| Fred Astaire Hollywood Legend |
| He has been referenced from top music artists to top films. There is no doubt of this mans stance as a legend in Hollywood. Known for his dance, stance, and tophat - Fred Astaire stands as a top entertainment heavyweight!! Here is his story ... He was born, Frederic Austerlitz, Jr., on May 10, 1899, in Omaha, Nebraska. The son of an Austrian immigrant, young Fred entered show business at age 5 with his younger sister, Adele. Upon their entry in Vaudeville, their last name was changed to Astaire. During the 1920s, Fred and Adele appeared on Broadway and on the London stage in shows such as Lady Be Good, Funny Face and The Band Wagon, winning popular acclaim with the theater crowd on both sides of the Atlantic. They split in 1932, when Adele married her first husband, Lord Charles Cavendish, a son of the Duke of Devonshire. Fred went on to achieve success on his own on Broadway and in London with Gay Divorce, while considering offers from Hollywood. According to Hollywood folklore, an RKO Pictures screen test report on Astaire, now lost along with the test, is supposed to have read: "Can't sing. Can't act. Balding. Can dance a little." The producer of the Astaire-Rogers pictures Pandro S. Berman claimed he had never heard it in the 1930s and that it only emerged years later. Astaire, in a 1980 interview on ABC's 20/20 with Barbara Walters, insisted that the report had actually read: "Can't act. Slightly bald. Also dances". However the test was clearly disappointing and in a 1933 studio memo David O. Selznick, who had signed Astaire to RKO and commissioned the test, described it as "wretched". In any event, the test report did not affect RKO's plans for Astaire, first loaning him out for a few days to MGM in 1933 for his Hollywood debut, where he appeared as himself dancing with Joan Crawford in the successful musical film Dancing Lady. His professional career was born! Astaire went on to make an astonishing career for himself, all the while becoming an unforgettable Hollywood legend. He, along with his dancing partner, Ginger Rogers, with whom he danced in 9 RKO pictures, and numerous apperances. Throughout his career, he also worked in radio and (of course), broadway. He took a brief hiatus from his film career in the 40's to open the Fred Astaire Dance Studios, Astaire returned to film to star in more musicals through 1957. He subsequently performed a number of straight dramatic roles in film and TV. Astaire made headlines again at age 80 when it was widely reported that he was hospitalized after breaking either his arm, wrist, or hip, depending upon the account, while riding a skateboard. It was much later revealed that he fell in the tub. Fred Astaire died in 1987 from pneumonia at the age of 88, and was interred in the Oakwood Memorial Park Cemetery in Chatsworth, California. One last request of his was to thank his fans for their years of support. RIP Mr. Astaire. The mark you left on the dance floor, is permanent!! TRIVIA: Fred Astaire is biographical entry number 0000001 at the Internet Movie Database. At the time of filming Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, Fred has expressed desire on playing the part of Willy Wonka, but was turned down because he was too old for the role. Taking Back Sunday has a song called "I Am Fred Astaire" on their album Where You Want to Be. Lucky Boys Confusion has a song called "Fred Astaire" |
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