#max steiner award

[disneyprincessconcertfans]

A few days ago I had posted about Susan Egan having been in Austria for the "Hollywood in Vienna" Gala. The concert was to honor Disney Legend Alan Menken with the Max Steiner Film Music Achievement Award.

This is a video clip that Susan posted on her IG (@iamsusanegan). It is of her and Drew Sarich singing "Suddenly Seymour" for the encore. Susan mentioned that Drew had just finished performing "Poor Unfortunate Souls" AS Ursula from The Little Mermaid. Therefore, Drew performed the encore in full makeup! Love it! 😍

[kdo-three]

Percy Faith and His Orchestra - The Theme from ‘A Summer Place’ (1959) Max Steiner from: “The Theme from 'A Summer Place’” / “Go-Go-Po-Go”

Pop | Instrumental | Easy listening | Movie Theme

JukeHostUK (left click = play) (320kbps)

Personnel: Percy Faith and His Orchestra Arranged by Percy Faith Conducted by Percy Faith

Recorded: @ The Columbia 30th Street Studio in New York City, New York USA on September 11, 1959

Released: on November 18, 1959

Columbia Records

Percy Faith’s Theme from 'A Summer Place’ won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 1961. This was the first movie theme and the first instrumental to win a Record of the Year Grammy.

[lamilanomagazine]

Milano, esce il libro Triennale. Cento anni di manifesti

Milano, esce il libro Triennale. Cento anni di manifesti In occasione del suo centenario, Triennale Milano ha realizzato il volume Triennale. Cento anni di manifesti, a cura di Mario Piazza ed edito da Marsilio Arte. Un originale repertorio che ripercorre la storia di Triennale attraverso l'evoluzione della progettazione grafica, gli stili e gli autori, gli approcci e le tecniche, la comunicazione e il costume dal 1923 al 2023. Il volume è disponibile in tutte le librerie. Triennale. Cento anni di manifesti racconta in particolare la storia delle ventitré edizioni dell'Esposizione Internazionale di Triennale dal punto di vista della grafica, fino ad arrivare alla nuova identità visiva dell'istituzione, sviluppata nel 2019 dallo studio Norm di Zurigo. Dagli anni del cartellonismo d'artista, alla grafica progettata, al visual design, il volume consente di ripercorrere, attraverso manifesti e immagini, la storia di Triennale Milano e al contempo di tracciare una storia della progettazione grafica, oltre che della comunicazione e del costume. Il libro riunisce centinaia di manifesti di grandi nomi, come Aldo Scarzella, Giovanni Guerrini, Marcello Nizzoli, Michele Cascella, Mario Sironi, Enrico Ciuti, Max Huber, Ernst Scheidegger, Marco Del Corno, Eugenio Carmi, Roberto Sambonet, Massimo Vignelli, Albe Steiner, Giulio Confalonieri, Italo Lupi, Alberto Marangoni, Bob Noorda, Mauro Panzeri, Giorgio Camuffo, Anna Kulachek, 2x4, Pierluigi Cerri, Theo Crosby, Wim Crouwel, Michel Folon, Felix Humm, Norm, Massimo Pitis, Leonardo Sonnoli, Ettore Sottsass, Studio FM Milano, TassinariVetta, George Tscherny, Heinz Waibl, Lance Wyman. Nei lavori di questi protagonisti della grafica internazionale, il manifesto assume quindi una valenza simbolica, rappresentando non solo un supporto informativo, ma anche un elemento in grado di comunicare direttamente visioni e suggestioni legati ai temi e ai progetti. Il libro, di grande formato e disponibile in italiano e in inglese, si apre con l'introduzione di Stefano Boeri, Presidente di Triennale Milano, e include un saggio di Mario Piazza sulla grafica in Triennale, le schede per i ventitré manifesti delle Esposizioni Internazionali e testi di approfondimento sui manifesti e artefatti grafici legati a mostre, progetti, eventi e campagne di comunicazione, sempre redatti da Piazza. Il progetto grafico della pubblicazione è realizzato dallo studio Norm. Mario Piazza Mario Piazza (1954), grafico e architetto, lavora a Milano e si occupa di grafica editoriale, sistemi di identità e allestimento. È docente di Design della comunicazione alla Scuola di Design del Politecnico di Milano. Nel 1996 ha fondato 46xy, studio di grafica e ricerche sulla comunicazione, critica e storia del design. È stato creative director di "Domus" e direttore di "Abitare". Ha progettato l'immagine dei tascabili Einaudi e curato molte esposizioni. Nel 2008 ha ricevuto l'Icograda Achievement Award. Indice del volume - Cento anni di grafica in Triennale, Stefano Boeri - Cento anni, ventitré manifesti, una storia della grafica, Mario Piazza - 1923-2022. Manifesti ufficiali delle Esposizioni Internazionali - Un giacimento di manifesti - I manifesti di Italo Lupi e Alberto Marangoni - L’art direction di Italo Lupi - La grafica di Pierluigi Cerri - Nuove generazioni di progettisti - Un concorso negli anni della contestazione - Verso il Museo del Design - I manifesti del Triennale Design Museum - I manifesti delle grandi mostre in Triennale - La nuova immagine di Triennale Milano - Bibliografia Informazioni - Triennale. Cento anni di manifesti - a cura di: Mario Piazza - progetto grafico: Norm cartonato ricoperto - formato: 22 × 33 cm - pp. 184, euro 40,00 - due edizioni italiana e inglese... #notizie #news #breakingnews #cronaca #politica #eventi #sport #moda Read the full article

[chrisryanspeaks]

SEE: Dance Pop | Troye Sivan - “Rush”

Troye Sivan has just released the official video for “Rush” which evokes the headiness of big groups of people feeling the joy of life and sex. All with something to give each other. View HERE. The video was helmed by Gordon von Steiner (Hermès Ski, Versace Man FW22, Dior Rouge, Louis Vuitton Cruise, Miu Miu), Sivan’s Creative Director, who worked with him on the stunning visual palette for Something To Give Each Other. Sergio Reis (BTS’ “Black Swan”) served as choreographer. Emerging from the tribulations of the last few years, Sivan found himself rewiring with the joy of human connection and dance music. He wrote the songs for the new album with Oscar Görres (Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, Sam Smith), Ian Kirkpatrick (Dua Lipa, Britney Spears), Leland (Selena Gomez, Ava Max) and Styalz Fuego (Khalid, Imagine Dragons). Something To Give Each Other is now available for pre-order HERE in vinyl, CD, digital and cassette formats alongside exclusive merchandise and fan packs. Twenty-two billion streams and 10 million adjusted albums sold worldwide are milestones only a few artists can claim. Doing it by age 27 is another thing entirely. Throw in a range of standout roles in Hollywood features, high fashion collabs, runway appearances and a combined social audience of over 20 million and the list really boils down to one person – Troye Sivan. Raised in Perth, Australia, Sivan set the world on fire with a pair of EPs – 2014’s TRXYE and 2015’s Wild. With his debut album Blue Neighbourhood, sophomore album Bloom and the 2020 EP In A Dream as well as a slew of singles and collaborations in between, Sivan has firmly established himself as a global icon in the worlds of pop music, fashion and LGBTQI+ representation. Hailed as “the perfect pop star” by TIME, his numerous awards include a Billboard Music Awards trophy, three MTV Europe Music awards, two ARIA Awards and two GLAAD Media wins. “Revelation,” his collaboration with Jónsi for Boy Erased, was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Original Song – Motion Picture and shortlisted for an Oscar. Sivan has recently featured in campaigns for Cartier, YSL Beauty, Calvin Klein and Beyoncé’s Ivy Park, and appeared in The Weeknd & Sam Levinson’s “The Idol” for HBO, alongside Lily-Rose Depp, BLACKPINK’s Jennie and Abel himself. He will also soon be launching Tsu Lange Yor, an independent luxury lifestyle collection of fragrances and art-driven objects. Read the full article

[audiofuzz]

SEE: Dance Pop | Troye Sivan - “Rush”

Troye Sivan has just released the official video for “Rush” which evokes the headiness of big groups of people feeling the joy of life and sex. All with something to give each other. View HERE. The video was helmed by Gordon von Steiner (Hermès Ski, Versace Man FW22, Dior Rouge, Louis Vuitton Cruise, Miu Miu), Sivan’s Creative Director, who worked with him on the stunning visual palette for Something To Give Each Other. Sergio Reis (BTS’ “Black Swan”) served as choreographer. Emerging from the tribulations of the last few years, Sivan found himself rewiring with the joy of human connection and dance music. He wrote the songs for the new album with Oscar Görres (Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, Sam Smith), Ian Kirkpatrick (Dua Lipa, Britney Spears), Leland (Selena Gomez, Ava Max) and Styalz Fuego (Khalid, Imagine Dragons). Something To Give Each Other is now available for pre-order HERE in vinyl, CD, digital and cassette formats alongside exclusive merchandise and fan packs. Twenty-two billion streams and 10 million adjusted albums sold worldwide are milestones only a few artists can claim. Doing it by age 27 is another thing entirely. Throw in a range of standout roles in Hollywood features, high fashion collabs, runway appearances and a combined social audience of over 20 million and the list really boils down to one person – Troye Sivan. Raised in Perth, Australia, Sivan set the world on fire with a pair of EPs – 2014’s TRXYE and 2015’s Wild. With his debut album Blue Neighbourhood, sophomore album Bloom and the 2020 EP In A Dream as well as a slew of singles and collaborations in between, Sivan has firmly established himself as a global icon in the worlds of pop music, fashion and LGBTQI+ representation. Hailed as “the perfect pop star” by TIME, his numerous awards include a Billboard Music Awards trophy, three MTV Europe Music awards, two ARIA Awards and two GLAAD Media wins. “Revelation,” his collaboration with Jónsi for Boy Erased, was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Original Song – Motion Picture and shortlisted for an Oscar. Sivan has recently featured in campaigns for Cartier, YSL Beauty, Calvin Klein and Beyoncé’s Ivy Park, and appeared in The Weeknd & Sam Levinson’s “The Idol” for HBO, alongside Lily-Rose Depp, BLACKPINK’s Jennie and Abel himself. He will also soon be launching Tsu Lange Yor, an independent luxury lifestyle collection of fragrances and art-driven objects. Read the full article

[f1]

Haas Team Principal Steiner reveals fantastic gains team have made in key area

While Haas missed out on a points finish in Spain, team boss Guenther Steiner was pleased to see them make progress elsewhere, namely in the pit lane – admitting that the outfit “went backward” in this area “as with everything” during their recent lean spell. Haas have been working their way back to competitiveness after a point-less 2021 season that saw them finish 10th and last in the constructors’ standings with rookie pairing Nikita Mazepin and Mick Schumacher. IT’S RACE WEEK: 5 storylines we’re excited about ahead of the 2023 Canadian Grand Prix Having made an early switch of focus to the 2022 rules reset, the US-led operation climbed to eighth overall last year, including their best result in four seasons with Kevin Magnussen’s run to fifth in the Bahrain opener. So far in 2023, Haas have continued their points-scoring form, putting them seventh in the constructors’ standings after the first seven races, but it is not just on the track that gains are being made. Practice makes perfect for Haas as they look to make gains in the pit lane and elsewhere Indeed, Steiner reserved praise for several team members after Haas broke into the top 10 list of fastest pit stops at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya last time out – Magnussen being serviced in an impressive 2.6 seconds. “A lot of time has been spent in the last year to make our pit stops better, or good again,” said Steiner. “In the two years where we struggled, we went backward, as with everything. F1 NATION: Mercedes on the move, Aston’s upgrades and 50 years of the Safety Car – it’s our Canadian GP preview “We’ve got a new trainer for our group, Faith Atack-Martin, and she’s doing a fantastic job. She’s responsible for keeping the team physically and mentally in the right place. "Our Chief Mechanic, Toby Brown, keeps the group motivated the best he can, and our strategist, Faissal Fdil, who looks at the analysis of the pit stop and pit stop practice, is also putting in a lot of effort because you can lose a lot of time. This feature is currently not available because you need to provide consent to functional cookies. Please update your cookie preferences DHL Fastest Pit Stop - Spanish Grand Prix “Normally you can’t gain time in a pit stop because everyone is doing a very good job, but you can lose a lot of time. “Everybody is getting better, we had a top 10 result in Barcelona with the eighth fastest pit stop in the race, but if we keep working hard, I think we can get even better.” CANADA 2011: Torrential rain, a Safety Car record and Button’s charge – the longest F1 race remembered by those involved DHL’s Fastest Pit Stop Award was introduced back in 2015, with Ferrari, Williams and Mercedes taking wins across the first three seasons. However, Red Bull have racked up five on the bounce since then. Red Bull were again the fastest team in the pit lane in Barcelona, completing a 2.07s stop with Sergio Perez and backing it up with a 2.28s service for race winner Max Verstappen. via Formula 1 News https://www.formula1.com

[dweemeister]

Suite to Casablanca (1942) – composed by Max Steiner; performed by the John Wilson Orchestra under the direction of John Wilson

Performed at the 2013 BBC Proms at London’s Royal Albert Hall, Max Steiner’s score to Casablanca remains one of the enduring film scores in the medium’s history. This suite begins with the opening flourish of the Warner Bros. fanfare (composed by Steiner himself), almost never used today. Set to the would-be romance of Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart) and Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman) as they are reunited by fate, the score is centered around the song “As Time Goes By”. “As Time Goes By” was not an original composition, but from a mostly-forgotten Broadway musical called Everybody’s Welcome.

Steiner reportedly disliked “As Time Goes By” and told Warner Bros. (this was a time when the cast and crew of a major studio movie were contracted to a studio) that he wished to do an original song instead. His requested rejected, Steiner took it in grace and – keeping with what happens in Casablanca – never allows “As Time Goes By” to resolve when quoted in his score. Perhaps the quintessential Hollywood romance, Steiner’s score is flush with romantic lines for all sections of the orchestra (strings especially) and other musical quotations referencing Rick and Ilsa’s past, including the French national anthem, “Le Marseillaise”.

Casablanca was nominated for eight Oscars including Original Score (Steiner; losing to Alfred Newman for The Song of Bernadette), Film Editing (Owen Marks), Black-and-White Cinematography (Arthur Edeson), Supporting Actor (Claude Rains), and Actor (Bogart). The film won three Academy Awards on the night: Screenplay (Julius J. Epstein, Philip G. Epstein, and Howard Koch), Director (Michael Curtiz), and Best Picture.

[sheetmusiclibrarypdf]

Memorias de Africa - music by John Barry (partitura de piano solo)

Memorias de Africa - música de John Barry (partitura de piano solo) descargar partitura

https://youtu.be/a358zNpdW7Q

John Barry

John Barry Prendergast, (3 de noviembre de 1933 - 30 de enero de 2011) fue un compositor y director de orquesta inglés de música y películas. Compuso las partituras de once de las películas de James Bond entre 1963 y 1987, y también arregló e interpretó el 'Tema de James Bond' de la primera película de la serie, Dr. No. de 1962, partituras para las películas Dances with Wolves y Out of Africa, así como The Scarlet Letter, The Cotton Club, The Tamarind Seed, Mary, Queen of Scots, Game of Death, y el tema de la serie de culto de la televisión británica The Persuaders!, en una carrera de más de 50 años. En 1999, fue designado con una OBE por servicios a la música. Barry, nacido en York, pasó sus primeros años trabajando en cines propiedad de su padre. Durante su servicio nacional con el ejército británico en Chipre, Barry comenzó a actuar como músico después de aprender a tocar la trompeta. Al completar su servicio nacional, formó su propia banda en 1957, John Barry Seven. Más tarde desarrolló un interés en componer y arreglar música, haciendo su debut en televisión en 1958. Llamó la atención de los realizadores de la primera película de James Bond, Dr. No, quienes no estaban satisfechos con un tema para James Bond que les había dado Monty Norman. Noel Rogers, el jefe de música de United Artists, se acercó a Barry. Esto inició una asociación exitosa entre las series de Barry y Bond que duró 25 años. Recibió muchos premios por su trabajo, incluidos cinco premios de la Academia; dos para Born Free y uno para The Lion in Winter (por la que también ganó el primer premio BAFTA a la mejor música de cine), Dances with Wolves y Out of Africa (que también le valieron premios Grammy). También recibió diez nominaciones a los Globos de Oro, ganando una vez por Mejor Banda Sonora Original por Memorias de África en 1986. Barry completó su última banda sonora, Enigma, en 2001 y grabó el exitoso álbum Eternal Echoes ese mismo año. Luego se concentró principalmente en presentaciones en vivo y coescribió la música del musical Brighton Rock en 2004 junto a Don Black. En 2001, Barry se convirtió en miembro de la Academia Británica de Compositores y Autores y, en 2005, fue nombrado miembro de la Academia Británica de Cine y Televisión. Barry se casó cuatro veces y tuvo cuatro hijos. Se mudó a los Estados Unidos en 1975 y vivió allí hasta su muerte en 2011.

Premios y nominaciones

En 1999, Barry fue nombrado Oficial de la Orden del Imperio Británico (OBE) por sus servicios a la música. Recibió el BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award en 2005. En 2005, el American Film Institute clasificó la partitura de Barry para Memorias de África en el puesto 15 de su lista de las mejores partituras cinematográficas. Sus partituras para las siguientes películas fueron nominadas: - Goldfinger (1964) - Born Free (1966) - The Lion in Winter (1968) - Somewhere in Time (1980) - Body Heat (1981) - Out of Africa (1986) - Dances with Wolves (1990) Grammy Award - 1969 Best Instrumental Theme for Midnight Cowboy - 1985 Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Big Band for The Cotton Club - 1985 Best Instrumental Composition for Out of Africa - 1991 Best Instrumental Composition for Dances with Wolves Emmy Award nominaciones: - 1964 Outstanding Achievement in Composing Original Music for Television for Elizabeth Taylor in London (a 1963 television special) - 1977 Outstanding Achievement in Music Composition for a Special (Dramatic Underscore) for Eleanor and Franklin: The White House Years Golden Raspberry Award - 1981 Worst Musical Score for The Legend of the Lone Ranger Max Steiner Lifetime Achievement Award (presented by the City of Vienna) - 2009 Lifetime Achievement Award from World Soundtrack Academy (presented at the Ghent Film Festival) - 2010 In 2011, he received the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music. Barry was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1998. Read the full article

[universitybookstore]

Born this day, May 10. 1888, Max Steiner, one of golden age Hollywood’s greatest composers. You may not know the name, but you’ve certainly heard his music, as Steiner composed the scores for over 300 motion pictures, including Gone with the Wind, Jezebel, Sergeant York, The Searchers, King Kong, and Casablanca. He received twenty-four Oscar nominations, winning the award three times. But as this is a “book” blog, we’ll limit ourselves to just a handful of the literary adaptations that Steiner composed in his forty year career.

[byneddiedingo]

Bette Davis and Paul Lukas in Watch on the Rhine (Herman Shumlin, 1943)

Cast: Bette Davis, Paul Lukas, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Lucile Watson, Beulah Bondi, George Coulouris, Donald Woods, Henry Daniell. Screenplay: Dashiell Hammett, based on a play by Lillian Hellman. Cinematography: Merritt B. Gerstad, Hal Mohr. Art direction: Carl Jules Weyl. Film editing: Rudi Fehr. Music: Max Steiner.

Paul Lukas has the dubious distinction of being one of those Oscar anomalies, a longtime supporting player who suddenly gets thrust into a leading role that wins him the award for best actor. His competition included Gary Cooper in For Whom the Bell Tolls (Sam Wood), Walter Pidgeon in Madame Curie (Mervyn LeRoy), and Mickey Rooney in The Human Comedy (Clarence Brown). Oh, and Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca (Michael Curtiz), the one performance that everyone remembers. Lukas had plenty of opportunities to attract attention before: He had begun acting in movies in his native Hungary in 1915, and after coming to Hollywood had appeared in numerous films, playing Professor Bhaer opposite Katharine Hepburn in Little Women (George Cukor, 1933) and the sinister Dr. Hartz in The Lady Vanishes (Alfred Hitchcock, 1938), for example. He had played the role of Kurt Muller, the coordinator of resistance movements against the Nazis, in the original Broadway production of Watch on the Rhine in 1941, so he was a natural choice for the film version, though he landed the role only after the actor producer Hal Wallis wanted, Charles Boyer, was unavailable. As often happens, the Oscar was no step toward better roles in movies, and Lukas spent much of his later career on stage, though he continued to appear on film and TV up till his death in 1971. The play was written by Lillian Hellman, whose lover, Dashiell Hammett, did the screenplay with some input from her. Unfortunately, the result is less a movie than a sermon about doing one's patriotic duty in the struggle against fascism. It didn't help that Wallis hired the play's director, Herman Shumlin, for the film: Shumlin had never directed a movie and had to be assisted throughout by cinematographer Hal Mohr. He was also unable to rein in Bette Davis, who is miscast as the noble and dutiful wife and has a tendency to slip into some of her familiar and caricaturable mannerisms in the film.

[silkspectreii]

ideal 2021 awards

my ideal oscar/overall awards winners and nominees for 2021! i still have yet to see a good number of movies so this isn’t exactly a solidified list, just a loose one based on what i’ve currently watched. also any movies with an asterisk next to them are ones i haven’t actually seen, but know they would fit the category regardless.

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS:

- Tenet, Andrew Jackson, Andrew Lockley, Scott R. Fisher, and Mike Chambers * - Soul, Michael Fong and Bill Watral [WINNER] - His House, Pedro Sabrosa and Stefano Pepin - Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn), Kevin Souls and Tharin Shadbolt - The Invisible Man, Jonathan Dearing *

BEST SOUND: - Sound of Metal, Phillip Bladh, Nicolas Becker, Jaime Baksht, Michelle Couttolenc, Carlos Cortés, and Carolina Santana [WINNER] - Soul, Coya Elliott, Ren Klyce, David Parker, and Vince Caro - News of the World, John Pritchett, Mike Prestwood Smith, William Miller, Oliver Tarney, and Michael Fentum * - The Forty-Year-Old Version - Nomadland, Sergio Diaz, Zach Seivers, and M. Wolf Snyder

BEST ORIGINAL SONG: - “Boss Bitch,” Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn), Sky Adams, Imad Royal, Ashton Casey and Amala Zandile Dlamini [WINNER] - “Diamonds,” Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn), Megan Pete, Kameron Glasper, Edgar Machuca, Normani Kordei, Tayla Parx, Jule Styne, Leo Robin, Madison Love, Louis Bell, Mike Arrow, and Santeri Kauppinen - “Speak Now,” One Night in Miami..., Leslie Odom, Jr. and Sam Ashworth - “Húsavík,” Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga, Savan Kotecha, Rickard Goransson, and fat max Gsus - “Fight for You,” Judas and the Black Messiah, H.E.R., Dernst Emile II, Tiara and Thomas

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE: - Tenet, Ludwig Göransson * - Da 5 Bloods, Terence Blanchard - Soul, Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, and Jon Batiste [WINNER] - News of the World, James Newton Howard * - Minari, Emile Mosseri

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING: - Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom - Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) [WINNER] - Promising Young Woman - Mank * - Emma.

BEST COSTUME DESIGN: - Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Ann Roth - Promising Young Woman, Nancy Steiner - Mulan, Bina Daigeler - Emma., Alexandra Byrne - Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn), Erin Benach [WINNER]

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN: - Mank, Donald Graham Burt and Jan Pascale * - One Night in Miami..., Page Buckner and Janessa Hitsman - Emma., Kave Quinn and Stella Fox [WINNER] - Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Mark Ricker - The Personal History of David Copperfield, Cristina Casali *

BEST FILM EDITING: - The Trial of the Chicago 7, Alan Baumgarten [WINNER] - Nomadland, Chloé Zhao - The Forty-Year-Old Version, Robert Grigsby Wilson - Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Andrew Mondshein - One Night in Miami, Tariq Anwar

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: - The Dig, Mike Eley - One Night in Miami..., Tami Reiker - Nomadland, Joshua James Richards [WINNER] - I’m Thinking of Ending Things, Łukasz Żal - News of the World, Dariusz Wolski *

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: - I’m Thinking of Ending Things, Charlie Kaufman and Iain Reid [WINNER] - One Night in Miami..., Kemp Powers - Nomadland, Chloé Zhao - Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Ruben Santiago-Hudson - The Father, Florian Zeller

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: - The Forty-Year-Old Version, Radha Blank - The Trial of the Chicago 7, Aaron Sorkin [WINNER] - Minari, Lee Isaac Chung - Sound of Metal, Abraham Marder and Darius Marder - Palm Springs, Andy SIara

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: - Harry Melling, The Devil All the Time - Chadwick Boseman, Da 5 Bloods - Yahya Abdul Mateen II, The Trial of the Chicago 7 - Leslie Odom Jr., One Night in Miami... - Daniel Kaluuya, Judas and the Black Messiah [WINNER]

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: - Toni Collette, I’m Thinking of Ending Things - Yuh-Jung Youn, Minari [WINNER] - Amanda Seyfried, Mank * - Olivia Colman, The Father - Ellen Burstyn, Pieces of a Woman *

BEST ACTOR: - Kingsley Ben-Adir, One Night in Miami... - Steven Yeun, Minari - Delroy Lindo, Da 5 Bloods - Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal - Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom [WINNER]

BEST ACTRESS: - Viola Davis, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom - Bukky Bakray, Rocks - Frances McDormand, Nomadland - Radha Blank, The Forty-Year-Old Version [WINNER] - Wunmi Mosaku, His House

BEST FOREIGN FILM: - Another Round, dir. Thomas Vinterberg [WINNER] - Ya no estoy aquí, dir. Fernando Frias * - Quo Vadis, Aida?, dir. Jasmila Žbanić * - Two of Us, dir. Filippo Meneghetti * - La Nuit des rois, dir. Philippe Lacôte *

BEST ANIMATED FILM: - Wolfwalkers, dir. Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart [WINNER] - Soul, dir. Pete Docter - Over the Moon, dir. Glen Keane * - Onward, dir. Dan Scanlon * - A Whisker Away, dir. Junichi Sat and Tomotaka Shibayama *

BEST DIRECTOR: - Chloé Zhao, Nomadland [WINNER] - Spike Lee, Da 5 Bloods - Thomas Vinterberg, Another Round - Lee Isaac Chung, Minari - Shaka King, Judas and the Black Messiah

BEST PICTURE: - Nomadland, dir. Chloé Zhao [WINNER] - Minari, dir. Lee Isaac Chung - Da 5 Bloods, dir. Spike Lee - I’m Thinking of Ending Things, dir. Charlie Kaufman - Judas and the Black Messiah, dir. Shaka King - Another Round, Thomas Vinterberg - One Night in Miami..., dir. Regina King - Rocks, dir. Sarah Gavron

[film-tv101]

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION

WINNER

MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

NOMINEES

ALICE ADAMS

RKO Radio

BROADWAY MELODY OF 1936

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

CAPTAIN BLOOD

Cosmopolitan

DAVID COPPERFIELD

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

THE INFORMER

RKO Radio

LES MISERABLES

20th Century

THE LIVES OF A BENGAL LANCER

Paramount

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

Warner Bros.

NAUGHTY MARIETTA

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

RUGGLES OF RED GAP

Paramount

TOP HAT

RKO Radio

SHORT SUBJECT (CARTOON)

WINNER

THREE ORPHAN KITTENS

Walt Disney, Producer

NOMINEES

THE CALICO DRAGON

Harman-Ising

WHO KILLED COCK ROBIN?

Walt Disney, Producer

SHORT SUBJECT (COMEDY)

WINNER

HOW TO SLEEP

Jack Chertok, Producer

NOMINEES

OH, MY NERVES

Jules White, Producer

TIT FOR TAT

Hal Roach, Producer

DIRECTING

WINNER

THE INFORMER

John Ford

NOMINEES

CAPTAIN BLOOD

Michael Curtiz

THE LIVES OF A BENGAL LANCER

Henry Hathaway

MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY

Frank Lloyd

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR

WINNER

THE LIVES OF A BENGAL LANCER

Clem Beauchamp, Paul Wing

NOMINEES

DAVID COPPERFIELD

Joseph Newman

LES MISERABLES

Eric Stacey

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

Sherry Shourds

CINEMATOGRAPHY

WINNER

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

Hal Mohr

NOMINEES

BARBARY COAST

Ray June

THE CRUSADES

Victor Milner

LES MISERABLES

Gregg Toland

ACTOR

WINNER

VICTOR MCLAGLEN

The Informer

NOMINEES

CLARK GABLE

Mutiny on the Bounty

CHARLES LAUGHTON

Mutiny on the Bounty

PAUL MUNI

Black Fury

FRANCHOT TONE

Mutiny on the Bounty

ACTRESS

WINNER

BETTE DAVIS

Dangerous

NOMINEES

ELISABETH BERGNER

Escape Me Never

CLAUDETTE COLBERT

Private Worlds

KATHARINE HEPBURN

Alice Adams

MIRIAM HOPKINS

Becky Sharp

MERLE OBERON

The Dark Angel

ART DIRECTION

WINNER

THE DARK ANGEL

Richard Day

NOMINEES

THE LIVES OF A BENGAL LANCER

Hans Dreier, Roland Anderson

TOP HAT

Van Nest Polglase, Carroll Clark

DANCE DIRECTION

WINNER

BROADWAY MELODY OF 1936

"I've Got a Feeling You're Fooling" from "Broadway Melody of 1936"

FOLIES BERGERE

"Straw Hat" from "Folies Bergere"

NOMINEES

GOLD DIGGERS OF 1935

"Lullaby of Broadway" from "Gold Diggers of 1935"

GOLD DIGGERS OF 1935

"The Words Are In My Heart" from "Gold Diggers of 1935"

GO INTO YOUR DANCE

"Latin from Manhattan" from "Go into Your Dance"

BROADWAY HOSTESS

"Playboy from Paree" from "Broadway Hostess"

KING OF BURLESQUE

"Lovely Lady" from "King of Burlesque"

KING OF BURLESQUE

"Too Good To Be True" from "King of Burlesque"

TOP HAT

"Piccolino" from "Top Hat"

TOP HAT

"Top Hat, White Tie, and Tails" from "Top Hat"

BIG BROADCAST OF 1936

"It's the Animal in Me" from "Big Broadcast of 1936"

ALL THE KING'S HORSES

"Viennese Waltz" from "All the King's Horses"

SHE

"Hall of Kings" from "She"

WRITING (ORIGINAL STORY)

WINNER

THE SCOUNDREL

Ben Hecht, Charles MacArthur

NOMINEES

BROADWAY MELODY OF 1936

Moss Hart

G-MEN

Gregory Rogers

THE GAY DECEPTION

Don Hartman, Stephen Avery

WRITING (SCREENPLAY)

WINNER

THE INFORMER

Dudley Nichols

NOMINEES

CAPTAIN BLOOD

Casey Robinson

THE LIVES OF A BENGAL LANCER

Screenplay by Waldemar Young, John L. Balderston, Achmed Abdullah; Adaptation by Grover Jones, William Slavens McNutt

MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY

Talbot Jennings, Jules Furthman, Carey Wilson

MUSIC (SCORING)

WINNER

THE INFORMER

RKO Radio Studio Music Department, Max Steiner, head of department (Score by Max Steiner)

NOMINEES

CAPTAIN BLOOD

Warner Bros.-First National Studio Music Department, Leo Forbstein, head of department (Score by Erich Wolfgang Korngold)

MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studio Music Department, Nat W. Finston, head of department (Score by Herbert Stothart)

PETER IBBETSON

Paramount Studio Music Department, Irvin Talbot, head of department (Score by Ernst Toch)

MUSIC (SONG)

WINNER

GOLD DIGGERS OF 1935

Lullaby Of Broadway in "Gold Diggers of 1935" Music by Harry Warren; Lyrics by Al Dubin

NOMINEES

TOP HAT

Cheek To Cheek in "Top Hat" Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin

ROBERTA

Lovely To Look At in "Roberta" Music by Jerome Kern; Lyrics by Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh

[f1]

First pictures from the 2022 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend | F1 Pictures

Pictures from the build-up to the 2022 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina. Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free Antonio Giovinazzi, Ferrari, Yas Marina, 2022 Robert Shwartzman, Ferrari, Yas Marina, 2022 Liam Lawson, Red Bull, Yas Marina, 2022 Liam Lawson, Red Bull, Yas Marina, 2022 McLaren front wing, Yas Marina, 2022 Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin, Yas Marina, 2022 Alpine nose, Yas Marina, 2022 F1 logo, Yas Marina, 2022 Guenther Steiner speaks to media, Yas Marina, 2022 Alexander Albon, Williams, Yas Marina, 2022 Kevin Magnussen, Haas, Yas Marina, 2022 Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, Yas Marina, 2022 Sergio Perez, Max Verstappen, Red Bull, Yas Marina, 2022 Mercedes team photograph, Yas Marina, 2022 Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin, Yas Marina, 2022 Press conference, Yas Marina, 2022 Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, Yas Marina, 2022 Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren, Yas Marina, 2022 Red Bull Racing receive the Fastest Pit Stop Award, Yas Marina, 2022 George Russell, Mercedes, Yas Marina, 2022 Lewis Hamilton, Toto Wolff, Mercedes, Yas Marina, 2022 Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren, Yas Marina, 2022 Lando Norris, McLaren, Yas Marina, 2022 Valtteri Bottas, Alfa Romeo, Yas Marina, 2022 Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, Yas Marina, 2022 Esteban Ocon, Alpine, Yas Marina, 2022 Carlos Sainz Jnr, Ferrari, Yas Marina, 2022 Alexander Albon, Williams, Yas Marina, 2022 Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, Yas Marina, 2022 Lewis Hamilton, Nyck de Vries, Mercedes, Yas Marina, 2022 Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin, Yas Marina, 2022 Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin, Yas Marina, 2022 Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren, Yas Marina, 2022 Fernando Alonso, Alpine, Yas Marina, 2022 Ferrari, Yas Marina, 2022 Sergio Perez, Max Verstappen, Red Bull, Yas Marina, 2022 Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, Yas Marina, 2022 Carlos Sainz Jnr, Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, Yas Marina, 2022 Fernando Alonso, Alpine, Yas Marina, 2022 Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, Yas Marina, 2022 Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren, Yas Marina, 2022 Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren, Yas Marina, 2022 Yas Marina, 2022 Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel, Yas Marina, 2022 Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, Yas Marina, 2022 Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free More images will be added here via RaceFans - Independent Motorsport Coverage https://www.racefans.net/

[bm2ab]

Arrivals & Departures 17 March 1900 – 17 February 1970 Celebrate Alfred Newman Day!

Alfred Newman (17 March 1900 – 17 February 1970) was an American composer, arranger, and conductor of film music. From his start as a music prodigy, he came to be regarded as a respected figure in the history of film music. He won nine Academy Awards and was nominated 45 times, contributing to the Newman’s being the most nominated Academy Award extended family, with a collective 92 nominations in various music categories.

In a career spanning more than four decades, Newman composed the scores for over 200 motion pictures. Some of his most famous scores include Wuthering Heights, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Mark of Zorro, How Green Was My Valley, The Song of Bernadette, Captain from Castile, All About Eve, Love is a Many Splendored Thing, Anastasia, The Diary of Anne Frank, How The West Was Won, The Greatest Story Ever Told, and his final score, Airport, all of which were nominated for or won Academy Awards. He is perhaps best known for composing the fanfare which accompanies the studio logo at the beginning of 20th Century Fox's productions.

Newman was also highly regarded as a conductor, and arranged and conducted many scores by other composers, including George Gershwin, Charlie Chaplin, and Irving Berlin. He also conducted the music for many film adaptations of Broadway musicals (having worked on Broadway for ten years before coming to Hollywood), as well as many original Hollywood musicals.

He was among the first musicians to compose and conduct original music during Hollywood's Golden Age of movies, later becoming a respected and powerful music director in the history of Hollywood. Newman and two of his fellow composers, Max Steiner and Dimitri Tiomkin, were considered the "three godfathers of film music".

Mad Magazine Logo

The name "Alfred E. Neuman" derived from comedian Henry Morgan's "Here's Morgan" radio series on Mutual, ABC and NBC. One character on his show had a name that was a reference to composer Alfred Newman, who scored many films and also composed the familiar fanfare that accompanies 20th Century Fox's opening film logo.

[modernistestates]

What’s on London Open House 21 and 22 September 2019

It’s next weekend! I’m going to be busy leading a group of people around London’s council housing on Saturday, so I’m going to miss a lot of these, but  I’ve rounded up a group of buildings I haven’t seen before, but I would like to…

64 Heath Drive Architects: Lubetkin & Tecton Gidea Park, Romford, RM2 5QR Saturday and Sunday  Open 2.30pm–5pm Guided tours of whole house (max visitors 12)

Model modernist villa completely refurbished 2003, with modern garden by Dan Pearson. Grade II listed.  View more info on Open House website

Highpoint Architects: Lubetkin & Tecton Highpoint, North Hill, Highgate, N6 4BA Pre-booking is required for this building Saturday Tour of common parts, gardens and interiors of two flats every 30 mins (10am-5pm) max 12 per tour. 

Can't believe I’ve still never been inside Highpoint! Grade I listed Modernist apartment blocks retaining many original features. The client for Highpoint was Sigmund Gestetner, the owner of a company that manufactured office equipment. Gestetner had been interested in building housing for his workers but when he lost the proposed site in Camden he agreed to commission Lubetkin & Tecton to design a commercial block of apartments. (Image © The Modern House) View more info on Open House website

Embassy of Slovakia Architects: Jan Bocan, Jan Sramek and Karel Stepansky 25 Kensington Palace Gardens, W8 4QY Saturday and Sunday Open 10am–5pm

Modern Brutalist-style building awarded by RIBA in 1971. The building of former Czechoslovak Embassy is made of reinforced concrete panels and long glass rows of windows with wooden partitions separating the interior spaces. View more info on Open House website

Rudolf Steiner House Architect: Montague Wheeler 35 Park Road, NW1 6XT Sunday Open 1pm–5pm Regular tours every 30 mins (1.30pm-4.30pm) max 25 per tour

Unique example of Expressionist architecture in London with sculptural staircase based on organic plant forms. Grade II listed. New cafe area and renovations in 2008. View more info on Open House website

World's End Estate Walk Architects: Eric Lyons Saturday Tour at 2.30pm, 4.30pm (Max 50 per tour) Access to communal areas and gardens Meet at the Residents Association Clubroom 16 Blantyre Street, World's End Estate, SW10 0DS

Designed by Eric Lyons and built in the 1970s the World's End Estate is a deliberate attempt to overcome many of the issues of previous high-rise developments and eliminate monotonous bland facades through alternative designs and materials. View more info on Open House website

Modernism in Metroland Walking tour of Stanmore Architects: Douglas Wood/Gerald Lacoste/Owen Williams/R.H Uren/Rudolf Frankel Saturday 2pm Meet outside Stanmore tube station

A walking tour of Stanmore's Art Deco and modernist homes, from the birth of Metroland to the post-war era. View more info on Open House website

Dorich House Museum Architects: Dora Gordine & Richard Hare Dorich House Museum, 67 Kingston Vale, SW15 3RN Saturday Open 11am–5pm

The former studio home of the Russian sculptor Dora Gordine and her husband the Hon. Richard Hare, a scholar of Russian art and literature. 1930s house over four floors including a flat roof terrace and views of Richmond Park. View more info on Open House website

[citizenscreen]

It was 85 years ago this week, in October 1934, that Mark Sandrich’s The Gay Divorcee was released in theaters across the country. That occasion would normally have been just another movie release except it marks a significant moment in movie history. The Gay Divorcee, you see, was the first starring picture for Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. While cinema has given us many memorable romantic movie couples, only one was so memorably romantic in dance.

The Gay Divorcee is my favorite of the Astaire Rogers pictures thanks in large part to its hilarious supporting cast including Alice Brady, Edward Everett Horton, Erik Rhodes, and Eric Blore who supply laughs galore in a story we’d see over and over again later in the 1930s as the Astaire and Rogers film canon picked up speed. Here we see Mimi Glossop (Rogers) trying to get a divorce from her estranged husband. Her Aunt Hortense (Brady) suggests she consult with attorney Egbert Fitzgerald (Horton) with whom Hortense has a romantic history. The fumbling lawyer suggests a great way for Mimi to get a quick divorce is for her to spend the night with a professional co-respondent and get caught being unfaithful by the private detectives hired for the task. Except, Egbert forgets to hire the detectives. As the co-respondent Egbert hires Rodolfo Tonetti (Rhodes) who is supposed to introduce himself to Mimi by saying “Chance is a fool’s name for fate,” but the Italian can’t keep the line straight, which never fails to make this fan roar with laughter.

“Fate is the foolish thing. Take a chance.”

In the meantime, staying in the same hotel is dancer Guy Holden (Astaire) who falls for Mimi the moment they had an uncomfortable meeting on the ship from England. Guy is determined to make Mimi his while she mistakes him for the co-respondent. It’s quite the confusing premise that serves the talent of the cast and Astaire-Rogers pairings on the dance floor, which made the trip to the movies the magical experience these movies surely were.

Fred Astaire reprised his role from the stage play The Gay Divorce for The Gay Divorcee. Censors insisted that The Gay Divorce be changed to The Gay Divorcee, because a gay divorce was no laughing matter. Erik Rhodes and Eric Blore, who played the waiter in typical snooty fashion, also reprised their roles from the stage version. Cole Porter wrote the music for the stage production, but only one of his songs, “Night and Day” was retained for the movie.

The Gay Divorcee won one Academy Award, the first ever Best Original Song for “The Continental” with music and lyrics by Con Conrad and Herb Magidson respectively. The film was also nominated for Best Picture, Best Art Direction, Best Sound, Recording, and Best Music Score for Max Steiner, then head of the sound department at RKO. While award recognition is great, the place The Gay Divorcee holds in history is much more important. As mentioned, this was the first movie where Fred Astaire’s and Ginger Rogers’ names appear above the title. This film also sets the stage quite nicely for subsequent Astaire-Rogers movies, which often followed the same formula. First, Fred’s character usually falls for Ginger’s at first sight and he is often annoying to her. In The Gay Divorcee, for example, she has her dress caught in a trunk while he attempts to flirt. In Top Hat (1935) he wakes her up with his tap dancing in the room above hers. In Swing Time (1936) he asks her for change of a quarter only to ask for the quarter back a bit later.

Most Fred and Ginger movies also have mistaken identity central to the plot and some are set in lavish surroundings, extravagant art deco sets, “Big White Sets” as they are called, and include travel to exotic places. The world in these pictures is rich and cultured and never fail to offer an escape from reality.

More importantly, most of the Astaire-Rogers movies feature dances that further the characters’ story together, all are supremely executed, beautifully orchestrated, and emoted to a tee. Through dance Fred and Ginger express love, love lost, anger, giddiness, joy, despair, tragedy. The movies usually feature at least two main routines for the couple, one a fun, lighthearted affair and the other a serious, dramatic turn, depending on where in the story the dance takes place. These dance routines take precedence in the films above all other elements and are, ultimately, what create the Astaire-Rogers legend, each its own priceless gem. For this dance through history the focus is on the dance routines, which were born out of the RKO story.

RKO was born RKO Radio Pictures in October 1928 as the first motion picture studio created solely for the production of talking pictures by David Sarnoff and Joseph Kennedy as they met in a Manhattan oyster bar. Radio-Keith-Orpheum (RKO) resulted from the merger of the Radio Corporation of America, the Film Booking Offices of America, and the Keith-Albee-Orpheum circuit of vaudeville houses.

In its first year, RKO did well by producing about a dozen pictures, mostly film versions of stage plays. The studio doubled that number the following year and was established as a major studio with the Academy Award-winning Cimarron (1931) directed by Wesley Ruggles. Unfortunately, that film’s success did not result in money for the studio. That year RKO lost more than $5 million, which resulted in the hiring of David O. Selznick to head production. Selznick immediately looked to stars to bring audiences into theaters. The first place he looked was the New York stage where he found and contracted Katharine Hepburn whom he placed in the hands of George Cukor for Bill of Divorcement (1932) opposite John Barrymore. Hepburn became a star and the movie was a hit, but RKO’s fortunes did not improve making 1932 another difficult year. Enter Merian C. Cooper and a giant ape. David O. Selznick had made Cooper his assistant at RKO.

The idea of King Kong had lived in Cooper’s imagination since he was a child, but he never thought it could come to fruition until his time at RKO. It was there that Cooper met Willis O’Brien, a special effects wizard who was experimenting with stop motion animation.

King Kong premiered in March 1933 to enthusiastic audiences and reviews. RKO’s financial troubles were such, however, that even the eighth wonder of the world could not save it. David O. Selznick left RKO for MGM and Merian Cooper took over as head of production tasked with saving the studio. Cooper tried releasing a picture a week and employing directors like Mark Sandrich and George Stevens. Of the two Sandrich made an important splash early with So This Is Harris! (1933), a musical comedy short that won the Academy Award for Best Short Subject. This short paved the way for RKO’s memorable musicals of the decade, the first of which introduced future megastars Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers as a dancing duo.

“I’d like to try this thing just once” he says as he pulls her to the dance floor.

“We’ll show them a thing or three,” she responds.

And they did. For the movie studio permanently on the verge of bankruptcy Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers proved saving graces. Pandro S. Berman, who produced several of the Astaire-Rogers movies, said “we were very fortunate we came up with the Astaire-Rogers series when we did.”

Fred Astaire was born Frederick Austerlitz II on May 10, 1899 in Omaha, Nebraska. Fred began performing at about the age of four with his older sister Adele. Their mother took them to New York in 1903 where they began performing in vaudeville as a specialty act. Of the two it was Adele, by all accounts a charmer on stage and off, who got the better reviews and was seen as the natural talent.

By the time Fred was ten years old, he and his sister were making about $50 a week on the famed Orpheum Circuit. As they traveled the country, their reputation grew and by 14 Fred had taken over the responsibility of creating steps and routines for their act. He also hunted for new songs as he was able, which led to a chance meeting in 1916 with then song plugger George Gershwin. Although the two did not work together then, they’d have profound effects on each other’s careers in the future, including the Astaires headlining George and Ira Gershwin’s first full-length New York musical, Lady, Be Good! in 1924.

Unlike her driven brother, Adele did not even like to rehearse. For Fred’s constant badgering to rehearse she ascribed him the nickname “Moaning Minnie.” Fred later admitted the nickname fit because he worried about everything. Between Fred’s attention to detail and Adele’s charm for an audience, the Astaire’s reviews usually read like this, “Nothing like them since the flood!”

Fred and Adele made it to Broadway in 1917 with Over the Top, a musical revue in two acts, and never looked back. Their other hits in New York and London included the Gershwin smash, Funny Face (1927), where Adele got to introduce “‘S Wonderful” and the Schwartz-Dietz production of The Band Wagon (1931), Adele’s final show before retiring to marry Lord Charles Cavendish in 1932. At the time she and her brother Fred were the toast of Broadway.

The Astaires, Adele and Fred

After his sister retired, Fred starred in Cole Porter’s A Gay Divorce, his last Broadway show before heading west to Hollywood where he was signed by David O. Selznick at RKO. Legend goes that of Fred Astaire someone in Hollywood said after watching his screen tests, “Can’t act; slightly bald; can dance a little.” If true, those are words by someone who had a terrible eye for talent, but I doubt they are true because at the time Fred Astaire was a huge international star. The likelihood that someone in Hollywood didn’t know that is slim. David O. Selznick had seen Fred Astaire on Broadway and described him as “next to Leslie Howard, the most charming man on the American stage.” What was true is that Fred Astaire did not look like the typical movie star. He was 34 years old at the time, an age considered old for movie stardom. In fact, Astaire’s mother insisted he should just retire since he’d been in the business from such a young age. We can only be thankful he ignored her request.

Not sure what to do with him, or perhaps to see what he could do, Selznick lent Astaire to MGM where he made his first picture dancing with Joan Crawford in Robert Z. Leonard’s Dancing Lady (1933). Flying Down to Rio experienced some delays, but it was ready to go after Dancing Lady so Fred returned to RKO to do “The Carioca” with a contract player named Ginger Rogers.

By the time Fred Astaire made his first picture, Ginger Rogers had made about 20. She was under contract with RKO and excelled at sassy, down-to-Earth types. In 1933 Ginger had gotten lots of attention singing “We’re in the money” in Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933) and in 42nd Street. She did not have top billing in either of those, but the public noticed her.

Ginger Rogers was born Virginia Katherine McMath in Independence, Missouri on July 16, 1911. Her first few years of life were confusing ones. Her parents were divorced and Ginger was kidnapped by her father until her mother, Lelee (or Lela), took him to court. In need of a job, Ginger’s mother left her with her grandparents while looking for a job as a scriptwriter.

Lelee met and married John Rogers in 1920 and, for all intents and purposes, he became Ginger’s father. The family moved to Dallas where, at the age of 14, Ginger won a Charleston contest, going on to become Charleston champion dancer of Texas. The prize was a 4-week contract on the Vaudeville Interstate circuit. Lela took management of her daughter and put together an act called “Ginger and Her Redheads.” Ginger continued to perform on her own after the Redheads were disbanded eventually going to New York where she was seen by the owner of the Mocambo night club who recommended her to friends for the Broadway show Top Speed. 

Ginger was making two-reelers in New York when she was offered a Paramount contract making her feature appearance in Monta Bell’s Young Man of Manhattan (1930) starring Claudette Colbert. At about that time, she was cast as the lead in the Gershwin musical Girl Crazy, which – by happenstance one afternoon – offered her the opportunity to dance with Fred Astaire for the first time ever. Astaire had been brought in to the Girl Crazy production to see if he could offer suggestions for the routines. Ginger was asked to show him one of the main numbers to which he said, “Here Ginger, try it with me.”

After that Ginger and Lela headed to Hollywood and the picture business in earnest. Ginger made a few forgettable pictures for Pathé before being cast as Anytime Annie in 42nd Street and singing that number about money in Golddiggers of 1933. Both of those gave Ginger Rogers ample opportunity to show off her comedic skills. These types of parts, funny flappers, were definitely in the cards for Ginger Rogers until fate intervened when Dorothy Jordan, who was scheduled to dance “The Carioca” with Fred Astaire in Flying Down to Rio, married Merian C. Cooper instead. Ginger was by now under contract with RKO and was rushed onto the set of Flying Down to Rio three days after shooting had started.

“They get up and dance” in 1933

The stage direction in the original screenplay for Flying Down to Rio simply read, “they get up and dance.” Ginger Rogers was billed fourth and Fred Astaire fifth showing she was the bigger star at the time. In looking at Astaire and Rogers doing “The Carioca” in Flying Down to Rio one doesn’t get the impression that these are legends in the making. Ginger agreed as she wrote in her memoir that she never would have imagined what was to come from that dance. “The Carioca” is exuberant, youthful, and fun, but certainly lesser than most of the routines the couple would perform in subsequent films. I say that because we can now make a comparison. At the time audiences went crazy for “The Carioca” and the dancers who performed it, their only number together in the Flying Down to Rio and only role aside from the comic relief they provide. The picture was, after all, a Dolores Del Rio and Gene Raymond vehicle.

Doing the Carioca in Flying Down to Rio

Hermes Pan’s first assignment at RKO was to find Fred Astaire on stage 8 to see if he could offer assistance. Fred showed him a routine and explained he was stuck in a part for the tap solo in Flying Down to Rio. Hermes offered a suggestion and another legendary movie pairing was made. Pan worked on 17 Astaire musicals thus playing a key role is making Fred Astaire the most famous dancer in the world.

Pan explained that he went to early previews of Flying Down to Rio and was surprised to see the audience cheer and applaud after “The Carioca” number. The studio knew they had something big here and decided to capitalize on the Astaire-Rogers pairing.

When RKO approached Fred Astaire about making another picture paired with Ginger Rogers, Astaire refused. After years being part of a duo with Adele, the last thing he wanted was to be paired permanently with another dancer. If he was to do another picture he wanted an English dancer as his partner, they were more refined. Pandro Berman told him, “the audience likes Ginger” and that was that. Astaire was at some point given a percentage of the profits from these pictures and the worries about working with Ginger subsided. Ginger’s contribution to the pairing was not considered important enough to merit a percentage of the profits.

The Gay Divorcee (1934)

The Gay Divorcee offers ample opportunity to fall in love with the Astaire-Rogers mystique. The first is a beautiful number shot against a green screen backdrop, Cole Porter’s “Night and Day.” Fred as Guy professes his love for Mimi (Ginger), mesmerizing her with dance until she is completely taken by the end. He, so satisfied, offers her a cigarette.

Later in the film the two, now reconciled after a huge mix-up, dance “The Continental.” The song is introduced by Ginger who is swept off her feet to join the crowd in the elaborate production number. Needless to say Fred and Ginger clear the floor with outstanding choreography. “The Continental” sequence lasts over 17 minutes, the longest ever in a musical holding that record until Gene Kelly’s 18-minute ballet in An American in Paris in 1951. “The Continental” was clearly intended to capture the excitement of “The Carioca” and exceeds that by eons with enthusiasm and gorgeous execution by these two people whose chemistry is palpable. No one could have known if either Fred or Ginger could carry a movie, but The Gay Divorcee proved they were stars of unique magnitude. For 85 years dance on film has never been bettered and that’s why I celebrate this anniversary with all the enthusiasm I could muster as my contribution to The Anniversary Blogathon sponsored by the Classic Movie Blog Association (CMBA), which is celebrating its tenth year of classic love.

Doing The Continental in The Gay Divorcee

Fred always gets a solo number in these pictures, by the way and, as you’d expect, they’re wonderful. Many times these take place in hotel rooms all of which – luckily – have fantastic floors for tap dancing. In addition, The Gay Divorcee has the added attraction of a routine with Edward Everett Horton and Betty Grable, who has a small part in the picture.

Fred Astaire and Hermes Pan would begin work on the routines up to six weeks before the principal photography was scheduled to start on the pictures. Pan played Ginger’s part and would teach her the routines once she arrived to start rehearsals. Her part was long and arduous and Fred Astaire always said he admired her work ethic as she gave everything she had to make those routines memorable and match him move for move. Fred was also impressed by Ginger being the only one of his female partners who never cried. As they say, she did everything he did “backwards and in heels,” which by the way, is a phrase born in the following Frank and Ernest cartoon.

The unfailing result of their work together is absolute beauty in human form. Ginger Rogers completely gave herself to Fred Astaire, was entirely pliable to his every whim in dance. This is why they became legend. Fred may have partnered with better dancers and I certainly cannot say whether that’s true or not, but what he had with Ginger Rogers was special. The Gay Divorcee was only the beginning.

As for working with Fred again, Ginger had no worries. She enjoyed the partnership and the dancing and was fulfilled by doing various other parts at the same time. While Fred and Hermes worked on the routines she was able to make small pictures for different studios appearing in seven in 1934 alone.

Roberta (1935)

Fred and Ginger’s next movie together is William Seiter’s Roberta where they share billing with one of RKO’s biggest stars and greatest talents, Irene Dunne. Here, Fred and Ginger have the secondary love affair as old friends who fall in love in the end. As they do in most of their movies, Fred and Ginger also provide much of the laughs. The primary romantic pairing in Roberta is between Dunne and Randolph Scott.

The film’s title, Roberta is the name of a fashionable Paris dress shop owned by John Kent’s (Scott) aunt and where Stephanie (Dunne) works as the owner’s secretary, assistant, and head designer. The two instantly fall for each other.

Huck Haines (Astaire) is a musician and John’s friend who runs into the hateful Countess Scharwenka at the dress shop. Except Scharwenka is really Huck’s childhood friend and old love, Lizzie Gatz (Rogers). Fred and Ginger are wonderful in this movie, which strays from the formula of most of their other movies except for the plot between Irene Dunne and Randolph Scott, which is actually similar to that of other Astaire-Rogers movies. Again, aside from the dancing Fred and Ginger offer the movie’s comic relief and do so in memorable style with Ginger the standout in that regard.

There are quite a few enjoyable musical numbers in Roberta. Huck’s band performs a couple and Irene Dunne sings several songs including the gorgeous “When Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” and a beautiful sequence on stairs during a fashion show to “Lovely to Look At,” which received the film’s only Academy Award nomination for Best Music, Original Song. That number transitions into a Fred and Ginger duet and dance to “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” followed closely by an exuberant finale number.

Fred and Ginger in Roberta

Early in Roberta, at the Cafe Russe, Ginger is delightful singing “I’ll be Hard to Handle” with the band. She and Fred follow with a supremely enjoyable duet with their feet, a routine where each answers the other with taps. I believe there were requests for them to re-record the taps after the live taping as you can hear Ginger laughing during the routine, but Fred insisted to leave it as is. The result is a relaxed, wonderfully entertaining sequence I hadn’t seen in years. The pantsuit Ginger wears during this number is fabulous.

I’ll Be Hard to Handle routine in Roberta

Later, Ginger and Fred sing a duet to “I Won’t Dance” with Fred following with an extraordinary solo routine. This may be my favorite of his solo sequences, which includes an unbelievably fast ending.

Astaire in Roberta

Fred Astaire was perfection on the dance floor and, as many have said, seemed to dance on air. None of it came without excruciating hard work, however. Astaire was known for rehearsing and losing sleep until he felt every movement in every sequence was perfect. He stated he would lose up to 15 pounds during the rehearsals for these films. Clearly, nothing had changed since his days preparing for the stage with his sister.

Fred Astaire fretted over routines constantly. He could not even stand looking at the rushes himself so he would send Hermes Pan to look and report back. Astaire admitted that even looking at these routines decades later caused him angst. Of course, his absolute dedication to perfection, pre-planning even the smallest detail of every dance number, resulted in much of the legend of Fred and Ginger. Fred’s demands on set also made the pictures epic among musicals. Astaire insisted, for instance, to shoot every single sequence in one shot, with no edits. He also insisted that their entire bodies be filmed for every dance number and that taps be recorded live. He was known to say that either the camera moved or he moved. One of the cameramen at RKO who worked on the Astaire-Rogers pictures said that keeping Fred and Ginger’s feet in the frame was the biggest challenge. All of these Fred Astaire stipulations ensured that the performances are still moving many decades after they were filmed and all of them are as much a statement in endurance as they are in artistry.

Top Hat 

Directed by Mark Sandrich, Top Hat is the first film written expressly for Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers by Deight Taylor and Alan Scott and feels bigger from its catchy opening sequence on forward than the other movies in the series to this point. This is perhaps the most well regarded of the Astaire-Rogers movie pairings and it’s no wonder because it’s delightful even though it shares several similarities with The Gay Divorcee. Joining Fred and Ginger once again are Edward Everett Horton in the second of three Fred and Ginger pictures he made, Eric Blore in the third of five, and Erik Rhodes in his second. To my delight Rhodes dons that wonderful, hilarious Italian accent, which by the way, got him barred by Mussolini. Joining the group in this picture is Helen Broderick as Madge Hardwick, Horton’s wife.

The story in Top Hat begins when Fred as Jerry Travers meets Ginger as Dale Tremont when he wakes her up by tap dancing in the hotel room above hers. She is naturally annoyed, but warms up to him fairly quickly the next day as he seeks her favor with Irving Berlin’s “Isn’t This a Lovely Day?” when the two are in a gazebo during a rainstorm. The song ends in a wonderful dance sequence that starts off as a challenge, but warms to affection. I should add we see here what we see in many Astaire-Rogers routines that is so darn exciting – when they don’t touch. The gazebo number is not as emotionally charged as others the couple executes because it is the lighthearted one in the picture, the one during which he woos her with dance. By the end of this number she is sold on him and what prospects may lay ahead.

It’s a lovely day to be caught in the rain from Top Hat

Unfortunately, after the gazebo number some confusion ensues as Dale believes Jerry is married to one of her friends. This is the requisite mistaken identity. It is Horace Hardwick (Horton) who’s married, not Jerry. Some innocent games and trickery take place before Dale is hurt and Jerry has to win her over once again. Then heaven appears.

“Heaven, I’m in heaven And the cares that hung around me through the week Seem to vanish like a gambler’s lucky streak When we’re out together dancing cheek to cheek”

These songs are standards for a reason. It just does not get better than that.

To continue the story – at the insistence of Madge Hardwick, Dale and Jerry dance as he sings those lyrics to her. She is mesmerized, wanting to believe him wearing that famous feather dress. They move onto a terrace in each other’s arms as the music swells.

A gorgeous, sexy backbend during Cheek to Cheek in Top Hat

Once again, the song is over and her heart is stolen. She’s seduced. And so are we.

One of the few times Ginger seriously disagreed with Fred concerning a routine was her stance on the feather dress for the “Cheek to Cheek” sequence. Fred hated it. During the number feathers went everywhere, including in his face and on his tuxedo. Ginger designed the dress and insisted she wear it, despite the cost of $1,500 worth of ostrich feathers. She was right. While you can see feathers coming off the dress during the number, none are seen on Fred’s tuxedo, but it doesn’t matter because it moves beautifully and adds immeasurably to the routine.

The feather dress didn’t stay there. In fact, it stayed with Ginger for some time as thereafter, Astaire nicknamed her “Feathers.” After what Ginger described as a difficult few days following the feather dress uproar, she was in her dressing room when a plain white box was delivered. Inside was a note that read, “Dear Feathers. I love ya! Fred”

Fred Astaire has two solo routines in Top Hat, “No Strings” at the beginning of the movie, the tap dance that wakes Dale, and “Top Hat, White Tie and Tails,” a signature production number considered one of his best.

Following in the tradition of “The Carioca” and “The Continental,” Top Hat features “The Piccolino,” an extravagant production number with song introduced by Ginger who said that Fred was supposed to sing the tune and hated it so he told Sandrich to give it to Ginger. In any case, she and Fred join the festivities with only their feet visible heading toward the dance floor, reminiscent of the movie’s opening sequence. It’s quite the rush as you see their feet advancing toward the dance floor, I must say.

“The Piccolino” is lively and fun, a terrific routine with a fun ending as the two end the number by sitting back at their table with Ginger having to fix her dress, a beautiful dress that made it to the Smithsonian.

Fred and Ginger doing The Piccolino

Top Hat premiered at New York’s Radio City Music Hall to record crowds. Added security had to be sent to the venue to ensure order. The movie went on to gross $3 million on its initial release, and became RKO’s most profitable film of the 1930s. 

Follow the Fleet (1936)

Mark Sandrich was back to direct Follow the Fleet, which I have a huge affection for. The Irving Berlin score in this film is superb with songs that take me back to my childhood and the memory of watching them on Saturday nights on our local PBS station. Fred, Ginger, Sandrich and the crew of Follow the Fleet heard about the record numbers of moviegoers attending Top Hat as they gathered to begin shooting this movie. The excitement certainly inspired them to make Follow the Fleet the cheerful, energetic movie it is. Although, Ginger hoped that by this, their third movie together, Mark Sandrich would recognize her worth it was not to be. She discusses his dislike of her a lot in her book.

Like in Roberta, Fred and Ginger’s relationship in Follow the Fleet is that of the secondary romantic couple supplying the laughs in the film despite the fact that they get top billing. The primary romance here is the one between Harriet Hilliard (in her first feature film) and Randolph Scott. The story is simple, Bake Baker (Astaire) and Bilge (Scott) visit the Paradise Ballroom in San Francisco while on Navy leave. At the ballroom are Connie Martin (Hilliard), who is immediately taken with Bilge, and her sister Sherry (Rogers), the dance hostess at the ballroom who also happens to be the ex-girlfriend of Bake’s. Sherry and Bake reunite by joining a dance contest and winning (of course), but it costs Sherry her job.

In the meantime, Connie starts talking about marriage to Bilge who is instantly spooked sending him into the arms of a party girl. Bake tries to get Sherry a job in a show, which entails a mistaken identity amid more confusion until things clear up and the two are successful, heading toward the Broadway stage. The confusion here comes by way of some bicarbonate of soda, in case you’re wondering.

Follow the Fleet is a hoot with several aspects straying from the usual Fred-Ginger formula. To begin, Fred Astaire puts aside his debonair self and replaces him with a much more informal, smoking, gum-chewing average guy. It’s enjoyable seeing him try to be common. Fred opens the movie with Berlin’s wonderful “We Saw the Sea,” the words to which I remembered during the last viewing, quite the surprise since I had not seen Follow the Fleet in decades. Later in the movie he gets another solo tap routine on deck of his ship with fellow seamen as accompaniment. Both instances are supremely enjoyable as one would expect.

Fred during one of his solo routines in Follow the Fleet

Ginger does a great rendition of “Let Yourself Go” with Betty Grable as a back-up singer. A bit later there’s a reprise of the fabulous song during the contest, the dance reunion of Bake and Sherry. According to Ginger, a search through all of Hollywood took place in hopes of finding other couples who could compete with Fred and her. This may already be getting old, but here you have another energetic, enjoyable routine by these two masters. The whistles from the crowd at the Paradise Ballroom show the audience enjoy it as well.

The Let Yourself Go routine during the dance contest in Follow the Fleet

As part of an audition, Ginger gets to do a solo tap routine, a rarity in these movies and it’s particularly enjoyable to watch. Unfortunately, Sherry doesn’t get the job as a result of the audition even though she’s the best the producer has seen. Thinking that he’s getting rid of her competition (mistaken identity), Bake prepares a bicarbonate of soda drink, which renders the singer incapable of singing. Sherry drinks it and burps her way through the audition.

Sherry during the rehearsal, a solo tap for Ginger in Follow the Fleet

Now rehearsing for a show, Bake and Sherry sing “I’m Putting All My Eggs in One Basket” followed by a wonderfully amusing routine where Ginger gets caught up in steps leaving Fred to constantly try to get her to move along. During the number the music also changes constantly and they have fun trying to stay in step be in a waltz or jazz or any number of music moods. This routine is a rare one for Fred and Ginger whose dance sequences are usually step perfect. It looks like they have a blast with this including a few falls and a fight instigated by Ginger.

“Eggs in One Basket” routine from Follow the Fleet

Fred and Ginger follow the comical exchange in “I’m Putting All My Eggs in One Basket,” with one of their greatest sequences, another rarity in that this one happens out of character for both in the movie. The wonderful “Let’s Face the Music and Dance” and the routine to it make as iconic an Astaire-Rogers sequence as has ever put on film. The song and the performance tell a mini story outside of the confines of the plot. This is a grim tale executed with extraordinary beauty as we see two suicidal people happen upon each other and are saved from despair through dance. Again, kudos to Berlin’s genius because the lyrics of this song are sublime.

“There may be trouble ahead But while there’s moonlight and music And love and romance Let’s face the music and dance”

Ginger is a vision as Fred guides her across the dance floor. The dance starts off with a sway, they are not touching, he’s leading her, but she’s despondent at first, unable to react to his urging that there is something to live for. As that beautiful music advances she responds and in the process conquers demons. The routine ends as the music dictates in dramatic fashion with a lunge, they are both now victorious and strong. Magnificent. The movie concludes minutes later because…what more is there to say?

“Let’s Face the Music and Dance” Fred and Ginger

Ginger in beaded dress for “Let’s Face the Music and Dance”

Ginger is wearing another legendary dress in the “Let’s Face the Music and Dance” routine. Created by one of her favorite designers, Bernard Newman, the dress weighed somewhere between 25 and 35 pounds. The entire thing was beaded and moved beautifully along with Ginger. Fred Astaire told the story of how one of the heavy sleeves hit him in the face hard during the first spin in the dance. They did the routine about 12 times and Sandrich decided on the first. If you look closely you can see Fred flinch a bit as Ginger twirls with heavy sleeves near his face at the beginning of the dance, which is affecting, beautifully acted by both, but particularly Ginger in the arms of Fred Astaire.

Lucille Ball plays a small role in Follow the Fleet and can be seen throughout the film and a couple of times during the “Let’s Face the Music and Dance” sequence. Also, Betty Grable makes an appearance in a supporting role. Harriet Hilliard sings two songs in Follow the Fleet as well, but to little fanfare.

By Follow the Fleet Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers were top box office draws as a team. America was in love with Fred and Ginger. And they still hadn’t reached the apex of dance.

Swing Time (1936)

Swing Time was directed by George Stevens, his first musical, made when he was the top director at RKO Pictures. As I watched these films in succession I noticed something I never had before, Fred and Ginger’s dancing in Swing Time is more mature than in previous films. The emotionally-charged “Never Gonna Dance” sequence has always been my favorite, but I had never considered that it is because Astaire and Rogers are at their peak. This, they’re fifth starring outing as a pair, is their best.

The plot of Swing Time is similar to that of Top Hat to include the ever-present mistaken identity theme, but this movie is wittier and more inventive and clever surrounding memorable songs by Dorothy Fields and Jerome Kern. The story here begins as dancer and gambler, Lucky Garnett (Astaire) arrives late for his own wedding to Margaret Watson (Betty Furness). Angry at the young man’s audacity, the father of the bride tells Lucky that the only way he can marry his daughter is to go to New York and become a success. Lucky heads East with his lucky quarter and constant companion Pop Cardetti (Victor Moore).

Once in New York the stage is set for a chance meeting between Lucky and Penny Carroll (Rogers). The encounter leads to the first routine in the movie to the glorious “Pick Yourself Up” at the dance academy where Penny works as an instructor. The exchange leading up to the dance sequence is quite enjoyable as Lucky makes believe he can’t dance as Penny tries in vain to teach him. His fumbling on his feet causes her to be fired by the furious head of the dance studio, Mr. Gordon (Eric Blore). To make it up to Penny, Lucky pulls her to the dance floor to show Gordon how much she has taught him and she delights in seeing his amazing dancing ability. The routine that ensues is energetic, fun, and the movie’s acquaintance dance after which Penny is completely taken with Lucky.

During the “Pick Yourself Up” routine in Swing Time

Watching Ginger transition from angry to incredulous to gloriously surprised to such confidence that the dance floor can’t even contain them is simply wonderful. As the dance progresses her joy grows naturally illustrated by such details as throwing her head back or giggling as Fred, who’s the wiser, wows her. And she, in turn, gives Gordon a few hard looks as he sits there making memorable Eric Blore faces. At the end of the dance their relationship is different and Gordon is so impressed he gets them an audition at the Silver Sandal Nightclub where they enchant the patrons and are hired. Incidentally, since Fred’s mood, shall we say, is what initiates and dictates these routines he has little emotional change through these mini stories. The journey is mostly all hers.

Before they do the nightclub act, Lucky sings “The Way You Look Tonight” to Penny while her hair is full of shampoo. The song won the Academy Award for Best Music, Original Song. Penny and Lucky are now in love. That night at the nightclub, Penny tells Lucky that bandleader Ricardo Romero (Georges Metaxa) has asked her to marry him many times so it’s no surprise when Romero squashes their chance to perform. That is until Lucky wins Romero’s contract gambling and sets the stage for the “Waltz in Swing Time”

“The Waltz in Swing Time” seems to me to be one of the most complex of the Astaire-Rogers dance sequences. Performed at the gorgeous art deco club, this routine is as airy as it is masterful. Fred and Ginger lovingly looking at each other throughout as twists and turns and light taps happen around them. Gosh, they are awe-inspiring.

The Waltz in Swing Time

The next day Lucky does all he can to avoid a love-making scene with Penny. He’s in love with her, but remembers he’s engaged to another woman and hasn’t told her. Meanwhile Pop spills the beans to Mabel (Helen Broderick, the fourth wheel in this ensemble.) A kissless Penny and a frustrated Lucky sing “A Fine Romance” out in the country and Ginger once again gives a lesson in acting. I’ve noted in other posts about how acting in song is never taken too seriously by people and this is another example. Ginger Roger’s reviews in these films were often mediocre with the praise usually going entirely Astaire’s way. Admittedly, Astaire-Rogers films are not dramatic landscapes that allow for much range, but the fact that Ginger manages believable turns in the routines and in all of the sung performances should be noted. She had an air of not taking the films and roles too seriously, but still managed a wide range of emotion, particularly when the time came to emote in dance. That only made her all the better and often the best thing in the movies aside from the dancing.

Fred Astaire has a wonderful production number, “The Bojangles of Harlem,” in Swing Time even though he performs in blackface. The number is intended to honor dancers like Bill ‘Bojangles’ Robinson who were influential to Fred Astaire. Aside from Fred’s indelible dancing in the sequence, the number is memorable for introducing special effects into Fred Astaire dance routines as he dances with huge shadows of himself. The effect was achieved by shooting the routine twice under different lighting. “Bojangles of Harlem” earned Hermes Pan an Academy Award nomination for Best Dance Direction.

As our story continues – Penny and Lucky are definitely into each other and Ricardo is still wooing Penny when Margaret shows up to spoil the festivities. Actually, she comes to tell Lucky she’s in love with someone else, but doesn’t have a chance to say it before Penny is heartbroken.

And so here we are…we see Penny and Ricardo talking. Given the situation with Lucky – his impending marriage and his losing their contract while gambling – she feels she has no choice but to marry Ricardo. Lucky walks in. Two heartbroken people stand at the foot of majestic stairs as he begins to tell her he’ll never dance again. Imagine that tragedy. The music shifts to “The Way You Look Tonight” and “The Waltz in Swing Time” throughout. Ginger, who had gone up the stairs, descends and the two walk dejectedly across the floor holding hands. The walks gathers a quiet rhythm until they are in each other’s arms dancing. Still, she resists, attempts to walk away, but he refuses to let her go until she succumbs, joining him in energetic rhythm, two people in perfect sync as the music shifts to past moments in their lives together – shifts between loud and quiet, fast and slow, together and apart – mimicking the turmoil of the characters in that time and place.

Ginger’s dress here is elegantly simple as if not to detract from the emotion of the piece, which is intense. Everything about this routine is absolutely gorgeous.

Fred and Ginger split toward the end of the number, each going up an opposite staircase on the elaborate set. They reach the top where the music reaches its crescendo. The two dance, a flurry of turbulent spins. Until she runs off leaving him shattered. And me.

To my knowledge, the “Never Gonna Dance” sequence in the only one where a cut had to happen during the dance in order to get the cameras to the top of the stairs. This is the famous routine that made Ginger’s feet bleed. One of the crew noticed her shoes were pink and it turned out to be that they were blood-soaked. Also notable is that the number was shot over 60 times according to Ginger and several other people there. At one point George Stevens told them all to go home for the night, but Fred and Ginger insisted on giving it one more try. That was the take that’s in the movie. Once done the crew responded enthusiastically.

In the end of Swing Time, as is supposed to happen, Lucky manages to interrupt Penny’s marriage to Ricardo and makes her all his own.

Ginger looks stunning in Swing Time. For details on her Bernard Newman designs in the film I suggest you visit the Glam Amor’s Style Essentials entry on this film.

Despite the many wonderful things about Swing Time, the movie marked the beginning of audience response to Fred and Ginger movies declining. The movie was still a hit, but receipts came in slower than expected. The Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers partnership never quite gained the same momentum as it did up to this point in their careers together. Although the pair was still an asset for RKO and they had many more memorable on-screen moments to share.

Shall We Dance (1937)

In 1937 Astaire and Rogers made Shall We Dance with Mark Sandrich at the helm once again. Edward Everett Horton and Eric Blore are also on hand for the film that featured the first Hollywood film score by George and Ira Gershwin.

The plot of Shall We Dance is a bit convoluted, but still enjoyable. Fred plays Peter P. Peters a famous ballet dancer billed as “Petrov” who yearns to do modern dance. One day he sees a picture of famous tap dancer Linda Keene (Ginger) and sees a great opportunity to blend their styles. Similar to their other movies, Fred falls in love with Ginger at first sight. It takes her longer to recognize his graces, but eventually falls hard for him too. That is, after many shenanigans and much confusion when she gets angry and hurt and then he has to win her over again.

Fred has a terrific solo routine here with “Slap That Base,” which takes place in an engine room using the varied engine and steam sounds to tap to. Ginger later does an enjoyable rendition of the Gershwin classic, “They All Laughed (at Christopher Columbus),” which leads to a fun tap routine for the duo. For this Ginger is wearing that memorable flowered dress by Irene who dressed her for this movie. This “They All Laughed” sequence is where he woos her and where she cannot help falling for him.

Soon after “They All Laughed” Fred and Ginger call the whole thing off in the classic sequence that takes place in New York’s Central Park on roller skates. At this point in the story the tabloids have reported the two are married and, having fallen for each other, they don’t know what to do. “Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off” was written by the Gershwins in New York prior to the making of Swing Time. The brothers brought the song with them to Hollywood and it works perfectly in the comedic scene with both Astaire and Rogers taking turns with verses of the catchy tune before starting the roller skating tap routine.

Unable to stop the rumors that they are married, Pete and Linda decide to actually marry in order to later divorce. The problem is that they’re both crazy about each other, which he demonstrates with one of the most romantic songs ever written, “They Can’t Take that Away From Me.” This song was a personal favorite of both Fred and Ginger. So much so, in fact, that the song was used again in their final film together, their 1949 reunion movie, The Barkleys of Broadway. “They Can’t Take That Away From Me” remains the only occasion on film when Fred Astaire permitted the repeat of a song previously performed in another movie.

George Gershwin died two months after Shall We Dance was released in May 1937. He was posthumously nominated for an Academy Award, along with his brother Ira, for Best Original Song for “They Can’t Take That Away From Me.”

The finale of Shall We Dance is an odd production number. Fred dances in front of dozens of women donning Ginger Rogers masks. Pete Peters decided if he can’t dance with Linda Keene then he’ll dance with many of the next best thing. The real Linda joins him for the final act, touched by his attempt to clone her. The end.

Carefree (1938)

Carefree is probably the Astaire-Rogers movie I’ve seen least and it was refreshing to take a new and improved look at it for this tribute. Mark Sandrich directs Fred and Ginger for the last time in this romantic comedy, the shortest of their films, which attempts a new story flavor for our stars with Irving Berlin tunes.

Stephen Arden (Ralph Bellamy) asks his Psychiatrist friend Dr. Tony Flagg (Astaire) to meet with his fiancée  Amanda Cooper (Rogers). Immediately we know Arden’s in trouble because Ralph Bellamy never gets the girl, but anyway… Amanda is having trouble committing to marrying Stephen and agrees to see Tony who immediately decides she needs to dream in order for him to decipher her unconscious. After having all sorts of odd foods for dinner Amanda dreams, but of Dr. Tony Flagg, not Stephen. Embarrassed by her dream, Amanda makes up a weird tale, which leads Tony to think she has serious psychological issues that only hypnosis can fix. In slapstick style, Stephen comes by Tony’s office to pick up Amanda and without realizing she’s hypnotized lets her run free on the streets causing all sorts of havoc.

Fed Astaire does a terrific routine early in Carefree where he hits golf balls to music. I know nothing about golf, but recognize this is quite astounding. In a 1970s interview, Fred commented on the scene with some affection saying it was not easy and couldn’t believe he was asked to do another take when the balls were ending off camera.

Amanda’s dream allows for a beautiful, fantasy-like routine to Irving Berlin’s “I Used to Be Color Blind” made famous because Fred and Ginger share the longest kiss here than in any other one of their movies. It happens at the end of the sequence done in slow motion, which definitely causes swooning. About the kiss Fred Astaire said, “Yes, they kept complaining about me not kissing her. So we kissed to make up for all the kisses I had not given Ginger for all those years.” Fred was not a fan of mushy love scenes and preferred to let his kissing with Ginger in movies be alluded to or simple pecks, but he gave in partly to quell the rumors that circulated about he and Ginger not getting along. As Ginger told the story, Fred squirmed and hid as the two reviewed the dance and she delighted in his torture. She explained that neither of them expected the long kiss as it was actually a peck elongated by the slow motion. That day she stopped being the “kissless leading lady.”

The longest kiss Fred and Ginger ever shared on-screen from Carefree

By the way, Ginger is wonderful in the sequence when she’s hypnotized. She gets an opportunity to showcase her comedic skills in similar fashion than she does in Howard Hawks’ Monkey Business (1952) opposite Cary Grant.

At the club one evening Ginger kicks off “The Yam” festivities. According to Ginger this is another instance where Fred didn’t like the song so he pawned it off on her. Who could blame him? Silly at best, “The Yam” is a dance craze that never actually catches fire as it doesn’t have the panache of “The Continental.” These people give it all they have, however, and the evening looks like an enjoyable one. Or, at least I would have loved to be there. Of course Tony joins Amanda in doing “The Yam” before the crowd joins in. As an aside, Life Magazine thought Fred and Ginger doing “The Yam” was worthy of a cover on August 22, 1938.

After yamming it up, Amanda is determined to tell Stephen she’s in love with Tony, but he misunderstands and thinks she professes her love for him. Suddenly Stephen announces their engagement. It’s a total mess that Tony tries to fix through hypnosis, which backfires supremely. Thank goodness everything straightens itself out in the end.

Before getting to the final, exceptional routine in Carefree the supporting cast deserves a mention. Louella Gear joins the fun in Carefree as Aunt Cora, in the same vein as Alice Brady and Helen Broderick in Fred and Ginger movies before her. Hattie McDaniel makes a brief appearance albeit as a maid, but it’s better to see her than not and Jack Carson has a few enjoyable scenes as a brute who works at the psychiatrist’s office.

After Amanda tells Tony she’s in love with him, he hypnotizes her to hate him because he doesn’t want to betray Stephen. When Tony realizes he loves Amanda it’s too late, she’s left his office to be happy with Stephen, avoiding Tony at all costs. But at the club one evening, Tony manages to find a few moments alone with her outside and what results is a sexy number during which she’s completely under his spell. In fact, this may be Fred and Ginger’s sexiest routine. “Change Partners and Dance With Me,” which begins inside as she dances with Stephen, is another beautiful song from Irving Berlin, which received one of the three Academy Award nominations for Carefree for Best Music, Original Song. The other two Oscar nods were for Best Art Direction and Best Music, Scoring.

Howard Greer designed Ginger’s gowns for Carefree and the one she wears in the impassioned “Change Partners and Dance With Me” dance is absolutely stunning.

Ginger is under Fred’s Spell in Carefree

The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle (1939)

The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle directed by H. C. Potter is the ninth of ten dancing partnership films of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, the last of their musicals in the 1930s and for RKO, and the only one of their films based on a true story and real people.

Vernon and Irene Castle were a husband-and-wife team of ballroom dancers and dance teachers who appeared on Broadway and in silent films in the early 20th century. Hugely popular, the Castles were credited with popularizing ballroom dance with a special brand of elegance and style. Their most popular dance was the Castle Walk, which Fred and Ginger do in the movie. In fact, they replicate most of the Castle’s dances as closely to the original as possible. As you’d expect from Fred Astaire.

Irene Castle served as a Technical Advisor on The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle and the story goes that she eventually disowned the film because of the film’s lack of authenticity. In defense of some of the changes though, 1934 censorship restrictions were quite different than those in the 1910s. The differences affected costuming and casting at every level of the film. That said, Variety gave The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle a glowing review and the public received it warmly.

Ginger and Fred as Irene and Vernon Castle

It must be mentioned that The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle features two of the greatest character actors who ever lived. Edna May Oliver plays the Castle’s manager Maggie Sutton and Walter Brennan plays Walter, Irene’s majordomo, for lack of a better word, since she was a child. Both of these characters were changed dramatically for the film due to production code restrictions. The real Maggie Sutton (real name Elizabeth Marbury) was openly a lesbian and the real-life Walter was a black man. Neither of those suited the production code mind for broad appeal across the country.

Fred and Ginger do a fine job in this movie. The dances are pretty if not as elaborate as those Astaire and Rogers performed in their other movies. It is exciting to see them do a Tango, a dance I am particularly fond of. However, there is one other dance sequence in particular that moves me immensely, “The Missouri Waltz” at the Paris Cafe when Vernon returns from the war. The acting in the sequence is superb as you can feel the emotion jumping off of her as he picks her up in a gorgeous move during which she wraps herself around him. It’s stunning.

Ginger wrote in her book about the day they shot “The Missouri Waltz,” the last filmed in the movie and, to everyone’s mind, likely the last number she and Fred would ever do together. RKO was abuzz with rumors and people came from far and wide to watch them shoot it. They came from all around RKO, from Paramount and from Columbia to see this last dance. “This was a very dignified way to end our musical marriage at RKO.”

In 1939, after completing The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle, Astaire and Rogers split as you know. Astaire’s salary demands proved too much for RKO pictures. Fred Astaire went on to make movie musical magic in all manner of ways, both alone and with other outstanding talents, leaving a rich legacy of treasures. Ginger Rogers went on to prove herself a true quadruple threat. We knew by 1939 that she could sing, dance and be funny but now, determined to go into straight drama she reaches the pinnacle with an Academy Award-winning performance in Sam Wood’s, Kitty Foyle in 1940. I recognize Ginger’s dramatic talent in the time I spent watching the many dance routines she did with Fred Astaire, but in a time when movies were seen just once it’s difficult to think of other actors who make the transition from film genre to film genre so seamlessly as she did. Hers was a rare talent.

Since I already dedicated an entire entry to Fred and Ginger as The Barkleys of Broadway, Josh and Dinah Barkley, I will forego a full summary here. For now let’s relive the reunion.

Ten years after she made her last appearance on-screen with Astaire, Ginger Rogers walked onto the set of The Barkleys of Broadway. The cast and crew had tears in their eyes. This was special. She said her “hellos”, kissed Fred Astaire and they got to work.  At first Ginger explained that Fred seemed disappointed. Judy Garland was scheduled to make the picture with him, but was replaced by Ginger. All of that doesn’t matter though because as a fan, I cannot fathom what it must have been like for audiences in 1949. If people are out of their minds excited about the release of a superhero film today, if audiences drool over a new and rehashed installment of Spiderman, imagine seeing legends together again after a ten-year sabbatical. I would have had to take a Valium. I get chills just thinking about it, and admit a bit of that happens when I watch The Barkleys of Broadway in my own living room. From the moment I see the opening credits, which are shown while the couple is dancing, quite happily – she in a gold gown and he in a tux, I mean, seriously, I’m verklempt right now. We are all happy to be together again.

Despite their great individual careers the magic of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers together cannot be replicated. And it wasn’t necessarily the dancing, or not the dancing alone, that made them a perfect pair. It was the glances, the touch, and the feel that made them magic. The spell of romance, real for the length of a composition, entranced. We all know Katharine Hepburn’s famous quote, “she gave him sex and he gave her class.” Well, Kate was not wrong. Fred Astaire was never as romantic as when he danced with Ginger. And Ginger, a down-to-Earth beauty, was never as sophisticated as when she danced with Fred.

Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers brought prestige to RKO when it was in desperate need of it and joy to a nation hungry for respite from tough times. In a six-year span they established themselves as the best known, best loved dancing partners in the history of movies and have remained there for 85 years. I’ll end with these words by Roger Ebert, “of all of the places the movies have created, one of the most magical and enduring is the universe of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.”

Sources:

The RKO Story

Ginger: My Story by Ginger Rogers

The Astaires: Fred & Adele by Kathleen Riley

As many Fred Astaire interviews as I could find.

Be sure to visit the Classic Movie Blog Association (CMBA) and The Anniversary Blogathon. There are many fantastic film anniversaries honored for this prestigious event.

85 Years of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers It was 85 years ago this week, in October 1934, that Mark Sandrich’s The Gay Divorcee…