Arguably the best tap dance routine of all time. In my opinion, better than the famous Begin the Beguine number. It's not just the execution of the tap, it's the "making it into a jazz dance" that is so cool. And they make it look absolutely effortless. So slick. So wonderful.
Betsy Booth is right; Eleanor did great dancing alone, because she was like no one else, and when she danced alone, she wasn't limited by the other person. Fred did some great dancing alone, too, but there are times when you need a couple to dance together, and surely there was never another dance couple like these two.
Interesting how easily Fred outdanced the young Rita Hayworth, is on par with Ginger Rogers - a great couple - but here with Eleanor Powell you see his limits, how easily she outdances him. No wonder he refused to work with her again. They just don't fit. She's much cooler and effective.
Some people have said that Eleanor looks stiff dancing next to Fred. I am a fan of Fred Astaire, but sometimes he looks kind of sloppy. Oh, he isn't really, we all know how hard he practiced and how meticulous he was, but he had a different style than Eleanor Powell. She was a solo dancer. She was at her best dancing alone because she did more acrobatic moves, with her kicks and splits. And that's something she had him (and everyone else) beat at.
Eleanor Powell was the best female tap dancer in the movies. It's only natural she would have to be paired up with the best male tap dancer...Fred Astaire.
I actually think I was born in the wrong time era cause I'm only 15 and i just can't get enough of movies from the 30's right through to the 50's :L two of the greatest tap dancers in the world :-) But yet somehow it's strange watching Fred dance with anyone but Ginger...
Eleanor Powell has always been a sort of hero of mine. Wow, I always wanted to be able to dance like that. I rather disagree with her looking stiff...she always left me in awe (along with Fred Astaire of course). Really, she is such an underrated dancer...just too bad she wasn't much of an actress, then people might remember her more.
It is such a shame people from this era are disliking the talent i grew up with. Fred Astaire was always a perfectionist and i had actually met him once in 1956-1957, they dont make fine gentleman like that anymore.
Two of the best tap dancers of their generation...and there are still people who press the dislike button?! Well sirs (or ladies) I press the dislike button on YOU. Sheer awesome talent here.
I am sure that Elanor Powell was a wonderful dancer, but next to Astaire she just looks stiff and ungraceful. It is truly amazing how talented he was. I can't imagine how a regular dancer would look next to him.
@dagniranum Eleanor was a very clean technical dancer, but I don't think she looked ungraceful. Rather, Astaire just had that intuitive liquid freeness in his dance that separated him from most of his peers. She could do all the tap stuff he could, he said as much, she just couldn't make it look the way he did-- effortless. I agree with you at how amazing he was, one of a kind, but she wasn't too bad herself.
@Yubarco I should have worded what I said better, but I agree. What I meant was I wonder what a regular Joe Schmoe would look like next to him. It's a testament to her that she can keep up with Astaire. Very few people can even manage that. It is almost unfair to anyone partner of his how good he was. I wouldn't have it any other way though.
Agree that Astaire is amazing. I've also come to admire Powell more and more with other routines I've seen of hers. There were things she did with tap that even Astaire couldn't, primarily because of her background in ballet (she had routines where she incorporated ballet and at times acrobatics into tap). But I agree with you and Yubarco on that liquid quality of his. If you want to see him with another amazing partner watch the 'Dancing in the Dark' routine with Cyd Charisse.
@Yubarco I think that Eleanor was a better tap dancer than Fred--in fact,I've read that he hesitated to make a movie with her due to his fear of her machine gun like tapping. I do agree that Fred was a better all around dancer--a dancer who executed his moves with deceptive ease--deceptive because it was anything but easy. I love the way he combined classical dance with modern dance moves all to the tunes of Gershwin or Cole Porter.(See Dancing in the Dark in the Bandwagon if you want wow!!)
c'est SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEXPIALIDOCIOUS .... MERCI ELEANOR POWELL ET FRED ASTAIRE d'avoir illuminé nos vies ... VOUS SEREZ VIVANTS DANS NOS ESPRITS POUR L ETERNITE ...
Everyone knows that Ginger Rogers was a pretty good dancer made to look much better than she was by having Fred Astaire as a partner. On the few occasions he teamed up with Eleanor Powell whose talent was at least his equal, the results are breathtaking. I could watch these two tap-dancing until the cows come home!.
@aqu1r3. Have you watched Eleanor Powell dancing solo to George & Ira Gershwin's Fascinatin' Rhythm sent in by Shuarayki18481?. It is basically tap-dance but involves the whole body & is an absolute marvel of co-ordination lasting nearly four minutes. In my opinion, of its kind it has never been equalled & almost certainly never will be!.
@aqu1r3. If you have the same You-Tube format as myself you will find it immediately to the right of my previous message. Just double-click on the icon named Fascinatin' Rhythm.
Ginger Rogers is Fred's most famous dance partner, but he never danced with anyone better than the great and the incomparable Eleanor Powell.
That's not to say Ginger was a bigger star than Ellie. Ellie was a huge star at her peak who literally saved her studio from bankruptcy. At the height of her popularity she was box office gold, even bigger than Fred, but most people think of Ginger first amongst Fred's dance partners, although Ellie was the best, even Fred was intimidated by her skills.
Fred was a ballroom tapper, Ellie a rhythm tapper. Fred hired John Bubbles the father of rhythm tap tp prepare dancing with Ellie. Fred was humble enough to learn rhythm tapping which is a higher skill level of tap. In this movie Ellie got the lions share of dancing. She could do it all, ballet, acrobatic, those amazing pirourettes ;especially the grand ones, bend backward and touch the floor, kick peripendicular, etc. Her fellow dancers were in total awe of her. See John Bubbles on You Tube.
In Fred's autobiography he said that she put em down like a man. That was in reference to the fact she was the first female rhythm tapper, not that she was manly. He thought her to be quite feminine. Fred was a ballroom tapper & took lessons from John Bubbles the father of rhythm tap. Ellie danced with Bubbles and thus the lessons were essential for Fred to be able to tap with Ellie.The biggest myth in Hollywood was that Ginger & Fred tapped. Ginger never learned to tap but did ballroom dancing.
My 'information' about Eleanor Powell was from the biography on Fred Astaire.. I questioned it too... .but the author insists that Powell was no well received by the public - too butch I think were his words.... honest!
@gustafus21 No authorized biography on Fred Astaire has ever been issued. Fred wrote his OWN biography and said of Ellie, she danced in a class by herself. She was not even close to being butch! Watch the complete "Honululu ' dance. It is considered the MOST sensous of all time. Many big stars pursued her such as Clark Gable, Jimmy Stewart & Robert Taylor. She married Glenn Ford. She was the most popular star within the studio. They called her baby. The public loved her. All her movies made $
@gustafus21 Could you tell me the biography. I am a historian & am not aware of anybody ever saying that about Ellie. Toscanini said of her, 3 things I will take with me always; The glory of a sunset, the granduer of the Grand Canyon, and Eleanor Powell dancing. She almost never started tap. She thought it was to crude. She was a ballet dancer. Gus Edwards discovered her( he was like Ed Sullivan) & hired her because of her feminitity. Fred & Ellie remained close friends throughout their lives.
I am a tap dancer myself and am the national tap dancing winner in New zealand, This is the lady I have modelled myself off, and I wish i was born back then lol
@Semation I wish you nothing but good fortune! You modeled yourself after the very best. She was in a class by herself , both off and on the stage. She was called the iron lady because she taped 12 hours a day. I hope you learn the piroutettes, especially the grand pirourettes not commonly taught in tap. Not only was she the only one doing them but often tapped as she was turning. That is super human. Ellie wrote to my mother as a little girl everytime my mom wrote to her.
@Semation I wish you nothing but good fortune! You modeled yourself after the very best. She was in a class by herself , both off and on the stage. She was called the iron lady because she tapped 12 hours a day. I hope you learn the piroutettes, especially the grand pirourettes not commonly taught in tap. Not only was she the only one doing them but often tapped as she was turning. That is super human. Ellie wrote to my mother as a little girl everytime my mom wrote to her.
I t's worth viewing a You Tube recently posted Eleanor Powell(9 parts) at the Variety Art Theatre. She talks about many subjects and it will leave no doubt what others thought of her. Elllie had a short run, though a super star. Her 12 movies were put away for 40 years. Tv stations were playing color movies in the 60's/ 70's thinking it was the thing to do to promote color. Finally TCM played her movies along with the 4 "That's Entertainment "movies .The appreciation for Ellie was rekindled.
When Fred was dancing with Ginger at RKO , MGM was not doing musicals. They changed their stragedy and looked for a Fred Astaire. They found it in Eleanor Powell. Ann Miller said she saved MGM from bankruptcy twice. All her movies made money and often much money. When the 8th & 9th Ginger/Fred movie lost money RKO abandoned musicals. Ellie & Fred did the first $million musical ever. Ellie got the most dance time. Fred admitted being intimidated by Ellie who he said danced in a class by herself.
This is my all-time favorite pairing of Fred with any partner. This is THE best tap routine ever. I am so very VERY glad that somebody posted this, and that other people enjoy it, too.
Unfortunately Ellie's movies were not on tv until the 80's and when That's Entertainment included her in all 4 segments. Only 3 were so honored. When I did autograph shows a famous male dancer in the early 80's said he never saw her dance because there were no movies out. Not until Robert Osbourne( He called her the greatest ever) and Turner Network started showing her movies did she reappear. According to Ann Miller she twice saved the studio from bankruptcy in Broadway Melody of 1936 & 38
She was so pupular that Robert Taylor and Jimmy Stewart proposed to her. Clark Gable bought her a Packard Roadster. Al Jolson and Fayard Nicholas were head over heels for her. Glenn Ford married her. etc. etc. She had an infectious smile and not a phoney bone in her body and loved all. She never spoke a bad word about anybody. You do not get 180 men dancing in the background with the studio paying big bucks if you were not popular. Anybody meeting her was totally taken by her even in her 60's.
His biographer said Eleanor Powell was not popular because she was too butch... people didn't respond to her like his other partners... she certainly was talented.
@gustafus21 Where ever did you get that bogus information. If she was not popular that would not have made this million dollar movie , the first ever musical. She was without question the most popular celebrity within the studio. They called her baby. The blue collar workers loved her. She ate with them despite Louis Meyer's protests early on. Her movies all made money. The public could not get enough of her. Her Honululu dance was voted the most sensous of all time .Watch it. continue
It is safe to say Ellie was the most popular and beloved star at MGM within the studio.The blue collar workers loved her. She ate with them and knew their families. Louis Meyer told her not to eat with them. She would be a big star some day. She saved the studio from bankruptcy so he changed his mind. They would build a grandstand for( ONLY) Ellie's performances. The workers were given time off when she performed and she got standing ovations. Not a phony bone in her body and never a bad word.
What is the name of this movie? I've been trying to find all of Fred Astaire, Eleanor Powell's and Ginger Rogers movies without ordering them online because I do not trust the internet. Where can I find these movies??? Anyone? I really need them!
time then Fred. Ellie was the first ever female rhythm dancer. Fred was basically a ballroom tap dancer and he knew he had to learn a thing or 2 to keep up with Ellie. She got as much publicity as Fred in this amazing movie. As Ellie's career ended having a child ,Fred keep going and his dancing became legendary. Ellie made $5000 wkly, Fred $4000 so MGM viewed her their 1st star(She was best friends with Louis Mayer). Rent this movie. Ann Miller has a great introduction to it. It was legendary
@hajune Thanks again. I take it you mean "That's Entertainment". I will look at it again (haven't seen it since it first came out). I am definitely going to have to read up on Ms. Powell. Please! Anytime there is a youtube or netlix movie with her in it that you think I might enjoy, if you remember, let me know about it. Thanks. And I am adding "Eleanor Powell" to my list of search criteria.
This film has (as I recall) four LARGE set pieces with these two - and this ranks right up there with "Begin the Beguine", not as demanding (WOW nothing on film like that "Begin the Beguine" - UNMATCHED by anyone in any form of dancing) but this number is so charming and such a charming introduction to the two of them together for the first time. WONDERFUL.
@playgued It was the first $million dance film ever recorded. Fred and Ginger movies waned losing $ in their last 2 movies . Fred went to MGM. Ellie was there super star. Ann Miller when introducing this movie in its rerelease claimed Ellie saved MGM from bankruptcy twice. Fred had 29 dance partners in the movies and was intimidated by only one. Ellie was the ONLY female rhythm dancer during the era. Ginger was a ballroom dancer and never learned to tap. Fred and Ellie were well matched though.
@hajune Thanks. Your knowledge is impressive and you are obviously an Eleanor Powell fan. Thanks very, very much for sharing both. I wasn't an EP fan until I saw the clip on YOUTUBE of her doing the "Talullah" song with Buddy Rich! WOW! That turned on a big light!. Why didn't she shine more in "Broadway Melodie . . ." You know more about this than I ever will. I'd like to read your ideas concerning that.
@playgued Actually the problem was not how acclaimed she was at the time but that her movies were mysteriously stored away for 30/40 years. There were 4 That's Entertainment related movies that brought her back to life. She was one of 3 in all 4.Then Turner Station came about and her movies were slowly revived. She saved MGM from bankruptcy in Broadway Melody of 1936 & 1938. She was MGM's dancing star and when Fred came to MGM she was seen as his equal plus some. She got more dancing(continue)
@Tobytrim The performers are out there. They're on Broadway. Unfortunately, Hollywood does'nt make many musicals today. The movie musical came at a propitious moment in American history.The 1929 Depression closed many Broadway musicals,throwing performers out of work the same year talking pictures began which created a demand in Hollywood for performers who could talk,sing,dance,play an instrument,etc. In other words,Broadway performers.
@sleedolfine15" The performers are out there. They're on Broadway. Unfortunately, " I agree actually - It's amazing that the popular audience can't see the absolute superior ability of these stage performers ( singers and songs too) to the mainstream offerings.
@Tobytrim Yes,I'm fortunate to live close to New York City & I frequently take the train down to catch a show. Also,my town is a regular stop for road shows travelling from New York. The last thing I saw was the Color Purple which was wonderfully funny & lively. If you have'nt seen it you should treat yourself.
When Ellie and Fred did this movie, Fred was coming off 2 box office flops with Ginger. He was 41 and many thought the best was behind . Ellie saved MGM from bankruptcy twice and she got the lions share of dances. She did an amazing ballot dance and got the first 2:40 in the Begin the Beguine dance. Ellie was the1st ever female rhythm tapper. Fred was a ball room tapper and he was terrified to dance with the great EP. She had to compromise her moves to blend in with the amazing Fred Astaire.
Eleanor Powell was the female Fred Astaire - she was an incredible tap dancer. He admitted that she was the female dancer that intimidated him a bit because she approached dancing like a man. You even see how he relies on her strength to hold up and maintain his weight while he does that pivoting swing with his leg up in the air. She is wonderful, and they are great together.
Ellie had to slow down for Fred in each dance scene. When Fred completed his dance in "Putting On the Ritz( from Blue Skys 1946) he could only do but 1 pourette per second. Ellie in some of her movies did a SUPER HUMAN 3 per second and with grace & elequence. That is why Fred was terrified to dance with the greatest dancer ever.(His words) This is probably their weakest dance in the movie and was meant to show their dancing skills. Dance steps were not stylized as was in their other scenes.
Ellie did a very sensous elegant ballot dance in this movie. She resisted tap until she was almost 16 because she did not think it to be elegant. She wooed east coast audiences with her ballot and wound up in Carneigie Hall at 15. Many think her Hawaaian dance(see the complete one featured on you tube ) think it is the most sensous solo dance ever in the movies! Everybody who met her gravitated to her charisma and high idealism.(Preached and practiced absolute love and forgiveness.)
I have old newspaper/ entertainment reviews about Ellie. Her complete Hawaiian Dance was called the most sensous solo ever done! EP was a a ballot dancer early on and reluctantly became a tap dancer because she thought it not elegant. This routine was supposed to show off F/E's skills. Ellie was the master at creating uneven rhythm moves and pioneered rhythm tap for women. It was not meant to be sensous. Fred advised her to do solos because she was better then they
I love watching Eleanor Powell dance, but it's a cold, technical experience. Her footwork is startling, but there isn't much else going on... she was completely devoid of personality, charm or charisma. Fred, on the other hand, has all of those qualities in abundance and, not for the first time, displays in his own inimitable way the difference between excellence and brilliance.
@JohnnyContagious What a statement, that she was completely devoid of personality and chasima! Ann Miller ,Fayard Nicholas and many other entertainers would disagree with you! She won 5 Emmys and was by all accounts a great speechmaker. The studio gave her 2:40 to herself in the Begin The Beguine dance.The complete Hawaaian dance shows a sensous, charismatic dancer.She saved MGM twice from bankruptcy because the public viewed her as having great charisma and dancing skills .
@hajune I couldn't disagree more. I have little interest in how she, or any star, is off camera, that's irrelevant to my enjoyment of their on-screen persona. While I marvel at Powell's technical ability, unrivalled by any other female before or since, I maintain that she could not act and possessed neither charm nor charisma... like watching a master craftswoman exhibiting a phenomenal talent without the necessary chutzpah to complete the package.
@JohnnyContagious If she had no charisma few would have watched her. She saved MGM from bankruptcy in the 1936 and 1938 in the Broadway Melody mega hits. I have many reviews speaking of her in glowing terms. NOT possible to just be a great dancer without chasima and get huge audiences . She broke all attendance records in Vegas. As stated many entertainers disagree with you, including Fred himself! They gave her the 1st 2:40 in the Begin The Beguine dance.
@hajune You said all that before. I'm not disputing her talent, nor her contributions to the movie musical and the art of dancing on screen. I can't accept your point that a lack of charisma repels audiences, if that were true then nobody would have gone to see Lana Turner, Joan Crawford, Ava Gardner or Kathryn Grayson, to name but a few. I never saw her on stage, much to my regret, and perhaps she truly flourished, but on screen? A machine. A dancing machine, but a machine nonetheless.
@JohnnyContagious Fayard Nicholas called Ellie the most complete dancer ever. He was MESMERIZED by her charisma. When she held her imprompto dance sessions the audience including Robert Osbourne were spellbound by her charm and charisma .She was in her 60's. Ann Miller who attended those sessions and sometimes taught proclaimed she learned stage presence from Ellie. Read the Toscanini quote. Sunsets ,the Grand Canyon & Ellie.
@hajune Your argument relates very strongly to her stage qualities, on which I cannot comment. And you say her contemporaries were mesmerised by her charisma? Maybe so. But I can only comment on how she comes across on screen and there is something sadly lacking, that magical quality that distinguishes the very highest echelon of star quality from the rest. Bill Robinson had it, Gene Kelly had it, the Nicholas Brothers had it and Fred Astaire had it in abundance.
When Arturo Toscanini the greatest conductor of his time was interviewed when he traveled out west (ironically watching rehearsals for this movie) he was in total awe of EP saying this, 3 things I will carry through my life, the glory of a sunset; the granduer of the Grand Canyon; and Eleanor Powell dancing. Ellie was not suited to dance with others because she had to compromise her ability for them. As for Ginger she was well suited for Fred. They had that certain something special together.
The problem with those who think Fred was better then Eleanor is that even Fred himself said Ellie was not only the better dancer but danced in a class by herself as written in his autobiography this view or variations of it is shared by at least 27 mega stars from that era including Fayard Nicholas, Toscanini, Ann Miller, Bill Robinson, Sammy Davis etc etc. Fred was openly intimitated by Ellie but danced with her anyway. So many are guilty of selective observation, not a good way to judge.
Fred never 'held back' with Rogers, they just let loose more when they danced together and were less rigid in their movement in comparison to the strength of Powell and Astaire in this dance. It is not that one is better than the other, it is that they are simply different.
I think the Eleanor Powell fans need to chill out a little. Any comment that even merely suggests that Astaire was a more talented dancer is seized upon and given a 'thumbs down.' I love Eleanor Powell and, superior tap dancer though she may have been, she did not possess Astaires grace, style, or presence.
You can apply this rule when comparing her to Ginger Rogers, an infinitely weaker dancer who complemented Astaire perfectly - their numbers in 'Swing Time' are without equal. And I can't
I've always liked Astaire with Powell more than with Rogers for this dance sequence alone. It always seemed he had to hold back a bit with Ginger because she was an actress who happened to be able to dance, as opposed to Eleanor who could beat the pants off anyone trying to outdance her. It's really striking how much he cuts loose and really goes for it here, as opposed to, say, the gazebo in Top Hat.
That's not to say Ginger Rogers isn't a talented dancer. I just enjoy this pairing more.
well its just what i think you know everyone has their taste and i just think fred is better even Ellie said she was nervous around him because he was so good!
What Ellie and Fred were doing was highly sophisticated. The " rigid" moves were done purposely. The steps that these 2 masters performed were combinations that were not intuitive and a broken rhythm was born. This routine was mostly Ellie's idea. She had 9 months to work it. Ellie had a problem when she danced with any man. She had to slow down to his tempo. She also had to dance in high heels. Watch Fred's Putting On the Ritz ending He did a pirourette every second. Ellie did 1 1/2 a second.
hippytreehuger got 4 negs for saying Fred was 1/2 step behind. Truth is Fred was openly intimidated by Ellie.He called her the greatest dancer ever in his book. Ellie got 2:45 to herself in their famous Begin The Beguine dance. Fred was my favorite male dancer but Ellie was called machine gun Ellie because of her rapid tapping. Watch the end of Ellie's Hawaiian dance.16 pirouttes in 10 seconds with heels while changing leads.That's super human. Fred did 10 in 12 seconds in Putting On The Ritz.
magic, pure magic. but I don't understand how any of you can tell he's a half step behind or that he is having trouble keeping up. ?? looked great to me. would anybody know why fred's estate was so miserable to ginger rogers over the tribute to ginger in her old age? there was a tv special but the Astaire family wanted to be paid for any clips used with the two as they apparently owned the (c).the network refused since nobody else was getting money so clips were withheld . seems so petty.
Amazing video. Astaire is working his ass off but Eleanor is doing the exact same steps with effortless ease. She seems amused by Fred trying to keep up with her. Eleanor Powell is the greatest.
@GarlandFan101 Ur not alone:) I was 15 when I became interested in this stuff, and it all started with a picture of Lauren Bacall, and to this day Im still a huge fan of Golden Hollywood...theres nothing like them, classics were classic and Talent was REAL...todays a crock of shit! The actresses were real and so naturally beautiful, Ginger, Rita and Hedy aswell as Carole Lombard are my favorites:) I was told the same thing So I have to agree with you 100%!
im 16 and i know im born in the wrong era!!! i would die to see amovie like this made in this era but noooo hollywood has become a world of only physical looks and NOT talent. and that is really sad :(
@GarlandFan101 Sweetheart, I am 23 years old and I couldn't agree with you MORE!!!! I would kill to have the time to go back to the way they were back then.
@GarlandFan101 Very few people your age have a grasp on such films.. No, you were born at the right time.. There are quite a few young folks like yourself, who not only love films such as these, but, will one day, work hard to see that they are not once again forgotten..
I dont think they could make musicals like they use to. Idk maybe Im wrong. Wow they could sing, dance, and act had to take a lot of talent. I cant believe how she and all these other ladies danced in hells. I can do basic dancing in hells but nothing like this. What talent. Im 22 and I know there are people my age that like them I just dont know any of them. I refuse to believe Im the only one.
I like all of Astaires partners but they should have done more movies together. She must have been a real challenge to keep up with from some of the quotes I have read of him saying. My mom always tells me I was born in the wrong era because I love musicals. I wish they would bring musicals back and not copy off the old ones. I dont think they could make musicals like they use to. Idk maybe Im wrong. Wow they could sing, dance, and act had to take a lot of talent.
i think that eleanor looks effortless when she dances, and i really respect her, but for whatever reason, i just like astaire's body movements more. i like his style of movement better than eleanor's (if that makes any sense). either way, they're both AMAZING
It's amazing that back in the day actors could sing, dance and act and they made it look soo easy. You don't really see that anymore and I miss seeing that. At least we have old movies to see the greatness of Fred Astaire, Eleanor Powell, and others.
That's their greatness: they worked, sacrificed, and spit up blood for countless hours...all to transport us, take us in completely, and "make it look easy." These were entertainers. These were stars.
pwgardner, I need to tell you that my 13-year-old daughter just discovered Fred Astaire at Christmas time a few months ago, and ever since then she's been bewailing the fact that she will never have a chance to dance with him. She loves watching the old movies with him in them. She is a tap dancer herself, so I keep telling her, maybe some fellow her age will come along...no one can ever be Astaire, but that doesn't mean no one can ever be good.
I would say that Eleanor Powell was an equal match for him ~ a contempary and Ginger and Rita were great partners. Fred had his hands full with Eleanor with her skill-set. Again, Rita and Ginger were great partners for him, but Eleanor was his challenge.
6 dumb-asses don't know what classics are.
JoeyBeniOfficial 2 weeks ago
@JoeyBeniOfficial True.
KoreyHillVideoz 1 week ago
She is full of grace.
ugoughiful 1 month ago
Would have been all in one take, but there is a join @ 1.25. Brilliant.
bootsamou 1 month ago
Arguably the best tap dance routine of all time. In my opinion, better than the famous Begin the Beguine number. It's not just the execution of the tap, it's the "making it into a jazz dance" that is so cool. And they make it look absolutely effortless. So slick. So wonderful.
bootsamou 1 month ago
Betsy Booth is right; Eleanor did great dancing alone, because she was like no one else, and when she danced alone, she wasn't limited by the other person. Fred did some great dancing alone, too, but there are times when you need a couple to dance together, and surely there was never another dance couple like these two.
GeneMcNutt 2 months ago
Interesting how easily Fred outdanced the young Rita Hayworth, is on par with Ginger Rogers - a great couple - but here with Eleanor Powell you see his limits, how easily she outdances him. No wonder he refused to work with her again. They just don't fit. She's much cooler and effective.
rurban 3 months ago
Some people have said that Eleanor looks stiff dancing next to Fred. I am a fan of Fred Astaire, but sometimes he looks kind of sloppy. Oh, he isn't really, we all know how hard he practiced and how meticulous he was, but he had a different style than Eleanor Powell. She was a solo dancer. She was at her best dancing alone because she did more acrobatic moves, with her kicks and splits. And that's something she had him (and everyone else) beat at.
BetsyBooth22 4 months ago
@MidgetBuddie yes!! he really was, wish I could go back in time and watch this amazing entertainment first hand!
TheAbbatha 4 months ago
Eleanor Powell was the best female tap dancer in the movies. It's only natural she would have to be paired up with the best male tap dancer...Fred Astaire.
adwestmediairvine 5 months ago
@adwestmediairvine Did you know that he asked to never be paired with her again? Supposedly he was intimidated by Eleanor...
amysita77 3 months ago
You don't get any more sauve than Fred Astaire and Ballroom tap. It's impossible.
ganixaba 5 months ago
I actually think I was born in the wrong time era cause I'm only 15 and i just can't get enough of movies from the 30's right through to the 50's :L two of the greatest tap dancers in the world :-) But yet somehow it's strange watching Fred dance with anyone but Ginger...
TheAbbatha 5 months ago
@TheAbbatha I know exactly how you feel! Im in the same boat as you, but im 18 :) Wasnt Fred such an amzaing dancer!
MidgetBuddie 4 months ago
Wonderful! :-)
imogenallison 6 months ago
4 people that disliked this video have two left feet
sirArchitect 6 months ago
This is raw talent. You can't get any kind of entertainment like this anymore...
goldkirby 6 months ago
Incredible!
Onegurrrlrev 7 months ago
Eleanor Powell has always been a sort of hero of mine. Wow, I always wanted to be able to dance like that. I rather disagree with her looking stiff...she always left me in awe (along with Fred Astaire of course). Really, she is such an underrated dancer...just too bad she wasn't much of an actress, then people might remember her more.
AquaStar0 7 months ago
And in high heels? Wow.
BCboy65 7 months ago
It is such a shame people from this era are disliking the talent i grew up with. Fred Astaire was always a perfectionist and i had actually met him once in 1956-1957, they dont make fine gentleman like that anymore.
mrsGingerrogers619 7 months ago
Two of the best tap dancers of their generation...and there are still people who press the dislike button?! Well sirs (or ladies) I press the dislike button on YOU. Sheer awesome talent here.
BernieB24 8 months ago
They both are super awesome!
yabadabadoowoohoo 8 months ago
I am sure that Elanor Powell was a wonderful dancer, but next to Astaire she just looks stiff and ungraceful. It is truly amazing how talented he was. I can't imagine how a regular dancer would look next to him.
dagniranum 8 months ago
@dagniranum Eleanor was a very clean technical dancer, but I don't think she looked ungraceful. Rather, Astaire just had that intuitive liquid freeness in his dance that separated him from most of his peers. She could do all the tap stuff he could, he said as much, she just couldn't make it look the way he did-- effortless. I agree with you at how amazing he was, one of a kind, but she wasn't too bad herself.
Yubarco 8 months ago
@Yubarco I should have worded what I said better, but I agree. What I meant was I wonder what a regular Joe Schmoe would look like next to him. It's a testament to her that she can keep up with Astaire. Very few people can even manage that. It is almost unfair to anyone partner of his how good he was. I wouldn't have it any other way though.
dagniranum 8 months ago
@dagniranum
Agree that Astaire is amazing. I've also come to admire Powell more and more with other routines I've seen of hers. There were things she did with tap that even Astaire couldn't, primarily because of her background in ballet (she had routines where she incorporated ballet and at times acrobatics into tap). But I agree with you and Yubarco on that liquid quality of his. If you want to see him with another amazing partner watch the 'Dancing in the Dark' routine with Cyd Charisse.
EandMetal 7 months ago
@Yubarco I think that Eleanor was a better tap dancer than Fred--in fact,I've read that he hesitated to make a movie with her due to his fear of her machine gun like tapping. I do agree that Fred was a better all around dancer--a dancer who executed his moves with deceptive ease--deceptive because it was anything but easy. I love the way he combined classical dance with modern dance moves all to the tunes of Gershwin or Cole Porter.(See Dancing in the Dark in the Bandwagon if you want wow!!)
sleedolfine15 7 months ago
@sleedolfine15 You won't get any argument from me that Eleanor was a superb dancer!
Yubarco 7 months ago
Gone ....This is way gone!! Love it. Way to go kids!! FIERCE!!
preciousbash 8 months ago
I wish I could dance with Fred Astaire!
megnatsar77 9 months ago
I'd like to see Chris Brown do that! Huh :D
Cedricfollyman 9 months ago
they make it looks so easy? i guess it really is 'dance on air?" with fred astare
JOLENE2008 9 months ago
whoops looks like a few people missed the like button
lalalaurel1 10 months ago
c'est SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEXPIALIDOCIOUS .... MERCI ELEANOR POWELL ET FRED ASTAIRE d'avoir illuminé nos vies ... VOUS SEREZ VIVANTS DANS NOS ESPRITS POUR L ETERNITE ...
aroukalyne 10 months ago
Wow!
Snidebark 10 months ago
I wish I had her figure @_@
LeoDeGrand 11 months ago
Everyone knows that Ginger Rogers was a pretty good dancer made to look much better than she was by having Fred Astaire as a partner. On the few occasions he teamed up with Eleanor Powell whose talent was at least his equal, the results are breathtaking. I could watch these two tap-dancing until the cows come home!.
hotwok19 1 year ago 3
@hotwok19 totally agree i loved him wiv ginger but after watching this just wow
aqu1r3 11 months ago
@aqu1r3. Have you watched Eleanor Powell dancing solo to George & Ira Gershwin's Fascinatin' Rhythm sent in by Shuarayki18481?. It is basically tap-dance but involves the whole body & is an absolute marvel of co-ordination lasting nearly four minutes. In my opinion, of its kind it has never been equalled & almost certainly never will be!.
hotwok19 11 months ago 6
@hotwok19 no i havent but i would love to send me a link pls?? :) thank u xx
aqu1r3 11 months ago
@aqu1r3. If you have the same You-Tube format as myself you will find it immediately to the right of my previous message. Just double-click on the icon named Fascinatin' Rhythm.
hotwok19 11 months ago
This is my favourite.....
toy2day 1 year ago
Fantastic film & one of my most favourite dance clips. Absolutely perfect.
bootsamou 1 year ago
Ginger Rogers is Fred's most famous dance partner, but he never danced with anyone better than the great and the incomparable Eleanor Powell.
That's not to say Ginger was a bigger star than Ellie. Ellie was a huge star at her peak who literally saved her studio from bankruptcy. At the height of her popularity she was box office gold, even bigger than Fred, but most people think of Ginger first amongst Fred's dance partners, although Ellie was the best, even Fred was intimidated by her skills.
Dobermite 1 year ago
I saw the quote in the Astaire biography... honest. I didn't make it up.
gustafus21 1 year ago
Wow! This is awesome! Eleanor is really light on her feet, with great rhythm!
chilvari 1 year ago
Fred was a ballroom tapper, Ellie a rhythm tapper. Fred hired John Bubbles the father of rhythm tap tp prepare dancing with Ellie. Fred was humble enough to learn rhythm tapping which is a higher skill level of tap. In this movie Ellie got the lions share of dancing. She could do it all, ballet, acrobatic, those amazing pirourettes ;especially the grand ones, bend backward and touch the floor, kick peripendicular, etc. Her fellow dancers were in total awe of her. See John Bubbles on You Tube.
hajune 1 year ago
wonderful show!
DaRinNicHa 1 year ago
what a wonderful website - I think Eleanore Powell was the greatest female dancer
MrDongburger 1 year ago
In Fred's autobiography he said that she put em down like a man. That was in reference to the fact she was the first female rhythm tapper, not that she was manly. He thought her to be quite feminine. Fred was a ballroom tapper & took lessons from John Bubbles the father of rhythm tap. Ellie danced with Bubbles and thus the lessons were essential for Fred to be able to tap with Ellie.The biggest myth in Hollywood was that Ginger & Fred tapped. Ginger never learned to tap but did ballroom dancing.
hajune 1 year ago
My 'information' about Eleanor Powell was from the biography on Fred Astaire.. I questioned it too... .but the author insists that Powell was no well received by the public - too butch I think were his words.... honest!
I didn't say it ... he did!
gustafus21 1 year ago
@gustafus21 No authorized biography on Fred Astaire has ever been issued. Fred wrote his OWN biography and said of Ellie, she danced in a class by herself. She was not even close to being butch! Watch the complete "Honululu ' dance. It is considered the MOST sensous of all time. Many big stars pursued her such as Clark Gable, Jimmy Stewart & Robert Taylor. She married Glenn Ford. She was the most popular star within the studio. They called her baby. The public loved her. All her movies made $
hajune 1 year ago
@gustafus21 Could you tell me the biography. I am a historian & am not aware of anybody ever saying that about Ellie. Toscanini said of her, 3 things I will take with me always; The glory of a sunset, the granduer of the Grand Canyon, and Eleanor Powell dancing. She almost never started tap. She thought it was to crude. She was a ballet dancer. Gus Edwards discovered her( he was like Ed Sullivan) & hired her because of her feminitity. Fred & Ellie remained close friends throughout their lives.
hajune 1 year ago
I am a tap dancer myself and am the national tap dancing winner in New zealand, This is the lady I have modelled myself off, and I wish i was born back then lol
Semation 1 year ago
@Semation I wish you nothing but good fortune! You modeled yourself after the very best. She was in a class by herself , both off and on the stage. She was called the iron lady because she taped 12 hours a day. I hope you learn the piroutettes, especially the grand pirourettes not commonly taught in tap. Not only was she the only one doing them but often tapped as she was turning. That is super human. Ellie wrote to my mother as a little girl everytime my mom wrote to her.
hajune 1 year ago
@Semation I wish you nothing but good fortune! You modeled yourself after the very best. She was in a class by herself , both off and on the stage. She was called the iron lady because she tapped 12 hours a day. I hope you learn the piroutettes, especially the grand pirourettes not commonly taught in tap. Not only was she the only one doing them but often tapped as she was turning. That is super human. Ellie wrote to my mother as a little girl everytime my mom wrote to her.
hajune 1 year ago
I t's worth viewing a You Tube recently posted Eleanor Powell(9 parts) at the Variety Art Theatre. She talks about many subjects and it will leave no doubt what others thought of her. Elllie had a short run, though a super star. Her 12 movies were put away for 40 years. Tv stations were playing color movies in the 60's/ 70's thinking it was the thing to do to promote color. Finally TCM played her movies along with the 4 "That's Entertainment "movies .The appreciation for Ellie was rekindled.
hajune 1 year ago
When Fred was dancing with Ginger at RKO , MGM was not doing musicals. They changed their stragedy and looked for a Fred Astaire. They found it in Eleanor Powell. Ann Miller said she saved MGM from bankruptcy twice. All her movies made money and often much money. When the 8th & 9th Ginger/Fred movie lost money RKO abandoned musicals. Ellie & Fred did the first $million musical ever. Ellie got the most dance time. Fred admitted being intimidated by Ellie who he said danced in a class by herself.
hajune 1 year ago
How extremely satisfying! Thanks for posting!
METROGNOME57 1 year ago
They're both incredible dancers but Eleanor does it with medium high heel.
It was also quite unusual, for a woman, to Tap Dance in those days.
Amazing dedication and talent !
Profartiste 1 year ago
This is my all-time favorite pairing of Fred with any partner. This is THE best tap routine ever. I am so very VERY glad that somebody posted this, and that other people enjoy it, too.
youhavegottabejoking 1 year ago
Unfortunately Ellie's movies were not on tv until the 80's and when That's Entertainment included her in all 4 segments. Only 3 were so honored. When I did autograph shows a famous male dancer in the early 80's said he never saw her dance because there were no movies out. Not until Robert Osbourne( He called her the greatest ever) and Turner Network started showing her movies did she reappear. According to Ann Miller she twice saved the studio from bankruptcy in Broadway Melody of 1936 & 38
hajune 1 year ago
She was so pupular that Robert Taylor and Jimmy Stewart proposed to her. Clark Gable bought her a Packard Roadster. Al Jolson and Fayard Nicholas were head over heels for her. Glenn Ford married her. etc. etc. She had an infectious smile and not a phoney bone in her body and loved all. She never spoke a bad word about anybody. You do not get 180 men dancing in the background with the studio paying big bucks if you were not popular. Anybody meeting her was totally taken by her even in her 60's.
hajune 1 year ago
His biographer said Eleanor Powell was not popular because she was too butch... people didn't respond to her like his other partners... she certainly was talented.
gustafus21 1 year ago
@gustafus21 Where ever did you get that bogus information. If she was not popular that would not have made this million dollar movie , the first ever musical. She was without question the most popular celebrity within the studio. They called her baby. The blue collar workers loved her. She ate with them despite Louis Meyer's protests early on. Her movies all made money. The public could not get enough of her. Her Honululu dance was voted the most sensous of all time .Watch it. continue
hajune 1 year ago
0:35 that is tight real talent
CuChuFLais4321 1 year ago
It is safe to say Ellie was the most popular and beloved star at MGM within the studio.The blue collar workers loved her. She ate with them and knew their families. Louis Meyer told her not to eat with them. She would be a big star some day. She saved the studio from bankruptcy so he changed his mind. They would build a grandstand for( ONLY) Ellie's performances. The workers were given time off when she performed and she got standing ovations. Not a phony bone in her body and never a bad word.
hajune 1 year ago
What is the name of this movie? I've been trying to find all of Fred Astaire, Eleanor Powell's and Ginger Rogers movies without ordering them online because I do not trust the internet. Where can I find these movies??? Anyone? I really need them!
IndianQueen001 1 year ago
@IndianQueen001 it's in the title card: "Broadway Melody of the 1940" it's the same film with the famous Begin the Beguine number.
randywong 1 year ago
time then Fred. Ellie was the first ever female rhythm dancer. Fred was basically a ballroom tap dancer and he knew he had to learn a thing or 2 to keep up with Ellie. She got as much publicity as Fred in this amazing movie. As Ellie's career ended having a child ,Fred keep going and his dancing became legendary. Ellie made $5000 wkly, Fred $4000 so MGM viewed her their 1st star(She was best friends with Louis Mayer). Rent this movie. Ann Miller has a great introduction to it. It was legendary
hajune 1 year ago
@hajune Thanks again. I take it you mean "That's Entertainment". I will look at it again (haven't seen it since it first came out). I am definitely going to have to read up on Ms. Powell. Please! Anytime there is a youtube or netlix movie with her in it that you think I might enjoy, if you remember, let me know about it. Thanks. And I am adding "Eleanor Powell" to my list of search criteria.
playgued 1 year ago
that is awesome...
garfieldbusuk 1 year ago
This film has (as I recall) four LARGE set pieces with these two - and this ranks right up there with "Begin the Beguine", not as demanding (WOW nothing on film like that "Begin the Beguine" - UNMATCHED by anyone in any form of dancing) but this number is so charming and such a charming introduction to the two of them together for the first time. WONDERFUL.
playgued 1 year ago
@playgued It was the first $million dance film ever recorded. Fred and Ginger movies waned losing $ in their last 2 movies . Fred went to MGM. Ellie was there super star. Ann Miller when introducing this movie in its rerelease claimed Ellie saved MGM from bankruptcy twice. Fred had 29 dance partners in the movies and was intimidated by only one. Ellie was the ONLY female rhythm dancer during the era. Ginger was a ballroom dancer and never learned to tap. Fred and Ellie were well matched though.
hajune 1 year ago
@hajune Thanks. Your knowledge is impressive and you are obviously an Eleanor Powell fan. Thanks very, very much for sharing both. I wasn't an EP fan until I saw the clip on YOUTUBE of her doing the "Talullah" song with Buddy Rich! WOW! That turned on a big light!. Why didn't she shine more in "Broadway Melodie . . ." You know more about this than I ever will. I'd like to read your ideas concerning that.
playgued 1 year ago
@playgued Actually the problem was not how acclaimed she was at the time but that her movies were mysteriously stored away for 30/40 years. There were 4 That's Entertainment related movies that brought her back to life. She was one of 3 in all 4.Then Turner Station came about and her movies were slowly revived. She saved MGM from bankruptcy in Broadway Melody of 1936 & 1938. She was MGM's dancing star and when Fred came to MGM she was seen as his equal plus some. She got more dancing(continue)
hajune 1 year ago
the people who disliked this clip are melons!! its great!!1
happiihoneii 1 year ago 27
@happiihoneii You are right! I would love for Tap dancing to become big again. I think it's a wonderful piece of art.
precious887 1 year ago
@happiihoneii go get 'em fred!
TheJez1958 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@happiihoneii go get 'em fred!
TheJez1958 1 year ago
@happiihoneii lll
TheJez1958 1 year ago
@happiihoneii
Eleanor (and Ginger) did it in heals! Fred was great but the girls were aewsome!
markierna 4 months ago
This is wat a musical now should be..not shit like High School Musical. Fred Astaire is my taping hero =)
SummerGagaRamsay 1 year ago
Le paradis sur terre
gluups 1 year ago
C'est magique !
gluups 1 year ago
LOVELY!!
Natjlove 1 year ago
Where is this standard of talent today? By the laws of genetics it HAS to be out there!
Are the producers shooting it down for something that's easier to exploit?
Tobytrim 1 year ago
@Tobytrim The performers are out there. They're on Broadway. Unfortunately, Hollywood does'nt make many musicals today. The movie musical came at a propitious moment in American history.The 1929 Depression closed many Broadway musicals,throwing performers out of work the same year talking pictures began which created a demand in Hollywood for performers who could talk,sing,dance,play an instrument,etc. In other words,Broadway performers.
sleedolfine15 1 year ago
@sleedolfine15" The performers are out there. They're on Broadway. Unfortunately, " I agree actually - It's amazing that the popular audience can't see the absolute superior ability of these stage performers ( singers and songs too) to the mainstream offerings.
Tobytrim 1 year ago
@Tobytrim Yes,I'm fortunate to live close to New York City & I frequently take the train down to catch a show. Also,my town is a regular stop for road shows travelling from New York. The last thing I saw was the Color Purple which was wonderfully funny & lively. If you have'nt seen it you should treat yourself.
sleedolfine15 1 year ago
When Ellie and Fred did this movie, Fred was coming off 2 box office flops with Ginger. He was 41 and many thought the best was behind . Ellie saved MGM from bankruptcy twice and she got the lions share of dances. She did an amazing ballot dance and got the first 2:40 in the Begin the Beguine dance. Ellie was the1st ever female rhythm tapper. Fred was a ball room tapper and he was terrified to dance with the great EP. She had to compromise her moves to blend in with the amazing Fred Astaire.
hajune 1 year ago 3
uuu
mikeokyutube 1 year ago
Love it!!!!
TheLITC 1 year ago
Eleanor Powell was the female Fred Astaire - she was an incredible tap dancer. He admitted that she was the female dancer that intimidated him a bit because she approached dancing like a man. You even see how he relies on her strength to hold up and maintain his weight while he does that pivoting swing with his leg up in the air. She is wonderful, and they are great together.
rutiaka 1 year ago 3
Ellie had to slow down for Fred in each dance scene. When Fred completed his dance in "Putting On the Ritz( from Blue Skys 1946) he could only do but 1 pourette per second. Ellie in some of her movies did a SUPER HUMAN 3 per second and with grace & elequence. That is why Fred was terrified to dance with the greatest dancer ever.(His words) This is probably their weakest dance in the movie and was meant to show their dancing skills. Dance steps were not stylized as was in their other scenes.
hajune 1 year ago
Ellie did a very sensous elegant ballot dance in this movie. She resisted tap until she was almost 16 because she did not think it to be elegant. She wooed east coast audiences with her ballot and wound up in Carneigie Hall at 15. Many think her Hawaaian dance(see the complete one featured on you tube ) think it is the most sensous solo dance ever in the movies! Everybody who met her gravitated to her charisma and high idealism.(Preached and practiced absolute love and forgiveness.)
hajune 1 year ago
I have old newspaper/ entertainment reviews about Ellie. Her complete Hawaiian Dance was called the most sensous solo ever done! EP was a a ballot dancer early on and reluctantly became a tap dancer because she thought it not elegant. This routine was supposed to show off F/E's skills. Ellie was the master at creating uneven rhythm moves and pioneered rhythm tap for women. It was not meant to be sensous. Fred advised her to do solos because she was better then they
hajune 1 year ago
I love watching Eleanor Powell dance, but it's a cold, technical experience. Her footwork is startling, but there isn't much else going on... she was completely devoid of personality, charm or charisma. Fred, on the other hand, has all of those qualities in abundance and, not for the first time, displays in his own inimitable way the difference between excellence and brilliance.
JohnnyContagious 1 year ago 2
@JohnnyContagious What a statement, that she was completely devoid of personality and chasima! Ann Miller ,Fayard Nicholas and many other entertainers would disagree with you! She won 5 Emmys and was by all accounts a great speechmaker. The studio gave her 2:40 to herself in the Begin The Beguine dance.The complete Hawaaian dance shows a sensous, charismatic dancer.She saved MGM twice from bankruptcy because the public viewed her as having great charisma and dancing skills .
hajune 1 year ago
@hajune I couldn't disagree more. I have little interest in how she, or any star, is off camera, that's irrelevant to my enjoyment of their on-screen persona. While I marvel at Powell's technical ability, unrivalled by any other female before or since, I maintain that she could not act and possessed neither charm nor charisma... like watching a master craftswoman exhibiting a phenomenal talent without the necessary chutzpah to complete the package.
JohnnyContagious 1 year ago
@JohnnyContagious If she had no charisma few would have watched her. She saved MGM from bankruptcy in the 1936 and 1938 in the Broadway Melody mega hits. I have many reviews speaking of her in glowing terms. NOT possible to just be a great dancer without chasima and get huge audiences . She broke all attendance records in Vegas. As stated many entertainers disagree with you, including Fred himself! They gave her the 1st 2:40 in the Begin The Beguine dance.
hajune 1 year ago
@hajune You said all that before. I'm not disputing her talent, nor her contributions to the movie musical and the art of dancing on screen. I can't accept your point that a lack of charisma repels audiences, if that were true then nobody would have gone to see Lana Turner, Joan Crawford, Ava Gardner or Kathryn Grayson, to name but a few. I never saw her on stage, much to my regret, and perhaps she truly flourished, but on screen? A machine. A dancing machine, but a machine nonetheless.
JohnnyContagious 1 year ago
And these shortcomings are woefully exposed when she shares the screen with Astaire.
Its not all about the dancing as Gene Kelly would surely testify.
JohnnyContagious 1 year ago
@JohnnyContagious Fayard Nicholas called Ellie the most complete dancer ever. He was MESMERIZED by her charisma. When she held her imprompto dance sessions the audience including Robert Osbourne were spellbound by her charm and charisma .She was in her 60's. Ann Miller who attended those sessions and sometimes taught proclaimed she learned stage presence from Ellie. Read the Toscanini quote. Sunsets ,the Grand Canyon & Ellie.
hajune 1 year ago
@hajune Your argument relates very strongly to her stage qualities, on which I cannot comment. And you say her contemporaries were mesmerised by her charisma? Maybe so. But I can only comment on how she comes across on screen and there is something sadly lacking, that magical quality that distinguishes the very highest echelon of star quality from the rest. Bill Robinson had it, Gene Kelly had it, the Nicholas Brothers had it and Fred Astaire had it in abundance.
JohnnyContagious 1 year ago
Fantastic!!
sangdelaterra 1 year ago
It seems Fred is desperately to keep up with Eleanor...
nicksacop 1 year ago
When Arturo Toscanini the greatest conductor of his time was interviewed when he traveled out west (ironically watching rehearsals for this movie) he was in total awe of EP saying this, 3 things I will carry through my life, the glory of a sunset; the granduer of the Grand Canyon; and Eleanor Powell dancing. Ellie was not suited to dance with others because she had to compromise her ability for them. As for Ginger she was well suited for Fred. They had that certain something special together.
hajune 1 year ago
The problem with those who think Fred was better then Eleanor is that even Fred himself said Ellie was not only the better dancer but danced in a class by herself as written in his autobiography this view or variations of it is shared by at least 27 mega stars from that era including Fayard Nicholas, Toscanini, Ann Miller, Bill Robinson, Sammy Davis etc etc. Fred was openly intimitated by Ellie but danced with her anyway. So many are guilty of selective observation, not a good way to judge.
hajune 1 year ago
Fred never 'held back' with Rogers, they just let loose more when they danced together and were less rigid in their movement in comparison to the strength of Powell and Astaire in this dance. It is not that one is better than the other, it is that they are simply different.
10EmmaDaniel 1 year ago
see Fred holding back at all in those numbers as has been suggested here.
JohnnyContagious 1 year ago
I think the Eleanor Powell fans need to chill out a little. Any comment that even merely suggests that Astaire was a more talented dancer is seized upon and given a 'thumbs down.' I love Eleanor Powell and, superior tap dancer though she may have been, she did not possess Astaires grace, style, or presence.
You can apply this rule when comparing her to Ginger Rogers, an infinitely weaker dancer who complemented Astaire perfectly - their numbers in 'Swing Time' are without equal. And I can't
JohnnyContagious 1 year ago
I've always liked Astaire with Powell more than with Rogers for this dance sequence alone. It always seemed he had to hold back a bit with Ginger because she was an actress who happened to be able to dance, as opposed to Eleanor who could beat the pants off anyone trying to outdance her. It's really striking how much he cuts loose and really goes for it here, as opposed to, say, the gazebo in Top Hat.
That's not to say Ginger Rogers isn't a talented dancer. I just enjoy this pairing more.
Santclair 1 year ago
marvellous
fozzyua 1 year ago
They are divine, she is fantastic!
appaloosa7 1 year ago
btw I know how hard this stuff is i had to do it for my honours and i couldnt walk straight for a week
FAfan06 1 year ago
well its just what i think you know everyone has their taste and i just think fred is better even Ellie said she was nervous around him because he was so good!
FAfan06 1 year ago
Un...believable....
Fugettaboutit 1 year ago
Astaire's the best--none better, nor can or will there be. He's the ultimate in grace and talent. Perfection!
jgrayson1934 1 year ago
What Ellie and Fred were doing was highly sophisticated. The " rigid" moves were done purposely. The steps that these 2 masters performed were combinations that were not intuitive and a broken rhythm was born. This routine was mostly Ellie's idea. She had 9 months to work it. Ellie had a problem when she danced with any man. She had to slow down to his tempo. She also had to dance in high heels. Watch Fred's Putting On the Ritz ending He did a pirourette every second. Ellie did 1 1/2 a second.
hajune 1 year ago 2
really to me it looks like fred is in front ellies lags are really rigid and and fred is so relaxed also the same with their arms aswell
FAfan06 1 year ago
hippytreehuger got 4 negs for saying Fred was 1/2 step behind. Truth is Fred was openly intimidated by Ellie.He called her the greatest dancer ever in his book. Ellie got 2:45 to herself in their famous Begin The Beguine dance. Fred was my favorite male dancer but Ellie was called machine gun Ellie because of her rapid tapping. Watch the end of Ellie's Hawaiian dance.16 pirouttes in 10 seconds with heels while changing leads.That's super human. Fred did 10 in 12 seconds in Putting On The Ritz.
hajune 1 year ago 2
magic, pure magic. but I don't understand how any of you can tell he's a half step behind or that he is having trouble keeping up. ?? looked great to me. would anybody know why fred's estate was so miserable to ginger rogers over the tribute to ginger in her old age? there was a tv special but the Astaire family wanted to be paid for any clips used with the two as they apparently owned the (c).the network refused since nobody else was getting money so clips were withheld . seems so petty.
betteroffsingle 2 years ago
what movie is this and where do I buy it
sfassnacht0607 2 years ago
Broadway Melody on amazon. Make sure it has fred and eleanor.
lizzyvance 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Poor Fred, he was at least 1/2 a step behind Ellie throughout the whole thing.
hippytreehugger4ever 2 years ago
No waaaay!
MultiBluenote 2 years ago
@hippytreehugger4ever really? to be honest i always thought she looks very rigid, not half as gracefull or flowing as fred
rockermanmatt 1 year ago
i prefer her to ginger rogers D; why didnt he dance with her more?
FearTheFlyinDoughnut 2 years ago 2
Apparently, he was afraid of her.
BethDiane 2 years ago
Wow I Love it !!!!! ☆☆☆☆☆
abo1121 2 years ago
Perfect Together. I love them :)
Cutiecomfy 2 years ago
Amazing video. Astaire is working his ass off but Eleanor is doing the exact same steps with effortless ease. She seems amused by Fred trying to keep up with her. Eleanor Powell is the greatest.
mrogi12 2 years ago
@GarlandFan101 Ur not alone:) I was 15 when I became interested in this stuff, and it all started with a picture of Lauren Bacall, and to this day Im still a huge fan of Golden Hollywood...theres nothing like them, classics were classic and Talent was REAL...todays a crock of shit! The actresses were real and so naturally beautiful, Ginger, Rita and Hedy aswell as Carole Lombard are my favorites:) I was told the same thing So I have to agree with you 100%!
purclassic1 2 years ago
Joy !
legref 2 years ago 2
im 16 and i know im born in the wrong era!!! i would die to see amovie like this made in this era but noooo hollywood has become a world of only physical looks and NOT talent. and that is really sad :(
GarlandFan101 2 years ago 61
I like your name. I really like Miss Garland to. I agree with your comment.
lizzyvance 2 years ago 2
@GarlandFan101 Sweetheart, I am 23 years old and I couldn't agree with you MORE!!!! I would kill to have the time to go back to the way they were back then.
precious887 1 year ago
@precious887 - i'm 31 and would go back to that era in a minute, if i could... sans the racism, of course.
thundernegro 1 year ago
@thundernegro :) This is the best.
precious887 1 year ago
@GarlandFan101 Your right, this was real talent!
phatdic11 1 year ago
@GarlandFan101 Very few people your age have a grasp on such films.. No, you were born at the right time.. There are quite a few young folks like yourself, who not only love films such as these, but, will one day, work hard to see that they are not once again forgotten..
zipper179 1 year ago 24
@GarlandFan101
I here you!!! I'm 22 and love this sort of thing! I would die to have lived back then!
FromThisHour 1 year ago
@FromThisHour
I'm 23 and love it as well. I have all my life even when I was little girl.
lizzyvance 1 year ago
@GarlandFan101
I agree with you so much.
lizzyvance 1 year ago
I dont think they could make musicals like they use to. Idk maybe Im wrong. Wow they could sing, dance, and act had to take a lot of talent. I cant believe how she and all these other ladies danced in hells. I can do basic dancing in hells but nothing like this. What talent. Im 22 and I know there are people my age that like them I just dont know any of them. I refuse to believe Im the only one.
lizzyvance 2 years ago 2
You're absolutely not the only one. I'm also 22 and believe I was born in the wrong decade! How I adore the Golden Era of Hollywood. :-)
britlitreader 2 years ago 3
I like all of Astaires partners but they should have done more movies together. She must have been a real challenge to keep up with from some of the quotes I have read of him saying. My mom always tells me I was born in the wrong era because I love musicals. I wish they would bring musicals back and not copy off the old ones. I dont think they could make musicals like they use to. Idk maybe Im wrong. Wow they could sing, dance, and act had to take a lot of talent.
lizzyvance 2 years ago
They were both wonderful dancers.
But the best thing about this clip was that gorgeous giggle at the end
Thank you kusifai
pattyodors 2 years ago
what movies were they in together?
lizzyvance 2 years ago
This film was the only time they performed together.
JudithIN410 2 years ago
Astaire was quoted as telling her that he enjoyed it, but didn't want to do it again - because she worked him too hard!
JudithIN410 2 years ago
love this clip you can watch it again and again and find something new about it
FAfan06 2 years ago
i think that eleanor looks effortless when she dances, and i really respect her, but for whatever reason, i just like astaire's body movements more. i like his style of movement better than eleanor's (if that makes any sense). either way, they're both AMAZING
Floydfan101 2 years ago
Fantastic - thank you.
GregInSB 2 years ago
grandioso grandioso grandioso!
claudiacal 2 years ago
Iwonder if their talent would be corrupted if they were around today,
sladedude44 2 years ago 3
They make it look so easy.
rapitroy 2 years ago 2
true that...so do these dudes...check out my vid of "Paulo Nutini new release pencil full of lead with Al Minns and Leon James dancing"
DARKnDODGY 2 years ago
Smooth!!
epdisme 2 years ago
It's amazing that back in the day actors could sing, dance and act and they made it look soo easy. You don't really see that anymore and I miss seeing that. At least we have old movies to see the greatness of Fred Astaire, Eleanor Powell, and others.
MadMadMedusasSoul 2 years ago 7
That's their greatness: they worked, sacrificed, and spit up blood for countless hours...all to transport us, take us in completely, and "make it look easy." These were entertainers. These were stars.
whupass95 2 years ago 5
i posted a link for this on a crappy hannah montana video to introduce them to some culture
cheesenedd 2 years ago 66
hahahah, thats great.
Tap2323 2 years ago 4
@cheesenedd I love you <3 lol!
AjahTheAsian 1 year ago
Ellie has been quoted as saying this was her favorite number from the film.
JudithIN410 2 years ago 3
Amazing.
ashleyyjamilaa 2 years ago
I love her little laugh at the end. Ellie may have been athletic, but she didn't let you forget she was a girl.
walt1896 2 years ago 3
Wow - she's so crisp! It looks effortless when she does it.
dunnonuffink 2 years ago 2
pwgardner, I need to tell you that my 13-year-old daughter just discovered Fred Astaire at Christmas time a few months ago, and ever since then she's been bewailing the fact that she will never have a chance to dance with him. She loves watching the old movies with him in them. She is a tap dancer herself, so I keep telling her, maybe some fellow her age will come along...no one can ever be Astaire, but that doesn't mean no one can ever be good.
barabi51 2 years ago
THIS IS AMAZING. I'm in crazy for you right now. I junior the cowboy. What song is this?
scholzy8 2 years ago
I would say that Eleanor Powell was an equal match for him ~ a contempary and Ginger and Rita were great partners. Fred had his hands full with Eleanor with her skill-set. Again, Rita and Ginger were great partners for him, but Eleanor was his challenge.
ladyvolsfans 2 years ago 4
Yes, Fred met his match in Ellie.
She didn't "need" him, and even when dancing with him seemed like a solo
She didn't do "girlie" stuff. Even wearing a skirt, she danced like a guy,That's what set her apart. Ellie shines.
wasittoyou 2 years ago 2