Things are Looking Up

Video of Fred Astaire and Joan Fontaine in the 1937 movie A Damsel in Distress.

Watching this (1) may give you some insight into what people liked to watch in the 1930s; and (2) may, or may not, give you some insight into the Whit Stillman movie Damsels in Distress.

Fred Astaire was supposed to be a real ladies' man, but I think he looks kind of faggy. Someone like Fred Astaire would never make it big today.

*** 100% guaranteed safe to watch at work ***

Comments

[DaveinHackensack]

He guest starred in an episode of the original Battlestar Galactica.

[HS: That's right, the episode where he played Starbucks' "father." I'm going to have to watch that again.]

[Peter]

Another excellent performance by Astaire was in 1960's _On the Beach_, a completely dramatic role with no singing or dancing.

[Sheila Tone]

She dances about as well as I do. I thought Astair looked like a yacht clubby WASP guy from that era.

Americans sure have different accents now. No one sounds like that anymore, except some really old ladies

[BlogRaju]

I see nothing fagular about Fred Astaire, although I agree he is not "hip" enough.

Women in 1930s wanted to be treated like ladies. Women today want to be treated like men, but they still want free drinks.

[SteveO]

I remember back in college watching "It Happened One Night" with Clark Gable. At the famous scene where he takes his shirt off (racy at the time... no undershirt!!), the audience burst into laughter.

[Larry, San Francisco]

Actually, Astaire was known as a workaholic who left parties early. He loved his wife greatly and was bummed for years after she died. He channeled some of that grief into his On the Beach performance. Not a great looking guy but wonderful to watch.

[uatu]

TCM is the best channel on TV. Pre-code talkies ('27-'33) is my personal favorite time period for films, but anything shot before 1970 seems to have a certain hold on me more than modern day film which is crap 99% of the time.

Modern day actors and actresses look and act like little children compared to heavyweights like Joan Crawford, Barbara Stanwyck, Myrna Loy, Bette Davis, Jane Greer, Gene Tierney, Bogart, Gable, Jimmy Stewart, Robert Taylor, Mitchum, Glenn Ford, Fred MacMurray, etc.

[anonymous]

"Someone like Fred Astaire would never make it big today."

Yep, and the fact that he was a conservative would not help.

[robert61]

Fred Astaire's masculinity is graceful and balanced: not conquering his partner but rather in step with her. If he reads as 'faggy' (and I can see where you're coming from - skipping up the steps, right?), the failing is yours and contemporary culture's, not his.

[Turambar]

charming

And that is a hell of a tracking shot for 1937.

[chesswife]

How does she manage to walk much less dance on grass wearing 3" heels??? Amazing how skinny people used to be. They'd both be considered anorexic today.

[jeanne]

I'm a big Astaire fan, especially of his 30s movies and D in D in particular...but it's funny, Obama kind of has an Astaire vibe to him, the skinny face prominent ears, flat hair. Same with Lance Armstrong. Not a great look really but Astaire's whole magic is in overcoming those obvious limitations. Great singer, too.

"Americans sure have different accents now. No one sounds like that anymore,"

Those old faux-brit, theatrical accents were put on. It was the way classy people were supposed to sound, to the masses. I read that Chaplin could go in and out of it, from theatrical to cockney and back at will.

[helene edwards]

Astaire wouldn't make it big today? Hell, neither would Robert Mitchum. Scare too many women.