Astaire Week: Begin the Beguine

August 19, 2012 • 2:20 pm

This is my first post from 30,000 feet, and I’m convinced that the installation of wireless on planes will be the death of me. I’ve always counted on airplanes’ freedom from internet to afford me huge chunks of uninterrupted reading time. But since this is only an hour flight, my one book is by theologian Alvin Plantinga (more painful than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick), and internet is ony $5 for the nonce on Southwest (my favorite airline), so be it.

Thanks to my friend Latha, I’ve recently rediscovered the marvels of Fred Astaire, certainly the greatest “popular” male dancer of the 2oth century. He was an artistic polymath: not only a great dancer and choreographer, but a talented drummer and a hugely underrated singer with a light but expressive voice.  Watching some of his videos in the past two weeks, I’ve realized what a massive talent he was.

So, for the next seven days, let’s look at that talent.

Born Frederick Austerlitz in 1899 (he lived until 1987), Astaire had many famous partners, including Ginger Rogers, Eleanor Powell, and, later Cyd Charisse. But some of his best work, as we’ll see in the coming days, was on his own. Perhaps his best known “couples” dance on film is this 1940 routine to “Begin the Beguine” with Eleanor Powell.  As Wikipedia notes,

His first post-Ginger dance partner was the redoubtable Eleanor Powell—considered the finest female tap-dancer of her generation—in Broadway Melody of 1940 where they performed a celebrated extended dance routine to Cole Porter‘s “Begin the Beguine“. In his autobiography Steps in Time, Astaire remarked, “She ‘put ’em down like a man’, no ricky-ticky-sissy stuff with Ellie. She really knocked out a tap dance in a class by herself.”

Watch this video carefully; I’m convinced that we’ll never see a dance talent like this again. It knocks me out.

Powell was great, but looks, well, labored next to Astaire, whose hallmark was the ease and grace with which he performed incredibly difficult steps. Even Gene Kelly, another giant talent in movie dancing I admire, is not close to being in the same league with Astaire.

49 thoughts on “Astaire Week: Begin the Beguine”

    2. I think that as Cole Porter used the word in the song, “beguine” referred to a rumba-like dance that had some popularity in the 1930s.

    3. According that infallible fount of all true knowledge, W*k*p*d**,

      “The beguine is a dance and music form, … coming from the islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique, where in local Creole Beke or Begue means a White person, and Beguine is the female form.”

      – whereas the Shorter Oxford Dictionary (SOED) says of the lay sisterhood,

      beguine /beI”gi:n/ n.1 Also bé-.LME. [(O)Fr. béguine (MDu., MHG begne), med.L Beguina, perh. ult. f. MDu. vb = mutter (prayers): see – INE3.]

  3. Dr Coyne, “first post at 30,000ft” you could always do what I keep telling my golf partner. Turn the bloody thing off. 🙂

  4. [About Fred Astaire] “Sure he was great, but don’t forget Ginger Rogers did everything he did backwards…and in high heels!” — Bob Thaves 1982 © NEA Inc.

    1. I think she said that herself! I have her biography – she was a ‘Christian Scientist’, which is obviously a logical impossibility.

  5. Asaire was amazing. I’ve always like Gene Kelly better, though. I think there was a solidity and athleticism to his style that I find very appealing. Astaire was always so skinny he seemed to be floating because he was weightless, whereas Kelly seemed to defy gravity.

    Looking forward to the rest of the series.

    2. Totally agree! For instance, Kelly is the the greatest D’Artagnan because of his athleticism. And even if that film is not a musical, the action is staged in such a way that he seems to dance while fencing.

      I’ve read that during the 30s Astaire’s talent was already declining. His greatest years might have been during the 20s when he performed on stage with his equally talented sister.

    3. I concur; Astaire was amazing, but I prefer to watch Kelly for his energy and athleticism. I think there was a bit more humour to Kelly’s dancing too, though that may have been a by-product of the roles he played.

      Plus my late and much loved step-father had a striking resemblance to Gene Kelly (in face and build), so there is always an element of wistful reminiscence when watching him.

    5. Connie Willis once said something to the effect that Kelly was a showoff who wanted you to see how difficult his moves were, whereas for Astaire the whole point was to make it seem effortless.

  6. I love Astaire – first beguiled by him when I was about 17 or 18. Partly it was the good-hearted nature of the films, partly the design, partly the dancing & partly – perhaps mostly – the music.

  7. It is surely what Powell is wearing (high shoulders, a fullish skirt that makes her bare lower legs more obvious and the shoes – high-heeled and chunky, unlike Astaire’s – also very obvious: all this splits her into parts and makes her look clumsier and less relaxed than Astaire in his loose, low-shouldered white suit that makes him look all of a piece (his feet included). They are both marvellous, and, yes, Astaire is absolutely extraordinary (the only time you’ll see such grace of movement is with some qigong master).

  8. Astaire deserves the title of greatest ever, but I think you’re dissing Gene Kelly. He had an athletic style very different from Astaire, maybe best exemplified in the “Singing in the Rain” routine. It’s apples and oranges. Both are great — Astaire for grace and Kelly for exuberance.

    1. Kelly conveyed more of a everyman blue-ish collar feeling and more than Astaire knew how to cinematically choreograph for the moving camera. Astaire worked more like a stage choreographer (the camera moves only a bit in the clip above).

      Nonetheless I still like Astaire’s overall style the best.
      Most of his choreography was a close collaboration of himself and a Greek fellow named Hermes Pan.

      1. Many years ago I told a (casual) girlfriend that I preferred Gene Kelly to Fred Astaire. She never spoke to me again. 🙂

  9. Jerry, so glad you are experiencing him. He was astounding. I can’t get enough of his dancing.
    Watch the Dick Cavett interview some time (available on Netflix)… very unassuming person.Even with a very bad back he flitted around effortlessly on the show.
    Also, listen to the commentary on the DVD of “Holiday Inn” (1942) and hear the nice story of how he did that amazing drunken bit in that movie (clip avail. on YouTube).
    People wrote songs for his sensitive voice.

    I think maybe if someone else comes along with that sort of talent that today’s society won’t reward it enough.

  10. I do some serious athletics, despite advancing age, so it has come up in conversation to be asked “Who was or is the greatest male athlete in your opinion/experience?”

    Though it is not Astaire, who certainly was great, that’s not far off. My answer is always some dancer, perhaps Baryshnikov (sp?), and of course it’s not just the athleticism one appreciates.

  11. I don’t think I’ve ever seen or heard anything so fascinating that was no more than swinging the hands and tapping the feet. When we think of “dancing” we usually have in mind much more whole-body movement.

  12. I hope you will include Astaire and Charisse dancing to “Dancing in the Dark.”

  14. I’m not being funny but do people actually find that stuff entertaining? Totally lost me.

    1. For one minute, yes. After that it always strikes me how limited in expression this type of dancing is. I mean, it’s not very likely to see a dying swan a la Tchaikovsky in tap dance.

      1. Yes, it is 10 seconds of “oh yes, you can do that, amazing” and then it is “and now what?”

    2. Yup, many people are extremely entertained by tap. There are whole tap dance concerts which are well attended. Whole tap dance movies, which do as well as any other dance style.

    3. Hmm…

      I watched and enjoyed the whole thing with the sound off! (In deference to others here who are watching TV.)

      But I grew up with these movies; my parents were fans of all the Hollywod musicals and regularly watched the Sunday manatees on TV.

      /@

        1. Yes, I think the manatees specialize more in doing Swan Lake, Firebird, and Romeo & Juliet!!
          (especially manatees with Russian citizenship)

  15. What set Fred Astaire apart from the others (to me) was his meticulous attention to detail: hand movements, gestures etc., all rehearsed ’til they became second nature to him.

    The dance number (and really more than just a dance number) I keep re-visiting is “Cheek to Cheek” (Top Hat 1935) with Ginger Rogers.

    Favorites:

    Carioca / Flying Down to Rio
    Pick Yourself Up / Swing time
    So Near and Yet So Far / You’ll Never Get Rich
    The Shorty George / You Were Never Lovelier

    1. Oh, that reminds me of the (likely apocryphal) story of the DJ who got the news that Astaired had died, grabbed the first Astaire recording he could, and followed his announcement with “Cheek to Cheek”…

      “Heaven. I’m in heaven. …”

      😮

      /@

  16. My gut reaction was to be annoyed at yet another man focusing on a man who would have been much less without all his female partners who did everything he did, and usually just as well. I rewatched the video, and I do see what you’re talking about. He doesn’t seem to be as affected by gravity as she is. It’s like his feet just don’t hit the ground as hard as hers–he taps, she stomps. It is very subtle, though, and she definitely does a very good job. I briefly studied tap, and it’s HARD. I have a massive amount of respect for all accomplished dancers, and I do wish people wouldn’t just throw away the contributions of half of them.

  17. Fred Astaire is amazing, but I must say I couldn’t get my eyes of Powell. So much smile in her whole body.
    And I can’t even begin to think how many hours they must have practised!?!

  18. Now this is something I can get behind!

    we’ll never see a dance talent like this again. It knocks me out.

    Today’s acrobatic and/or robotic dancing speaks of a strength and body control that knocks *me* out, especially in rehearsed group routines. But yes, there will never be such a movie slot again.

    I like the current trend of using parkour in action movies though, yesterday’s showcasing of acrobatics were boring, and it has recaptured some of the grace that the human body can capture at best of times.

    Powell was great, but looks, well, labored next to Astaire,

    I should thinks so, since she is laboring in high heels (and a flailing skirt)! And in his routine, made to make him look good.

    But certainly after taking all that into account, Astaire was probably the larger talent. As people noted above, he is more fluid and has a more natural stance (high heels makes that comparison iffy though).

    1. Try dancing in tails and looking light as a feather. It takes much more skill to make it all look effortless.

  19. Dr. C: Can you please explain why SWA is your favorite AL?

    For me, they have never had a convenient schedule/routing and just watching the boarding process from another gate area made me wonder about the experience … The whole no-boarding pass, first in line gets the choose the best seat thing seemed herd-like to me. Please enlighten me.

  20. Fred was from a more courtly time. He certainly was enormously gifted and vain. In his time few were so admired. His “star” seems to have faded to a lower magnitude of late but there will never be another like Fred.

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