TOP HAT, WHITE TIE AND TAILS

[@glf1949]

Just makes one 'joyful' to be alive! We miss-yah Fred & Ginger, you're needed now... more than ever.

[@storminboy]

Me and my mate noticed Michael Jackson used a lot of his moves. This is outstanding!! Fred you are the king of dancing, period.

[@jskars1]

Fred Astaire was one of many artists to influence Michael's successful career.

[@binka21]

+Lee Norman Michael Jackson was better.

[@rosaenriquez7155]

+binka21 I am POSITIVE that Micheal himself would DENY this and with reason !!!! Micheal Jackson is NOTHING compared to the GREAT AND ONE AND ONLY FRED ASTAIRE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@binka21]

Rosa Enriquez Astaire was a better tap dancer. But no white man can dance as smooth as Michael Jackson. Let me put it this way, in terms of their personal style, neither could dance better than the other.

[@Silvana716]

+binka21 Were you high when you wrote that?

[@JenniferVernyFranks]

wonderful classy performance love him

[@Lucy00682]

Anyone viewing in 2024. That's what I call an artist.

[@michaelozmanski9321]

Amazing

[@animationdeviation4294]

It never gets old. Even into the next century

[@wandagonzalez8862]

His dancing was perfection! Cannot get enough of watching him and Ginger dance! Cannot think of anyone right now that can come close to his precision and love for the art of dancing.

[@sinclair6605]

Flawless...and not just close to perfection, but IS perfection..When Astaire danced it was as if god was dancing

[@GuamGrrl]

If god existed he would be taking lessons from Fred Astaire.

[@richardcleveland8549]

Gawd, he was GOOD! Love, love, love that Fred! Nobody like him!

[@stanyscognamiglio1080]

Un numero di straordinario virtuosismo, tant'è vero che Fred Astaire, a un certo punto del balletto, imita il motivo musicale alla perfezione solo coi tacchi e il bastone. Una coreografia di grande stile rende la scena solo un contorno senza importanza dove il gioco della luce(esasperato anche dalla vecchiaia della clip) sembra evidenziare le doti di prestigiatore della danza del superlativo ballerino

[@ed3432]

Greatest dancer in the history of films. Nuff said.

[@siobhanmcgoldrick4549]

i love this song its a old classic

[@STNeish]

That move just at 2:25 just GETS me, every time. SO graceful, so brilliant.

[@JenniferVernyFranks]

Fabulous performer

[@NiallMor]

I know nothing about dance and couldn't dance if my life depended on it, but even I can see the precise and exquisite control he's got over his body--to move just so, to pivot just so, to tap at lightning speed like that and never miss a beat. Amazing, simply amazing stuff!

[@truffyification]

He is a genius of fluidity and motion. I totally agree with you. Delighted you recognise his amazing talent!

[@Caleddin3]

Old fashioned manly...!!! Too good to be true...

[@itsallgood3210]

Keep in mind Astaire was the best in an era where tap dancing and creative show dancing was quite popular, on Broadway, the movies, and later on TV variety shows. With that competition, only a few of the black artists, as well as Gene Kelly, could equal him, however, Astaire will forever be the most graceful and suave(and the best singer as well)...

[@fmiller36]

Scott Kuzminski huh? Fred was never ''the best''. And nor did Gene Kelly and the others merely ''equal'' him. They surpassed him. He's said so himself in countless in interviews on his ability as a hoofer.

[@itsallgood3210]

F Miller There is no "best" in dancing.....all you can do, same as music, is parcel out like comparisons, per styles, and contrast. There were many other male dancers in movies themselves, let alone Broadway/clubs, than Kelly/Astaire. Kelly and Astaire stand out ahead of the pack for several reasons, however. They were both the top dancing "stars", and both choreographed their own routines, in a breathtakingly imaginative way. Astaire was an extremely modest man, as well as Kelly, and neither would come right out and say they were "the best". Like any great pro player, they always thought they could top their old work, and often did. I can't rank the two, not only because life itself is too complicated for rankings(if only life were that simple, that everything could be "ranked"), but dancing, also, is an art, not a sport, with no scoring attached. It is a work of joy and spirit. In that sense, they were both brilliant. Kelly's "Broadway Melody" long-form scene at the end of "Singing in the Rain" stands as perhaps the pinnacle of movie making period, not just renditions of old Hollywood. His singing in the rain routine is perhaps the most beautiful moment in any artform. I still get chills watching it. Astaire was a different dancer. He was graceful rather than athletic. Very smooth and dignified. Not just the "top hat and tails", but the perfectly flowing style itself. The man was just as creative, in his own way, as Kelly, per the broomstick dancing partners, dancing on the "ceiling", etc. etc., and on and on. Cole Porter said Astaire was his favourite interpreter of his songs as well. Astaire was also the finest "couple" dancer, you could say he redefined and set the standard forever with Rogers. They are all still popular clips on KZbin after 85 years, so that speaks for itself. Both men have their fans who choose either of the two as the "greatest", however, just look at it as a situation where we are blessed to have had those two period, regardless of who may get the most "likes" or points in a media age of oversaturated, simplistic "rankings", "Top 10" lists, and such. Life and art are a bit more complicated than that, and thank God for that...

[@fmiller36]

Scott Kuzminski LOL @ you trying to qualify your statement with ''there is no 'best' in dancing'' only to then go on and list what made Kelly and Astaire the ''best'' (according to you). Astaire nor Kelly weren't being ''modest'', when they said what they said, they were just being honest. Neither of them were nowhere near the best ''hoofers'' of their day and any tap dancer worth their salt knows this. Astaire barely had a couple of years of tap dance training under his belt that he learned from John Bubbles, the rest was what he termed his own ''outlaw'' choreography made from his very small repertoire of steps gleaned from that past. Astaire is regarded today as the best in his seamless combination of BALLROOM and tap, same for Gene in Modern and Tap. But when it came to the best in quality tap-dancing? Please. They were both well outclassed and they both knew it. Too many people were doing it back then with many more years of experience than both of them.

[@shermanrobinson4293]

+Scott Kuzminski Very well put. I couldnt hve said it better myself

[@nhmooytis7058]

Scott Kuzminski Nicholas Brothers were awesome!

[@caledoniatardivo8537]

Matched only by the likes of a few! Mr Astaire was such a rarity; he had it all - he could sing, dance, act, put on a show and dress to the nines with such grace, class and talent. Just like a boss! The golden age has been scattered to the wind; it has disappeared! :( Fred truly was the true epitome of a true gentlemen! Ginger and Fred truly electrify the screen in this film; they never disappoint, as per usual!

[@jessievenom]

Signorina, I love it, its like he's falling smoothly and moving through the wind, its seems like he's using his cane and shoes as the percussion 😄

[@acm997]

I just love that little half-wink/smile thing he does at 01:24

[@soundsofbaseball217]

Agreed. Alice. I’ve played that part over and over hundreds of times. I’ll bet that was a first take, something that’s impossible to rehearse. He was a natural, one of a kind for sure.

Such a wonderful feel and the way Fred Astaire made everything look easy and yet it needed so much talent and preparation!

[@Tahkaullus01]

First saw this when I was five. I have loved this man and this filming era ever since

[@jh8856]

Fred Astaire - incredible class, style and ability. I think he had a great voice for these songs as well as Berlin et al would write with his light tenor in mind.

[@LavenderEve0805]

I love his dancing and the Gershwin music.

[@timpreston459]

Uploaded on Sep 7, 2011 from Top Hat (1935) choreography by Fred Astaire and Hermes Pan music and lyrics by Irving Berlin !

[@LavenderEve0805]

Sorry

[@D...M...A...]

@@LavenderEve0805 Your forgiven... He was a cad to correct you...❤😇❤

[@manuelorozco7760]

Mr. Astaire sure knew how to dance and sing! The choreography in this sequence is so clever and wonderful. Top Hat is my favorite Fred/Ginger movie tied with Shall We Dance!

[@mickeyhay3990]

elegant and beautiful dancing a joy to watch

[@manuelorozco7760]

Mickey Hay Indeed it is

[@mickeyhay3990]

.

[@valeriecampbell9581]

choreography by Hermes Pan who sometimes stood in for Fred as dance and body double as they were very similar in looks

[@manuelorozco7760]

valerie campbell No way

[@chrisj.plamondon1828]

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Masterpiece! WOW!! Fred's signature number still amazes me and the ending is hilarious. Only in Old Hollywood...❤❤❤

[@nixieNICLA]

Now that's how to use a top hat and cane :)

[@nixieNICLA]

Get up and dance already...

[@viviennejones6381]

My favorite dancer of all time!

[@JudgeJulieLit]

Fusion tap and ballet, Fred was in a genre and class of his own; he raised the barre sky high.

[@Silvana716]

One of the greatest masterpiece choreographies in cinema history.

[@manuelorozco7760]

No doubt about that. I like musicals from back in the Golden Age.

[@laurenwendt5276]

I love this movie, Fred Astaire was a marvelous dancer and singer. Thank you for posting!!!!

[@joslynrose25]

One of my top favorite movies!!

[@valeriecampbell9581]

Fred really had swagger what a legend

[@soundsofbaseball217]

100% Confidence, that’s for sure!

[@AN-xe5ly]

Always impress by Fred's dance and class

[@valeriecampbell9581]

Fred had such swagger

[@GuamGrrl]

His talent can not be overexaggerated. Perfection. I've adored him since I was a child. 💜💜💜

[@thedistinguished5255]

i just got an invitation through the mail your presence requested this evening its formal top hats white ties and tails nothing now could take the wind out of my sails!

[@avydontines1698]

18 dislikes of this video? Seriously? Obviously, socialists or communists or others who cannot stand to witness greatness in others. I (not a dancer), am awed by the precision of this performance, particularly when most of this stuff was done "live" in one continuous take. Astaire was, simply, an athlete and artist of the highest order and this footage bears that out.

[@ikymerkuratsuk7634]

When he winks on that part I just melts, anyone else or is it just me?

[@esmeephillips5888]

It is the visual equivalent of Jolson in 'The Jazz Singer', a promise to the audience: 'You ain't heard nothing yet.'

[@YokoshimaSTAR]

can’t express how I feel... he was perfect... always happy, charming, funny, loving, kind (once he found and helped Debbie to dance when she was insulted by Gene and crying under a piano, working on singing in the rain)... such a gentleman ;-; Don’t know why this song makes me face smile then sadden then smile and sadden again and again... he was so gentle and when good people go leaving such goodness is heart swelling

[@steverakes6182]

I never tire watching the master perform.

[@giovannisanseviero5726]

A masterpiece in every sense of the word.

[@tuxguys]

Amazing on so many levels... A chestnut of an Irving Berlin society tune, as it was originally introduced. The idea of Astaire turning his walking stick into a rifle, and shooting down the other dancers with pistol-shot heel-clicks is astonishing. (Grim, but astonishing.) Notice at 2:53, as the lights go down: He goes beyond being Astaire, and turns into Dance Itself. (And then the shooting starts.)

[@esmeephillips5888]

He had done the shooting-with-a-cane schtick in a stage show, and for years dreamed of using it in a movie. Bet the chorus boy who dodged two bullets before succumbing told the story for the rest of his days. Seeing this was Hollywood, I bet several of the guys did. Fred's terror of repeating himself went beyond whole numbers' concepts. Here he does a different maneuver between each 'execution' to set up the next one.

[@luvbach1]

Great song, great performer!!! Wish he was still here.

[@YokoshimaSTAR]

When he starts singing the chorus part ‘I...putin on a top hat-’ my heart meltsss

[@richardmartins1541]

My favorite actor of all time and thats his best film of all the fred and ginger 9 classics movies together

[@denisesimpson591]

We'll never see his likes again . . .

[@googlefan7409]

Denise Simpson you're seeing now

[@frankomahony1874]

Just wonderful. My favourite musical of them all. Don't forget the wonderful Hollywod Orchestra's, which are still revered today. They had a sound of their own.

[@katmd03]

Love it love it love it!! Fred Astaire is amazing.

[@jockamoinch]

Some people reveal their inferior feelings when they throw a curse at Fred Astaire, probably the greatest dancer of all time and genuine kind person.

[@janebyron811]

Wonderful timing and sheer talent.

[@Ollynka88]

gosh, how i love the head nod and that charming smile at 1:24!!!

[@MegaAdeman]

briliant, what an unbeatable charactor he was R I P.

[@jessievenom]

Oh how i miss these old songs, dunno why it makes me feel better

[@kathyvierra]

I’m speechless. I have no speech.

[@marionmoore665]

Great, talented Man WoWser !!😍❤️🦋🦋🦋

[@Silvana716]

God, I love the 1930s. The last time the world reeked of class.

[@nealtwyford4172]

+Silvana716 Real class. The depression and Nazis. People like Astaire and Rogers made a bit easier.

[@New-Moderate]

Silvana716 People still had pride in their appearance no matter how poor they were, crime was low, and families stuck together. Proud to have decent grandparents on both sides of my family who were able to tell me the stories from those days.

[@Ashfielder]

PresidentalMexican You sound like a commie to me.

[@brianlud]

sadly those times are gone forever, thanks for posting and thanks for you tube.

[@frankie6954]

This is one of the films I would definitely take to my Desert Island. A Mastetpiece 😊.

[@JasonRadley]

One of the great popular artists of the 20th century. I'm not the greatest fan of Fred's voice but this song really suits his style.

[@storminboy]

What a fantastic dancer, with flair and everything.

[@johnwhitehead3360]

Simply "out of this World"

[@MelinkaMC]

Is incredible to see how Michael Jackson take this reference and put all together with his style in the 1995 VMA's "Dangerous" performance.

[@carpediem5699]

He was the KING.

[@mvann5]

Such talent! There is nothing at all like that today.

[@doggydoggy7117]

He died the fashion star the best guy of swing. Swing king 👑

[@doggydoggy7117]

😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭🤧🤧🤧🤧😪

[@wopac53]

Good song and dance.

[@wopac53]

I watched it again.

[@erikavillanueva9470]

a long time ago this song was the best 90 years ago

[@BeckusTitheroff]

Fred Astaire and Ann Miller are the best tap dancers the world will ever know!

[@Elton78]

Just read his autobiography and he got the idea for this dance long before this movie was made, at 4 AM when he couldn't sleep. He pitched the idea to berlin who came up with this song yearas later. It was like in 27 or something he came up with it...but there was no room for in the show he did at the time. According to himself he came up with a lot of dancingideas at 4 AM :-)

[@echomike7891]

Pure undiluted talent, wouldn't it be great if we could all dance like that, feel my leg going, feel my arms going...help....we're going for it......

[@manuelorozco7760]

I wish I can dance like that

[@Keithwebb2011]

Thanks Fred, on fllm for all time

[@D...M...A...]

Celluloid hero...

[@UnitedStatesMarineDrillTeam]

“I just got an invitation through the mails "Your presence requested this evening It's formal, a top hat, a white tie and tails" Nothing now could take the wind out of my sails Because I'm invited to step out this evening With top hat and white tie and tails. ”

[@GreenGretel]

1:38 - 1:45 is my favorite part. I also always love when the lights dim.

[@Angel28Blue]

yeah it´s my favorite part too. I was watching and then !!BOOM!! - he starts dancing like hell!!

[@scottadler]

Angel28Blue I respectfully disagree. My favorite part is just after 2:25 when he twirls his cane. (Not to mention the very beginning, when, he straightens his hat. Not to mention ALL of it.)

[@Angel28Blue]

Scott Adler it´s fine :-) ok

[@googlefan7409]

Scott Adler yes, I always dance like that, even though I can't, even though people around me thinks I'm crazy, I'm in love with that sort of music, rhythm and dance...

[@wygtam]

Those moves always remind me of kung fu films where the hero is shadow boxing.

[@andrescastillo1425]

I just got an invitation through the mails: "Your presence requested this evening, It's formal, a top hat, a white tie and tails." Nothing now could take the wind out of my sails. Because I'm invited to step out this evening With top hat and white tie and tails. For I'll be there, Puttin' down my top hat, Mussin' up my white tie, Dancin' in my tails. I'm puttin' on my top hat, Tyin' up my white tie, Brushin' off my tails. I'm dudin' up my shirt front, Puttin' in the shirt studs, Polishin' my nails, I'm steppin' out, my dear, To breathe an atmosphere That simply reeks with class; And I trust that you'll excuse my dust When I step on the gas, For I'll be there, Puttin' down my top hat, Mussin' up my white tie, Dancin' in my tails.

[@aaroblero]

jesus, this dude was a genius

[@samsum3738]

When i was young , my dancing was compared to Astaire , unfortunately , it was Harry Astaire ,our local greengrocer , who weighed about 25 stones .

[@ersoubi]

Who on planet Earth can possibly dislike this?!

[@lazyhazeldaisy9596]

Wonderful stuff! and what a lovely looking dance troupe behind the great man.😍

[@similer5987]

Did he really choreograph his dances himself?

[@richardmartins1541]

Yes

[@sharonmariedenman]

wow this is amazing. Thats all I can say!

[@velenjak4ever]

First of all FA wasn´t muscular, he was thin. That´s why it looks so elegant when he dance. Secondly he had most certainly absolute pulse. I don´t know if that is the correct expression in English but you get my point. Anyway that´s why his timing is beyond perfect!

[@googlefan7409]

velenjak4ever yes, that's why very few looked elegant to me. Not to mention, Gene Kelly, he was great dancer but just not slim enough, truly. Michael however was really slim and looked real great at dancing too. Fred and Michael both are best to in my opinion.

[@esmeephillips5888]

From the early Twenties syncopated jazz became the driving force in pop music. Melody and harmony still mattered, but the sedate flow of earlier music in the tradition of romantic operetta and drawing-room ballads was broken into urgent, unpredictable 'fascinating rhythm'. Dancing had to adapt to it. Men such as Fred's inspiration, Vernon Castle, had begun the change in ballroom dances using ragtime beats, but the mechanised horrors and disruptions of a world war invited much more radical rethinking. The answer was a sophisticated adaptation of black and Irish dancing which added balletic and acrobatic aerial features from white schools. The melting pot produced the dynamic way of criss-crossing a flat screen whose choreographic masters were Astaire, Hermes Pan and Eleanor Powell. They combined Broadway's elegance with 'street' aggression: many watching this number would reflect that mobsters wore evening dress too, and would recall the St Valentine's Day Massacre as well as high-society turnouts. Under Fred's suave surface there was a steel core of ambition, a touch of the gang boss. Professionally he took no prisoners. It comes out anew in his next great top-hatted turn, 'Puttin' on the Ritz', where the cane which here is a weapon becomes a foe to be subdued. Uniquely among women dancers, Powell had the same 'absolute pulse' and the same quality of dominance sugar-coated by charming looks and grace in motion. This combination of brilliant technique with a faintly disturbing undertone has preserved their value. Any artist who best captures the pulse of his own time stands the best chance of surviving even in the eyes and ears of those for whom the Zeitgeist is different. Authenticity plus expertise is required. Beset by depression and the drumbeat of approaching war, the Thirties needed escapist entertainment. Astaire had no warning to deliver. He was apolitical. But the mood of a nation will always seep into the bones of the most gifted of those who have to cater to the public's wants and help them forget their troubles. With our knowledge of history we can fill the gaps, wilful omissions and unconscious taboos of a troubled era. Then we see how its greatest talents were haunted by matters they did not discuss but which steered their creative choices willy-nilly. Fred and Eleanor did not have to turn their dances into allegories. The unease as well as the positive side of syncopation says it all. Would the planet progress by fits and starts, booms and slumps, or blow itself apart? The expertise of top dancers reconciles Dionysian or Bacchic frenzy with Apollonian discipline. The musical's finale brings people together after vicissitudes that are grave in real life but diverting and necessary in a story. No problems, no story.

[@nettaviolet]

This is so beautiful!

[@TheJedgeworth]

Thanks for getting this through...it's getting tougher to find, even it you're putting on your Top Hat. Excuse my dust.

[@manhattan123]

Well thanks for alerting us to that.

[@lapis2267]

Happy Birthday, Fred!!

[@alexoldmovies27]

FINALLY A FRED ASTAIRE VIDEO THAT HAS NO DISLIKES :D!!

[@fionatsang9353]

I read in Fred's autobiography how he came up with the idea for this number when he and his sister Adele were dancing in a stage show that was a flop. He was lying in bed thinking about how he could use his taps to sound like gun fire as he mowed down the chorus line with a cane as a 'gun'; he got out of bed, grabbed an umbrella, and started blocking out the routine. Adele: (from the next room, woken up by the taps) Minnie,* what are you doing? Fred: I have an idea for a number. Adele: Well hang on to that idea, we'll need it in this turkey of a show! * Adele's nickname for Fred was 'Moaning Minnie'

[@NickSolo420]

This sounds good for getting ready in the morning, or before an event.

[@rajazeti106]

Pretty sure I'm the only 11 year old Malaysia who appreciates old style music.... (even tho I wasn't born yet)

[@googlefan7409]

One right here also! I wasn't born too and same as you I'm Asian and I'm a girl, but still want to be like Fred

[@katandbaby]

it came out of the number 'Say Young Man of Manhattan' that featured in the Zeigfeld production 'Smiles' (1930)

[@esmeephillips5888]

Fred dreamed the idea and suggested it the next day. The show flopped but he recycled the concept of, almost literally, machine-gun tapping for the film. It demonstrates how a single, simple notion can sustain a three-minute routine, leaving a clearer memory than some cast-of-thousands phantasmagoria such as Berkeley's. Plainly shot on an almost bare stage, it 'gets over' like few others, and has become the defining Astaire image.

[@EllerthePeridot]

Surely this video was disliked by accident.

[@shnbwmn]

Lyn C The only logical explanation is that upon seeing the video 26 people fell victim to a sudden stroke. In a desperate twitch action they tried to press the like button as their final adieu, but upon seeing the opposite, alas they met their final fate.

[@jakob_k001]

Some people just don't like the old music, dancing and dressing style. Sad as it is. Just like charleston. Old music and old style. Class and old music and fashion. And sadly it is all disappearing nowadays. There needs to be more like that and just a little less of those songs that hold more swearing than anybody will ever do in a normal conversation and we have an even wider spectrum of musical genres. And a little more fashion sense. But Austria is rather nice when it comes to this kind of fashion simply because of the Vienna operaball. Tails and top hat and bow tie required. Women in a nice attention catching gown. What i mean by that is the world needs more class. After all you can combine old and new rather well. I do that every day. A nice everyday tux nothing too fancy and skinny jeans, a pocket watch with a chain that shows and a nice necklace to go with it. Though i am ok with how it is now, a little more manners for some people i know in my hometown would do quite nicely as a starter.

[@googlefan7409]

Jakob Krammer I'm sure if they can see what's inside the old music , they'll probably go crazy after these music.

[@steverakes6182]

L.L.: 41 Gene Kelly relatives.

[@carltrotter7622]

I actually disliked it accidentally, don't worry I corrected my obvious mistake just then!

[@joeok8641]

Thanks Katandbaby..I thought Fred sang it first in the movie, and Fred is definitely the best dancer!! Al's voice is the best male voice of the 20th century though, and can't be beaten.

[@theenderful]

when the music was a real music..

[@luckydiamonds5]

Woow...that's all I gotta say amazing..

[@pauljung3534]

"Astaire... appears demure, dresses up dapper, then guns everyone down, with debonair."

[@pennyb22]

Everything seemed so much nicer back then :( I wish I had been alive to see it

[@TheCatMurgatroyd]

meh... seemed nicer...

[@holstfly1]

Remember that racism, depression, and war was influenced in that era sometimes things look nicer on movies but in reality its just an escape through our imagination

[@pennyb22]

holstfly1 I guess you're right :(

[@jayoungr]

Eh, every era has its problems. Today is far from perfect too; we've made progress in some areas and lost in others. So yeah, in SOME ways, the 30s were nicer. And the world of 30s romantic comedy movies was *definitely* nicer!! :D

[@doctorj5009]

Hetty B i was it was awe inspiring

[@briannaseaman7647]

We are doing a tap dance to this song

[@kingofpointless]

And some people call 'shuffling' dancing!, this is an actual blood and sweat effort on screen!

[@tammie1078]

Mr. Wonderful :)

[@captinkurk7427]

3:30 How Fred dealt with haters.

[@cliveboyd1278]

Elvis songs

[@luvbach1]

Timeless!!