as the aging ballerina in the musical version of Grand Hotel, and her being presented in 2006 with the National Medal of Arts, the highest official U.S. honor available in the arts.

Cyd Charisse died of an apparent heart attack June 17th, at the age of 86. She left behind her husband of almost 60 years, singer Tony Martin, and two sons, Nicky Charisse and Tony Martin, Jr.

Dance in peace, Cyd.