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FROM: LAURIEILE 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 9000 003 Date: August 3, 2006 11:06 AM (LINK) 9000 Reply) (PARENT) (Thread) FROM: NIHAOMAO DATE: August 4, 2006 12:09 PM 005 (Link) (Answer) (Parent) (Thread)

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Legendary Fred Astaire - Look At Me

Fred Astaire American theater and film actor, dancer, choreographer and singer, legendary Hollywood star, one of the greatest masters of the musical genre in cinema, famous for his grace and impeccable sense of style.

The future king of tap was born on May 10, 1899 in Omaha, Nebraska, in the family of an immigrant from Austria. Fred's father, Frederick Austerlitz, was an Austrian immigrant to the United States and professed Catholicism, his roots were in Austria and Alsace. He came from a family of Austrian brewers and often said to the children: “There are two types of Austrians: scoundrels and musicians. I belong to the second...”

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Friends, I invite you to watch the movie "Cylinder", with the participation of Fred Astaire in the DEJA VU club (Moscow), October 9, at 20.00.

Admission is free.

More about the event here.

Book your tables here.

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In 1895, Fred's father moved to America. A year after arriving in the United States, he married a girl ten years his junior, Joanna Helius (she was 17), whose parents were German-speaking Catholics from Alsace. Both Frederick and Joanna loved music and theater. Frederick often demonstrated his talents to his wife by playing the piano. The first child of the Austerlitz couple, daughter Adele was born in 1897 year. And in May 1899, a son was born, named after his father Frederick, the future legend of America. In 1904, the family decided that Joanna and the children would go to New York so they could try their hand at vaudeville on Broadway, while Frederick Sr. would stay in Nebraska to earn money. By a whim of fate, the parents' hopes were pinned on Adele - the move to New York was started precisely because they saw the talent of a dancer in her.

In his autobiography, Fred Astaire recalled: “This trip was like a stab in the back in the dark - we arrived in New York with nothing more than a letter of introduction to someone's aunt. My mother had never been here and did not know anyone - neither in the near-theatrical sphere, nor anywhere. However, luck, in spite of everything, smiled at them and after a trial tour with vaudeville in New Jersey, Frederick Austerlitz was already able to join the family in New York to help achieve even more. Soon he was able to get the children to participate in a big tour. It was then that seven-year-old Fred and nine-year-old Adele drove to Los Angeles - they got "to the threshold of Hollywood." As part of the Orpheum troupe, the little Austerlitz then traveled all over America - from Pennsylvania to California. It was my father's idea to take the stage name "Astaire" at 1905 year. It was decided that the "native" surname evokes associations with the battle and the military, and, after consulting, the surname of an uncle from Alsace-Lorraine, who was allegedly called L'Astaire, was chosen, remade in an American way.

And dancing began for Frederick Austerlitz at the age of 4. Together with their sister Adele, who was a year and a half older than her brother, they entered a dance school in Omaha, in their hometown of Nebraska. By the way, brother and sister did not study a single day in an ordinary comprehensive school. They were clearly not up to it: already at the age of 6, wearing a black tailcoat, Fred danced on the professional stage. “All my life it seemed to me that I was born in a tailcoat,” the actor would write later. This is how he entered the history of dance - light, impetuous, in an elegant black tailcoat, in a snow-white shirt with a "butterfly" and a white carnation on the left lapel.

Their vaudeville performances continued with intermittent success until they hit Broadway with Over the Tops in 1917. They sang and danced, were good acrobats, played the piano.

Some sources claim that Astaire's siblings appeared in the 1915 film Fanchon, the Cricket, starring Mary Pickford, but this is unfortunately unreliable.

But before the world discovered Astaire's flying dance, there were long years of mastering the profession and painstaking work. Performing on the stages of music halls in New York and London, Adele and Fred learned early not only what success is, but also how to deal with defeat. “We also had failures,” Astaire recalls. - I used to dance to the point of exhaustion, and only liquid pops were distributed as a reward. We had to look for work, several times we were rejected in music halls, and once our performance was replaced by trained dogs. Only faith in the future made us work tirelessly and improve.”

Astaire's diligence was fantastic, he could rehearse for 8 hours a day, training his legs and body, as thoroughly as a ballet dancer. Perhaps that is why the technique and grace of the dancer delighted even ballet stars. George Balanchine called Astaire the most inventive dancer of all time. But it was a little later, but for now Adele and Fred are storming the heights of show business.

At the age of 16, Fred meets the young composer and pianist George Gershwin, which marked the beginning of a long friendship that influenced the careers of both artists. This friendship will give him two Gershwin musicals - "Lady, please" and "Funny Face", in which Adele and Fred triumphantly perform in London in the mid-20s, receiving public recognition on both sides of the Atlantic. By the way, in the late 50s, Astaire once again successfully played in "Funny Face", but not theatrical, but cinematic, where his partner will be the amazing Audrey Hepburn.

All the years that Adele and Fred performed together, and this is a little more than a quarter of a century, the main role always belonged to Adele, the sister overshadowed her brother with her hot temperament. Adele was rightfully considered an outstanding star; her dancing, her singing made an unforgettable impression on everyone and, quite definitely, that Fred was in the shadow of his lovely sister. Obviously, this is what influenced his manner and style of dance and behavior. With inner composure and concentration, he was outwardly relaxed and carefree, and with such seeming carelessness, he nevertheless achieved magical perfection in his dances. But then Fred was only a background, played a secondary role, and, as the newspapers of that time wrote, he was more Pierrot than Harlequin.

Their shows have been marked by numerous visits from royalty. And once, after an evening performance, Fred and Adele even received an invitation from Edward, Prince of Wales, to dine together. Prince George became a close friend of the Astaires, and Adele even taught Edward how to tap. In London, in 1924, during the Stop Flirting tour, Fred learns about his father's illness and death.

But when Adele married in 1932 her first husband Lord Charles Cavendish, the second son of the Duke of Devonshire, and left show business, their duo broke up, the brother, forced to once again look for a place in the sun, gained worldwide popularity.

Fred continued his career on Broadway and London with Divorce Merry. Fred is briefly left alone on stage. But not in life. He falls in love with 25-year-old Phyllis Potter (née Phyllis Livingston Baker, 1908-1954, they met at a golf lunch at the Vanderbild house) - the daughter of the famous New York doctor Baker. And he throws all his strength and all his charm to win the heart and hand of Phyllis - even turning down a tempting offer to participate in the production of a new musical on Broadway - just to be near her (at that moment in London). At 1933, the day after Phyllis' divorce decree, they get married and Fred decides to start a film career.

According to Hollywood folklore, the account of Astaire's first screen test at Warner Bros., now lost, like the screen test itself, allegedly read: “Can't sing. Doesn't know how to play. Lysina. Dancing a little." In a few years, the owner of the studio, Jack Warner, will bitterly regret this and will offer Astaire any money for filming on Warner.

However, after the refusal of Warner Bros., Fred did not remain without work. Another Hollywood studio, RKO, showed interest in him. The producer of the films featuring Astaire and Rogers claimed that he had never heard of such a report in the 1930s and that it appeared many years later. Astaire himself in an interview with the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) given to him at 1980, to journalist Barbara Wolters, said that in fact the report said: “He can’t play. Bald patches. She also dances." Be that as it may, the screen tests were clearly unsuccessful, but in 1933 he made his film debut in the successful film Dancing Lady, where he played himself and danced with Joan Crawford. His film debut did not bring success, but Astaire clearly understood that it was in the cinema that he could achieve the highest results. Cinema, a world different from theater, gave him not only a huge audience, magnificent technical achievements, but also complete dance freedom. And he leaves the stage forever. Now in his life only cinema and a new partner - Ginger Rogers.

And it seems that it was a long time ago: the golden age of Hollywood, the excitement and fun of black and white musical films, the delightful duet of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. In fact, everything is so close. And Frederico Fellini in the 80s, in memory of the famous duet, made a touching film - "Ginger and Fred", starring Juliet Mazina and Marcello Mastroianni.

Astaire's appearance and mannerisms at first seemed ill-suited to cinema.

Recognition came after the movie "Flight to Rio" (1934), where Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, his co-star, first met and became the most popular dance couple on the silver screen. The idea to create a permanent acting duo Astaire-Rogers came to the head of producer Lou Brook. He saw in them a wonderful comedy couple, who also knew how to dance and sing wonderfully. Their first joint film "Flight to Rio", where they famously performed carioca, instantly attracted the attention of the audience to them. An unknown couple overshadowed the performers of the main roles of "Flight".

The second film, A Merry Divorce, became one of the highest-grossing films of 1934. The "Cylinder" and "Roberta" that followed him broke the box office records of 1935. The following year, they are ranked third in the top ten most popular Hollywood stars.

It is absolutely pointless to retell the content of films with their participation. They were all based on the same template. Fred meets Ginger and falls in love with her. She resists, but Fred eventually wins her over. However, the main thing here is not the plot, but brilliant dances, excellent acting and, of course, songs. At 30, Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers became Hollywood superstars.

They starred in ten “hit” musicals, including “swing time” (1936), “Following the Fleet” (1936), as well as in the only color film (and the latter with the participation of this couple) - “ The Barkley Couple from Broadway (1949). These films feature songs by Irving Berlin, George and Ira Gershwin and Col Porter.

The appearance of Astaire in Hollywood created a sensation, but at first not artistic, but technical. In those years, when shooting musical films, cameramen liked to indulge in various special effects. Influxes, sophisticated angles, double exposure, accelerated pace. At first, legs could appear on the screen, then they were suddenly “interrupted” by a smiling face, then interior details crawled in ... Therefore, Fred reserves the right to interfere in all stages of film production with his participation, up to dubbing and editing. During the filming of the first film, Astaire and his choreographer Hermis Pen insisted that the figure of the dancer be uninterrupted throughout the dance and be shown in full growth.

Today it seems strange, but then the effect was deafening. At the viewing after the very first dance number, the audience burst into applause, since nothing like this had ever happened before. Astaire attached great importance not only to how the dance looks, but also how it sounds. The sound that the artist taps out was recorded separately from the dance itself, when the film had already been shot and edited. In a special studio, wearing headphones, the wires of which descended from the ceiling and interfered with movement, the artists again danced their numbers. It was tedious and boring, so some stars asked their choreographers to do boring work for them. And only Astaire never refused dubbing, everything was important to him, even how the floor covering sounds. Even in the "sexual" issue, he was an innovator. Astaire experimented with different types of wood to achieve the sound he needed. Once, in order to achieve a special, muffled sound, he asked to pour water under the wooden paneling. But, of course, the main thing for Astaire was the dance itself.

                                                                                                                                                                            d Astaire, forgetting about gravity, hovered above the ground. His arms flutter like the wings of a bird, and his legs weave intricate choreographic patterns. There is everything here: jumping, spinning on the floor and in the air, various elements of classical dance. Astaire either spins to the rhythm of the waltz, passionately hugging her partner, then envelops her with flowing water, then hotly tap dances with her clockwork legs.

He introduces various objects into his dance: a cane, a boater, a top hat, a hanger. And in his hands they come to life...

Standing on the lid of the piano, the artist runs his foot across the keyboard and the piano starts to sound, Astaire "plays" with a whole set of percussion instruments, he dances between them, extracting sounds with kicks. And if there is a chair in his way, then the chair begins to live in the rhythm of Fred's dance. And the artist does all this easily, as if improvising. Moreover, Astaire never experienced satisfaction from his dance. He could repeat the same movement for days, until he got it the way he planned.

In addition to dancing, Astaire also sang. His not loud, gentle, rustling voice gave his appearance and dances a special masculine charm. Moreover, in the appearance of Astaire there was nothing from Superman. He does not have a very handsome face with large, wide-set eyes, is not very tall and has rather short legs. Nothing from the usual appearance of the Hollywood "star". Astaire himself was humorous about his appearance and vocal abilities. Once he told reporters: “Just look at me. Skin and bones. The face is angular. Cheekbones stick out. Voices - not a penny. In a word, an ordinary performer who only knows how to tap dance. But this mediocre performer conquered the whole world. By the way, not a single film work of Fred Astaire was awarded the prize of the American Film Academy (contemporaries, as you know, are blind and unfair). Only at 1949 he received an Oscar for his contribution to the development of the art of the musical.

Fred Astaire had a perfect sense of rhythm and ear, he lived by dancing, and cinematic tricks only adorned his talent.

Astaire won world fame during his lifetime thanks to his huge contribution to the genre of the musical, but he always remained modest and intelligent.

Astaire has danced with almost all the "First Ladies" of Hollywood - Rita Hayworth, Cyd Charisse, Leslie Curon "Daddy Long Legs" (1955), Ann Miller and Judy Garland "Easter Parade" (1948). Astaire was keenly aware of the specifics of cinema, which allowed him to accurately and effectively line up his numbers in front of the camera. Astaire was also revered as an outstanding singer, second only to Bing Crosby (they starred together in the film "The Holiday Inn" (1942). (By the way, during World War II, Fred Astaire toured Europe, speaking to wounded soldiers in hospitals). Fred Astaire was not very strong voice, but his charm, sense of rhythm and rich stage experience made him a real actor and singer.In addition, he could easily sing and dance at the same time, which not everyone can do.0011

However, according to many movie fans, his best partner was ... a hanger in the film "Royal Wedding". This stunning scene has become a classic of world cinema. The hero of Astaire is alone in the rehearsal room. He wants to dance, but... there is no partner. Then he hugs a wooden hanger and spins with it in an amazing dance. He, like a magician, had the gift to revive inanimate objects. In the same film musical, he performed an amazing number. Easily circling the room in a dance, Fred deftly moves to the wall, and then to the ceiling, continuing to perform his dance, creating a visual effect of complete weightlessness. This, of course, is a montage, but the viewer is not surprised, because this is Fred Astaire. He can do everything!

Astaire skillfully combined the most diverse forms of dance - step, classical, jazz and ballroom.

His theatrical and film career spanned 76 years, during which Astaire appeared in 31 musical films. His name is often mentioned alongside Ginger Rogers, with whom he starred in 10 films that revolutionized the musical comedy genre. The virtuoso dancer Fred Astaire won fame in a completely different genre - in the musical comedy. Together with actress Ginger Rogers, they formed an unusually harmonious duet, which gave rise to many imitations. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers starred together since 1933 to 1939, and all the paintings with their participation were a resounding success. Their duet is recognized as the most popular in the history of cinema.

They seemed to be made for each other. Katharine Hepburn said of them: "She adds seductiveness to him, he adds class to her." Many viewers sincerely believed that they were husband and wife. Although in reality everything was not as easy as it seemed on the screen. Ginger and Fred often didn't get along as they were very different people.

Astaire was married and considered America's most exemplary husband. Marrying Phyllis Potter, he adopted her three-year-old son, and then she bore him two more children. When, already in the 60s, Astaire lost his wife, who died of cancer, it became a severe shock for him. Ginger, on the other hand, was light-hearted. Famous actors, directors and producers of Hollywood visited her husbands and lovers. It seemed to Astaire that his partner was not as selfless as he would have liked. And Ginger was jealous of the glory of Astaire and suffered, believing that the talent of a dramatic actress was dying in her. Ginger wanted to prove to herself, to Fred, to everyone that she was not only Fred Astaire's partner, but a real actress. And what is most surprising, she proved it.

After Ginger, Fred will never have a regular partner again. But his fame as the most desirable movie man will not fade from this. Fred did not take Ginger's departure as painfully as parting with Adele. By this time he was already a superstar. And he could choose any partner. The first ladies of American cinema - Rita Hayworth, Judy Garland, Syd Charisse, Leslie Caron - will circle in his arms...

Audrey Hepburn took only two hours to agree to play in the film "Funny Face". “I knew that I didn’t sing well and I didn’t dance well, but the opportunity to play with Fred Astaire left no room for doubt,” recalls Audrey. Despite the fact that Astaire was already 57 at the time and was 30 years older than Audrey, this did not prevent their dance union and the resounding success of the film. Much later, Audrey spoke about their first meeting at one of the rehearsals: “Fred was wearing a yellow shirt, gray flannel trousers, a red scarf tied around the waist instead of a belt; his famous feet were shod in soft moccasins and pink socks, and his face was illuminated by an irresistible smile. One look at this cheerful, elegant, extraordinary person was enough to make my arms and legs fill with lead, and my soul went to my heels. But suddenly I felt Fred, with inimitable grace and ease, wrap his arm around my waist and literally lift me off the ground (according to Astaire, Audrey was trembling so much that he had no other choice.) I was seized with delight. My dream has finally come true - the secret dream of all women in the world - to dance with Fred Astaire at least once in my life!

In the 1940s and 1950s, Astaire continued his dizzying career as a musical comedy actor, often changing partners, young Hollywood movie stars, acting in the films of the masters of American commercial cinema - V. Minnelli, S. Donen, J. Negulesco, R. Mamulyan. In 1959 he played a dramatic role in S. Kramer's political pamphlet On the Last Shore. By the age of 55, Fred decides to retire from film and show business and plunge headlong into horse breeding, which turns into a real passion and lifestyle for him and Phyllis. He understands that it's time for a change, and Phyllis agrees with him. Fred announces to the press that he is leaving.

Thousands of protest letters a day - the public and the press could not believe that they would never see the star on stage again. However, he will soon return to the screens - to replace a colleague. At this time, before the filming of the film "Easter Parade", Gene Kelly broke his leg and Fred, at his request, replaced him.

In 1954, Phyllis, a chain smoker, dies of lung cancer (at age 46), which will be a huge blow to Fred. At that moment, he was involved in the filming of the film "Daddy Long Legs." In the devastation that fell on Fred, he wanted to leave the project, but the studio demanded that all the costs of filming the film be reimbursed from his pocket and he would go headlong into work, trying to drown out the pain of the loss. Then the films Funny Face, Silk Stockings, End of the World (with Ava Gardner and Gregory Peck) will appear.

In the 60s and 70s, he rarely acted in films - the aged Astaire preferred to play dramatic roles, sometimes outside the USA “Lilac Taxi” by I. Boisset, 1977; "Ghost Story" by J. Erwin, 1981.

Balanchine and Nureyev called him the greatest dancer of the 20th century. In addition, Fred Astaire is considered to be the dancer with the greatest influence on the musical genre, in film and television in particular. The American Film Institute named him the fifth greatest actor of all time.

It seems that the 20th century itself danced to the rhythms of its tap dance. The viewer went crazy with his "talking soles", and there was no woman who did not dream, at least once in her life, to dance with Fred Astaire. This is understandable, since no one could compare in dance sophistication with this "Mr. golden legs", the tap genius of the 20th century.

Once, when the artist was being introduced to Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain, he reminded her that her mother had done him the honor of dancing with him, to which Her Majesty remarked: “You mean that she had the good fortune to dance with you!”

In an interview, already at the end of his career, Fred Astaire admitted: “I always wanted to dance in my own way, going beyond the existing rules. I could not stand it when they pointed out to me how to put my feet, or made some other remarks. I never danced for money and fame. I have always danced the way I liked. And he knew exactly as much about the history and philosophy of dance as he knew about the device of the TV, that is, nothing. Danced - and that's it!

He was one of the founders and leading actors of musical and dance films, the film musical genre. For three decades (30-40-50 years of the XX century) he determined the image of this genre. Fred Astaire was not only a gentleman dancer and an aristocrat of tap dancing, not only a coryphaeus of rhythms, his dances taught and teach the whole world how to overcome gravity. In his memoirs Steps in Time, in his characteristic ironic manner, he outlined his philosophy of dance in the following way: “I am often asked to talk about the history and philosophy of dance. But this is a subject on which I have little to say. As a rule, people talk about my works using the terms of ballet art, but I'm not a ballet dancer. Ballet is the best education an artist can get, and as a child I did it too, but I almost never used it for myself. I have always wanted to give my dance a "free-flying bird" style, and I didn't want it to show the rigid rules of ballet art. From the very beginning, I felt that I was able to throw off these "shackles" because I knew for sure that I would never be able to devote myself to ballet. I felt that I was destined to become an interpreter of music, and no one else. And in this area there are no boundaries! I never had a desire to prove something to someone with my dances, which I never considered as a way of self-expression. I dance and that's all."

His theater and film career spanned 76 years.

At the age of 81, he marries again (to 36-year-old Robin Smith, the owner of a rare profession - she was one of the few female jockeys and will end her life in Los Angeles, where she will die of pneumonia at the age of 88 .. ).

The actor died on June 22, 1987.

From his first marriage he had three children - Peter Potter, adopted by him, Fred Astaire Jr.

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