fred astaire et gene kelly

By the 1960s a new wave of young filmmakers were looking to break free from the tired, formulaic tradition of MGM’s big budget Technicolor productions featuring singing and dancing. The true genius of a Fred Astaire film was that he was such a brilliant dancer, the camera could just roll on him as he performed a routine in a single, unbroken take. Fred Fred Astaire fait ses adieux au cinéma en 1946, après avoir joué dans Ziegfeld Follies (Ziegfeld Folies), une comédie musicale à grand spectacle, tournée en technicolor et avec une pléiade de vedettes. Fred Astaire est un Acteur, Choregraphe, Producteur associé américain. The dancers’ Broadway beginnings would shape their later Hollywood careers: Fred would concern himself largely with dancing and routines while Gene’s primary concern was a larger one, advancing the art of cinematic choreography and the film musical genre. I have watched this film and I can confirm it is, indeed, terrible. And in the meantime, I would focus my energy on learning as much as I could - about films, literature, history. And when it comes to the world of dance, the lines have been clearly drawn - was Fred Astaire or Gene Kelly the best dancer of their era? Video below. Crown Publishers, New York. Partition 'S Wonderful. D’autres danseurs comme Gene Kelly, auquel on l’oppose; dans un sketch de Ziegfeld Folies sont prêts à prendre sa place. After spending the war in occupied Paris, Tinseltown was a revelation, and she soon took it by storm, appearing with the likes of Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly in more than 40 films. Here, we see neither was better than the other, just different. Chicago won Best Picture in 2002, and Moulin Rouge created quite a stir. This is why Kelly was at his lovable best when he played hammy actors such as Don Lockwood in Singin’ in the Rain (1952) or Serafin in The Pirate (1948) or cocky sailors like Joe Brady in Anchors Aweigh, 1945, and Gabey in On the Town, 1949. $9.99 to buy. Ajouter à une playlist; Voir la fiche film. Unlike Astaire, Kelly seemed to lack the ability to translate to singing the musicality he so aptly expressed with his body. Star Wars or Star Trek? It was also the only color film they appeared in together. It is obvious the two men admired and respected each other and enjoyed working together, but yes, there’s a certain lack of gusto in the performance. Tous en scène ! MGM lost a huge amount of money on Finian’s Rainbow. Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire in the Zigfield Follies. Fred Astaire, de son vrai nom Frederick Austerlitz, naît le 10 mai 1899 à Omaha (Nebraska). The New Yorker’s Russell Maloney put it this way in a review of Thousands Cheer (1943): “Gene Kelly … is a beautiful dancer, but he’s not a musical-comedy actor…The horse of sincerity in the bathroom of musical comedy, that’s Gene Kelly.”. 1970. pp. Over the years, Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly have been compared and contrasted endlessly. To this end, I do not possess a great deal of technical knowledge about dancing, but I have spent untold hours watching Astaire and Kelly. ... de Gene Kelly, Stanley Donen 1955 États-Unis 1h41. Si Fred Astaire excelle aux claquettes, Gene Kelly est excellent “pieds nus”, et par ailleurs – me semble-t-il – chorégraphe plus abouti. Image courtesy of MGM and Warner Bros. Ses admirateurs ne seront pas longtemps déçus puisque, alors qu’il tourne Parade de Printemps avec Judy Garland, en octobre 1947, Gene Kelly se blesse à la cheville et appelle Fred Astaire pour le remplacer. Still, despite these flaws, to fans of both men, the number stands on its own merit as an unadulterated treasure. Friedrich E. Austerlitz, le père de Fred Astaire, brasseur originaire de Linz, émigre d'Autriche vers les États-Unis en 1892, où il épouse Johanne Geilus, institutrice née en dans le Nebraska mais d'ascendance prussienne . Songwriters loved him because of his obvious respect for the lyric and where it should be placed in relation to the musical accompaniment. While Pal Joey was a much darker musical in many respects than Gene would ever be a part of again, the idea of a more integrated production was one that would stick with him throughout his career. In 1955, Fred appeared as the mystery celebrity guest on What’s My Line? It gave me great joy to revisit that era in American cinema history, sitting on the couch with my grandmother who had borne witness to that very history as it was being made. Il est probablement, avec Fred Astaire, la personnalité masculine la plus marquante de la comédie musicale hollywoodienne des années 1950. The Barkleys of Broadway was Fred and Ginger’s only non-RKO film, and it was the last film they starred in together. Thin and reedy like his frame, it does not project power or depth. Forget it. Coppola wanted to inject some film school realism and gravitas into the film, which is about - and I cannot stress this enough - an Irish rogue who finds a pot of gold and tries to bury it while being pursued by a singing and dancing leprechaun. While Fred and Gene shared the screen in the 1974 musical compilation/documentary That’s Entertainment (right), they only danced together once in their prime: in “The Babbitt and the Bromide” number from Ziegfeld Follies (1945). He had a greater desire than Fred to incorporate different styles of dancing into the mainstream musical, particularly ballet. It was Fred Astaire’s last starring role in a musical, and by 1968 some of the pep had obviously gone out of his step. Levant was a super weird and super interesting character. But even this role was rather demanding when compared with most of Fred’s as it called for a dark edge: Kelly’s Harry was an opportunist and a draft dodger. Fred’s body was longer and leaner than Gene’s, and this higher center of gravity contributes to an overall lightness of form and movement. That is how I first got turned onto cinema - I was desperate to distract myself from how much I hated my job, so I sought solace in the pursuit of knowledge. Reportedly, Fred made dismissive and embarrassed comments about his acting to himself as he watched. Another way Gene Kelly imparts joy is in how he inspires a person to think that if s/he just tries hard enough, s/he might be able to do what he does. Oxford comma or regular person? Naturally, this is obvious when one considers that he often danced in top hat and tails, but his sense of class supersedes his wardrobe and any related label or socioeconomic standing. And I think I can speak articulately on not only their dancing, but also their singing and acting. Kelly allows us to see he’s working hard — constantly pushing and pulling against the limits of gravity and the human body. Filme sobre Grace Kelly abre Festival de … Retrouvez ce media sur Ina.fr. 3.9 out of 5 stars 42. For a while it seemed like the musical was primed for a comeback. Gene was a bit shorter (5’7″ to Fred’s 5’9″) and more muscular and, therefore, he always seems bound to the ground. Kelly never much liked his own voice, and it was only with some reluctance that he agreed to sing at his own house parties, of which there were many. Ziegfeld Follies (1946) – The Babbit and the BromideWatch ZIEGFELD FOLLIES Now! Focus sur Fred Astaire / Gene Kelly. In the mid-2000s I had finished my degree at UCLA and was working in commercial real estate in Los Angeles. Arrangement pour Piano, SSA, Vocal et Trompette. The story is that both men went out of their way to be accommodating as the number was being developed and rehearsed, which resulted in a finished product that is pleasant to look at but doesn’t really capture the style of either man. It blew me away. Prime Video $2.99 $ 2. It should. Choisissez parmi des contenus premium Fred Astaire de la plus haute qualité. quaint. Maybe I’m wrong, but I don’t think Don Lockwood features prominently in any iconic music videos from the 1980s. She was slipping into early Alzheimer’s by then, but with dementia the first thing to go are the more recent memories. 70. He will not even go to see his rushes…He always thinks he is no good.”. The characters he tended to play were brash and outspoken. I would guess that Fred’s innate sense of rhythm, honed by years of dancing, also contribute to his perfect timing and phrasing. Suivre. Astaire’s motions can be big and expansive, but no one is fooled. Astaire is elegance; Kelly is brute force. — Fred Astaire. 23 mars 2017 - Cette épingle a été découverte par Novin Kz. Fred’s dancing says, “Pfft. No matter how fast Astaire moves, he never seems to be working very hard. He seemed to have invisible wings on loan from Heaven that allowed him to take flight in his shoes. They both deserve our acclaim and our affection. When he moved it was like lightning - beautiful, fleeting and charged. The Absurdity of Cobra Kai is the Key to Its Success. Toutefois, il s'exprimait différemment de son aîné : doté d'une silhouette plus massive, il a imposé un style, fondé sur la puissance et l'énergie, relevant de la performance acrobatique et de l'effort athlétique. Formation Accords, Tab et Paroles Take the production design and costuming from 1953’s The Band Wagon, starring Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse. À suivre. Similarly, director Vincente Minnelli stated that Fred “lacks confidence to the most enormous degree of all the people in the world. Unfortunately, his albums suffer from poor production values and a general lack of quality material. De Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, George Gershwin et Ira Gershwin. It has been said that Fred never let anyone watch him rehearse, and would keep guards on hand while he was working out a routine. Contemporary musicals are all about the flash and the sizzle, falling victim to the modern obsession with lots of edits and quick cuts and kinetic, frenzied camera movements. This was back when Netflix delivered DVDs via mail, and they had a HUGE library, so when I got to the part in film history about RKO and the MGM musicals, I was able to rent them off Netflix and have them delivered to the house. The whole … (Fred eventually got the role anyway after Gene broke his ankle playing volleyball.). The film is wild and weird and features some stunning Technicolor dance numbers from Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers who had not lost a step since their RKO days. He was a classically trained pianist and a hypochondriac and during the film he randomly busts out virtuoso numbers on the piano like Sabre Dance and Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No 1. Life is wonderful and you’ve been given another day to live it. When Astaire’s identity was finally revealed, Dorothy Kilgallen protested and told him she thought him one of the finest singers who ever lived. Gene Kelly et Fred Astaire à Cannes - Archive INA. Performance memorável dos maiores ídolos da dança de Hollywood. You’ll never be this good.” Gene’s dancing, while equally as spectacular in its own way, is honest and human. Java-Lombok: Do we need getters and setters? Signaler. Gene Kelly’s style of dancing was highly athletic and physical. Because Astaire arrived so much earlier and there was little to no competition from the cinema, Fred spent much more time on Broadway than Gene. Rétrospective du festival préparée par Jean CROZIER et consacrée ce soir à Gene KELLY. And if Finian’s Rainbow is any indication, that might be for the best. In these pictures, over-acting becomes almost necessary. Fred’s lack of confidence stemmed, no doubt, from the quality of his instrument. Times had changed, and the musical was on the way out. When the blindfolded panel tried to ascertain his identity by asking if he was a singer, his answer was no. The role didn’t demand it. Just a supremely talented dancer floating across the dance floor while the camera captured it all. And in all but a few of his musical films, this charming and affable character was a role familiar to Fred: that of a professional dancer. The Great Movie Stars, The Golden Years. He’s a piece of history, and one that I could happily re-visit with my grandmother while she was still with us. But one senses he was often forced to stretch his voice beyond its powers. All of this background information is important because it affected how the Astaire and Kelly approached acting. Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. Gene’s dancing is in a different dimension, poles apart from Fred’s. Aside from the fact that Fred and Ginger did a lot to popularize movie musicals in the 1930s, thus setting the stage for Gene Kelly’s later success at MGM, true dance aficionados know that Fred Astaire was the real deal. (For more on Brigadoon, please visit Marc’s post). (Here’s a bit of advice for you kids out there thinking about doing a BA in English at UCLA: employers don’t give a shit about Chaucer!). I would much rather have “The Babbitt and the Bromide” than nothing at all. This becomes evident even with a strong dancer like Donald O’Connor in the number “Moses Supposes” from Singin’ in the Rain. Reportedly, Gene had wanted to do something new but acquiesced to Fred, the older and more established man. Wine or beer? 25-29 as referenced in Billman, Larry: Fred Astaire - A Bio-bibliography, Greenwood Press, Connecticut, 1997. But he was, and grandma was wrong. The days of the MGM musicals are gone, and unlikely to be revived. Il inscrit son nom à plusieurs classiques du genre, tels que Le Pirate, Un Américain à Paris et Brigadoon de Vincente Minnelli, Un jour à New York et Chantons sous la pluie qu'il coréalise avec Stanley Donen, Les Girls de George Cukor ou encore Les Demoiselles de Rochefort de Jacques Demy. I started going through Astaire’s filmography, ordering films from Netflix and having them mailed to my grandma’s house so we could watch them together. The two are a study in contrasts. Enregistrée par Novin Kz. Trouvez les Fred Astaire images et les photos d’actualités parfaites sur Getty Images. The typical Fred character didn’t get angry or upset very often, and tended to take life as it came. It’s just that within the realm of musical comedy, Astaire tended to play the same sort of charming and affable character over and over again. In spite of his affability and his warm smile, this effortlessness gives him a remote, untouchable quality. The mechanism is never on display. Follow THE OUTTAKE: Medium | Twitter | Facebook. But the film also reflects the tensions that were going on under the surface in Hollywood at the time. While Ms. Kilgallen may have been a bit effusive in her praise, it is true that Fred was and is highly regarded not so much as a singer but as an interpreter of popular song, by fans and songwriters alike. Additionally, he had the benefit of working with better musicians and arrangers — most notably with the jazz giant Oscar Peterson on 1953’s release Steppin’ Out: Astaire Sings. Picard or Kirk? He does have some shining moments, “Love is Here to Stay” from An American in Paris (1951) chief among them (below). He’s eminently likeable, but he seems to be saying, “I know I’m not very good at this, but I’m sure you’ll be kind enough to put up with me until we get to the next song. Further, because Kelly is so strong, he has tremendous control over his movements so that even while he seems to be exploding in all directions at once, perfection and precision win out. Fred demurred charmingly and almost bashfully. If you enjoyed this, please hit the green “Recommend” button below so others might also enjoy it. Second Chorus. À ce titre, il prend place dans la mémoire cinéphilique au côté de Fred Astaire. Singin’ in the Rain might be more famous on a purely pound-for-pound basis, but that doesn’t make it the better film, nor does it make Kelly the better dancer. Oughta be one in (glances at watch) just a few minutes.”, In fact, fellow dancer and costar Ann Miller once recalled sitting next to Fred at an event in which scenes from his films were shown. So it’s not just that Fred Astaire is a great dancer, perhaps the greatest of all time. Furthermore, his tremendous charm when putting over a song within the context of the film musical in many cases surpasses even Fred’s. We need to situate them in the context in which they were created and meant to be enjoyed, and from the 1930s to the 1950s, the extremely popular genre of the movie musical was dominated by Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly, who expressed mutual admiration for one another but were no doubt wildly competitive as they appeared very rarely together on screen (The Zigfield Follies, I believe, is the only time they shared a major number together). There is no better showcase for Fred’s vocal talent. Perhaps he was never given the opportunity to produce something of better quality. It’s a fun little musical, and an interesting slice of film history, but it’s not gonna knock your socks off. Whenever I wanted to needle my grandma, I would just casually say to her “You know Fred Astaire was clearly a better dancer than Gene Kelly.” Voir plus d'idées sur le thème Actrice, Fred astaire, Comédie musicale. ... Bertrand Bonello . 16 août 2017 - Explorez le tableau « Fred Astaire » de Adaline G, auquel 652 utilisateurs de Pinterest sont abonnés. En 1946, Fred Astaire annonce qu’il ne souhaite plus tourner de films. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers pretty much owned the 1930s, pumping out 9 hits from 1933 to 1939 at RKO including classics like Top Hat and Swing Time. Découvrez vos propres épingles sur Pinterest et enregistrez-les. If it weren’t for their dancing abilities, neither Fred nor Gene would be famous today. I don’t mean to suggest that I agree. Starring: Audrey Hepburn , George Peppard , Fred Astaire , et al. His dancing is characterized first and foremost by class and elegance. Fred Astaire was 13 years older than Gene Kelly and on Broadway by the time he was 18 (Gene didn’t go to Broadway until he was almost 30). Découvrez vos propres épingles sur Pinterest et enregistrez-les. This carries over into his filmed performances: even when we are watching him, we aren’t seeing him. It is the only time Fred Astaire or Gene Kelly is dancing with a partner and I can’t decide which one is most worthy of my attentive eyes. Desfrute! The job was a dead-end, soul-destroying kind of affair - so pretty typical for a 20-year-old with a BA in English Literature. MVC Handler Interceptors: Learn how to intercept HTTP requests on Java Spring, Pixar’s SOUL is the Perfect Movie for a World Weary of Living. 0:53. Things were beginning to move toward a more integrated form, but for the most part, the average musical consisted of a loosely connected string of comic sequences tied together with catchy songs and pretty girls in scanty dress. Voir la fiche film. But to the mere spellbound spectator, it’s as though God appointed His favorite angel as Fred’s celestial puppeteer. Glee was very popular for a time on Fox. Writer James Lileks once said that Gene so embodies the American spirit that his face should be on money. Starting Out: The Broadway Stage. Eventually, though, tastes changed. I had first seen Singin’ in the Rain during a film class at UCLA and I remember thinking it was…. It was Freed who, high on the mid-century appetite for musicals, recruited Fred Astaire to MGM after his contract with RKO expired. In fact, he met George Gershwin before the name Gershwin meant much of anything, and the maelstrom of creative activity that ensued was a boon to the careers of both men. de Vincente Minnelli 1953 États-Unis 1h52. Because he didn’t always trust himself as a natural actor, there is a tendency to screw his face up a little bit harder, or put another inch or two of inflection in his voice. That kind of light, fluffy, mildly idiotic material which was so perfect for a 1950’s musical was simply inimical to the sensibilities, tastes and styles of audiences and filmmakers in the late 1960s. The choreography is not particularly challenging or innovative, and has a distinctly old-fashioned feel. If Fred is “guilty” of not trying hard enough — something that managed to work in his favor since “less” is usually more when it comes to acting — Gene is equally as guilty of trying too hard. It might seem hard for modern audiences to fathom, but the movie musical used to be quite a thing in Hollywood. The ability to project a song well is something we tend to feel more than we can quantify, but sometimes it does seem as though Gene is guilty of trying too hard even when he is singing. Nonetheless, it is warm and human and immensely charming. But we can’t much fault him for this “flaw” as his own humility with regard to singing compels us to forgive him. As RKO began a slow descent into bankruptcy (helped along when Howard Hughes purchased the studio and proceeded to run it into the ground) the 1940s and 50s were MGM’s time to shine. If the breakneck speed of the action is paused at virtually any moment, Gene could almost pass for a statue, whereas Donald’s limbs are blurred; he seems to be flailing in comparison — out of control. Does it seem familiar? Astaire is elegance; Kelly is brute force. I think the answer is clear - Fred Astaire. No cross-cutting or stylish camera angles. And because of the more integrated form of musicals of which he was a part and the resulting increase in their relative complexity, the roles he played were more demanding. Des milliers de lettres de protestation lui parviennent. It was produced by Freed at MGM in 1949, and it was a big deal because it reunited Fred and Ginger after a decade apart. Which one you think is better just depends on your preference. Gene never gave us such a collection of gems. He never seemed to be trying all that hard because he didn’t have to. I shouldn’t be surprised if they got a bit tired of seeing each other at some level! It wouldn’t have mattered if Astaire was in tatty burlap or rags — as he was in the fabulous “We’re a Couple of Swells” from Easter Parade — because he radiates inner elegance and graciousness. 99 to rent. Gene Kelly était un danseur, un très grand danseur. I like performers back in the 60s and 70s like Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, Sammy Davis Jr and more. If Fred’s dancing is characterized by an innate sense of class, Gene’s is characterized by joy. When Gene made it to Broadway, George Gershwin was gone. During this early post-war period of the 1940s and 50s musicals were insanely popular, and MGM became well-known for its lavish productions featuring huge stars like Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner. Image courtesy of Warner Bros. and Sony Music Films. Anti-gravity lean in Smooth Criminal, from the film Moonwalker. Gene’s first Broadway show, Pal Joey (1940), featured songs by Rodgers & Hart — songs that flowed immediately from the surrounding action because they had been written specifically for such a purpose. Là où Gene Kelly se distingue par sa danse athlétique, Astaire est davantage aérien, tout en décontraction. When he does a number with someone else, that other person is almost unwatchable in comparison because he or she can’t match Gene’s form and the immaculate lines of his body. Fred Astaire, with his slim figure often decked out in a tuxedo, was lighter on his feet and more velvety in his movements. For example, when Fred Astaire is onscreen, there is a humble “shrugging” quality about his acting that seems to be apologizing for itself. cummings, I would argue that nobody, not even the rain, has such soft feet. Whenever I wanted to needle my grandma, I would just casually say to her “You know Fred Astaire was clearly a better dancer than Gene Kelly.” Even as she sank deeper into dementia, she would flare up like a rhino at the mere suggestion that Astaire was better. He always gives the impression of gliding across the dance floor, with his patented leg slide that influenced a generation of dancers to come including Michael Jackson (more on that later). What could be more inspirational and American than the notion that if one works hard enough, one can accomplish anything? A lot of the music was from Ira Gershwin, and Oscar Levant plays a prominent supporting role. And for those reasons, and more, we can definitively say that in the question of Fred Astaire vs Gene Kelly, old Twinkle Toes surely comes out on top. INA. He couldn’t sing or act worth a lick, but he moved so smoothly and with such delicate precision that it set the gold standard against which all later dancers and choreographers held themselves. But when Gene leaps and soars he never quite takes off because his thick and powerful legs anchor him to the terrestrial plain. His boundless boyish energy and enthusiasm are two reasons. Some of the great songwriters such as Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern, and Cole Porter were still working, But many of their legendary tunes had already been written and were performed by others, including Fred Astaire. It gives us our only opportunity to compare the two stars side by side in their prime and to witness firsthand how great they were. Several of their later RKO pictures featured the music of George and Ira Gershwin and on cold November mornings my grandmother could often be found in the kitchen looking for the coffee pot while humming the melody of “You Can’t Take That Away From Me.” Such was the cultural memory of Fred and Ginger’s reign at RKO in pre-war America. Image courtesy of MGM and Warner Bros. On voyage à travers toutes les facettes de la comédie musicale, du ballet aquatique (esther williams) au numéros danses de vaudevilles (gene kelly et fred astaire), en passant par du grand spectacle dramatique et semblable à un rêve et des scènes de comédies en tout genre, le tout , avec un casting de rêve et des prises de vues incroyables! There is a supernal effortlessness about Fred Astaire’s dancing. Il réalise ensuite plusieurs films, dont la comédie musicale Hello Dolly ave… Everyone can see his inherent goodness, decency, and humility. To borrow a bit from e.e. For this reason, Fred is responsible for introducing dozens of songs that would go on to become popular standards (i.e., songs that belong to what is often referred to as “The Great American Songbook”). But when it comes to singing alone, he does suffer somewhat from a comparison to Fred. In fact, Irving Berlin reportedly got a bit nervous when Gene Kelly was initially tapped for the male lead in 1948’s Easter Parade because the songwriter had such confidence in Fred’s “conception of projecting a song” and less in Gene’s. We can see it all: blood, sweat, tears, and, quite literally, scars. Older memories linger for much longer, and when she would see Fred Astaire bang out a flawless routine to an old Gershwin tune she would come alive.

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