Adele Astaire (born Adele Marie Austerlitz; September 10, 1896– January 25, 1981) was an American dancer, stage actress and singer. She was Fred Astaire's elder sister, and his partner in a 27-year career in vaudeville and theater, beginning when he was five and she was eight.
A teacher's suggestion that the two children might have a stage career if trained for it prompted the family to move from Omaha to New York, though the father returned to Omaha to work. Adele, Fred and their mother lived in a boardinghouse, and the children began attending the Alviene Master School of the Theatre and Academy of Cultural Arts. They adopted the more American sounding name 'Astaire' after trying several variations on the original family surname.
Fred Astaire's sister was supposed to be the better dancer but gave it up.
[clipped BBC's 'One Show']
published: 01 Oct 2012
Fred & Adele Astaire -- Fascinating Rhythm, 1926/Gershwin on Piano
Fred Astaire (1899-1987)
Adele Astaire (1896-1981)
George Gershwin (1898-1937)
The dancing partner who made Fred Astaire famous isn't the one most people remember. Fred, born in 1899, and his sister, Adele were the children of an Austrian immigrant named Austerlitz who had settled in Omaha, Nebraska. Their mother had a notion that they should learn to dance, so they journeyed east to New York in 1903 and began a long vaudeville career as a boy-and-girl specialty duo. The transition to adulthood was an awkward one for the Astaires; it was not until 1917 that their charm and dancing specialties reached a Broadway audience. They were featured in several revues from then on, and it was the gamine Adele, not her more serious and disciplined brother, who usually got the better notices. He didn'...
published: 21 Jun 2010
Fred Astaire - live performance excerpt
Really great footage from my favorite film dancer (alongside with Vera Ellen) Fred Astaire. With sister Adele here and with no wig - looks more naturally.
published: 12 Mar 2017
Fred & Adele Astaire 'The Babbit and the Bromide' (1927)
from the 1927 production of 'Funny Face'
music - George Gershwin
lyrics - Ira Gershwin
published: 01 Feb 2013
Fred Astaire receiving a Special Award
Ginger Rogers presenting Fred Astaire with a Special Award for his unique artistry and his contributions to the technique of musical pictures at the 22nd Academy Awards® in 1950. Introduced by Paul Douglas.
published: 27 Sep 2011
Fred & Adele
Fred & Adele... and Fred goes Hollywood.
published: 19 Jun 2007
Fred & Adele Astaire "I'd Rather Charleston" George Gershwin Remastered
Fred and Adele Astaire performing George Gershwin's "I'd Rather Charleston", with Gershwin at the piano. Recorded in London in 1926, from his score for "Lady Be Good". Remastered and clean by Tormented Artist Ink (me). Wonderfully light, a rare touch now.
published: 25 Nov 2011
I Love Louisa - Fred Astaire & Leo Reisman's Orch., 1931
I Love Louisa (Howard Dietz -- Arthur Schwartz) Fox Trot from the revue "The Band Wagon" -- Fred Astaire with chorus & Leo Reisman and His Orchestra, Victor 1931
NOTE: "The Band Wagon" tells the story of an aging musical star who hopes a Broadway play will restart his career. However, the play's director wants to make it a pretentious retelling of Faust, and brings in a prima ballerina who clashes with the star. The songs were written by Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz, and some were created for the original 1931 Broadway musical also called The Band Wagon, with a book by George S. Kaufman and starring Fred Astaire and his sister Adele. Interestingly, after "The Band Wagon" Fred and Adele never more appeared on stage together. In 1953 a musical comedy film "The Band Wagon" was made, ag...
Fred Astaire (1899-1987)
Adele Astaire (1896-1981)
George Gershwin (1898-1937)
The dancing partner who made Fred Astaire famous isn't the one most people remem...
Fred Astaire (1899-1987)
Adele Astaire (1896-1981)
George Gershwin (1898-1937)
The dancing partner who made Fred Astaire famous isn't the one most people remember. Fred, born in 1899, and his sister, Adele were the children of an Austrian immigrant named Austerlitz who had settled in Omaha, Nebraska. Their mother had a notion that they should learn to dance, so they journeyed east to New York in 1903 and began a long vaudeville career as a boy-and-girl specialty duo. The transition to adulthood was an awkward one for the Astaires; it was not until 1917 that their charm and dancing specialties reached a Broadway audience. They were featured in several revues from then on, and it was the gamine Adele, not her more serious and disciplined brother, who usually got the better notices. He didn't mind; he'd rather spend his time crafting new numbers or innovative steps for them to master.
One of the steps, incorporated into most of their shows, was the "oompah trot" or the runaround, where Adele and Fred, side by side, would ape riding in huge circles on an imaginary bicycle. Audiences went wild for this particular antic, especially in London, where the bright-eyed, exuberant Americans were welcomed even more enthusiastically than in their own country.
Fred had known George Gershwin since 1916, when he went to the composer looking for a vaudeville number. They had vowed they'd work together some day; that day came on December 1, 1924, when the Astaires headlined George and Ira's first full-length New York musical, "Lady, Be Good!" Playing a brother-and-sister dance team down on their luck, the Astaires had found the perfect vehicle for their talents. George not only provided them with some of their best tunes, he suggested a couple of dance steps to help Fred with the ending for "The Half of It, Dearie, Blues." Fred got his first solo, while the romantic end of things was held down by his sister and the leading man. It proved to be such a felicitous match that critic Alexander Woollcott later wrote, "I do not know whether Gershwin was born into this world to write rhythms for Fred Astaire's feet or whether Fred Astaire was born into this world to show how the Gershwin music should really be danced."
The Astaires followed up that success with another Gershwin smash, "Funny Face" (1927), where Adele got to introduce "'S Wonderful." When the show made its inevitable visit to London, Adele met a stage-door Johnnie from the B-list of the British aristocracy and was soon engaged to be married. Mindful of her incipient retirement from the stage, the duo made sure their 1931 appearance in "The Band Wagon" would be an appropriate finale to their partnership. It was one of the finest revues of the period, with an impeccable Schwartz-Dietz score including "A New Sun in the Sky," in which Fred dressed for a night on the town in an attempt to beef up his stage presence so that his transition into a solo career would be easier. That transition occurred in 1932 with Astaire's introduction of "Night and Day" in Cole Porter's "Gay Divorce." "Fred struggled on without [Adele] for a while," wrote Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse," but finally threw his hand in and disappeared. There is a rumor that he turned up in Hollywood. It was the best the poor chap could hope for after losing his brilliant sister."
Source: Excerpted from BROADWAY: THE AMERICAN MUSICAL by Michael Kantor and Laurence Maslon. Published by Bulfinch Press.
Fred Astaire (1899-1987)
Adele Astaire (1896-1981)
George Gershwin (1898-1937)
The dancing partner who made Fred Astaire famous isn't the one most people remember. Fred, born in 1899, and his sister, Adele were the children of an Austrian immigrant named Austerlitz who had settled in Omaha, Nebraska. Their mother had a notion that they should learn to dance, so they journeyed east to New York in 1903 and began a long vaudeville career as a boy-and-girl specialty duo. The transition to adulthood was an awkward one for the Astaires; it was not until 1917 that their charm and dancing specialties reached a Broadway audience. They were featured in several revues from then on, and it was the gamine Adele, not her more serious and disciplined brother, who usually got the better notices. He didn't mind; he'd rather spend his time crafting new numbers or innovative steps for them to master.
One of the steps, incorporated into most of their shows, was the "oompah trot" or the runaround, where Adele and Fred, side by side, would ape riding in huge circles on an imaginary bicycle. Audiences went wild for this particular antic, especially in London, where the bright-eyed, exuberant Americans were welcomed even more enthusiastically than in their own country.
Fred had known George Gershwin since 1916, when he went to the composer looking for a vaudeville number. They had vowed they'd work together some day; that day came on December 1, 1924, when the Astaires headlined George and Ira's first full-length New York musical, "Lady, Be Good!" Playing a brother-and-sister dance team down on their luck, the Astaires had found the perfect vehicle for their talents. George not only provided them with some of their best tunes, he suggested a couple of dance steps to help Fred with the ending for "The Half of It, Dearie, Blues." Fred got his first solo, while the romantic end of things was held down by his sister and the leading man. It proved to be such a felicitous match that critic Alexander Woollcott later wrote, "I do not know whether Gershwin was born into this world to write rhythms for Fred Astaire's feet or whether Fred Astaire was born into this world to show how the Gershwin music should really be danced."
The Astaires followed up that success with another Gershwin smash, "Funny Face" (1927), where Adele got to introduce "'S Wonderful." When the show made its inevitable visit to London, Adele met a stage-door Johnnie from the B-list of the British aristocracy and was soon engaged to be married. Mindful of her incipient retirement from the stage, the duo made sure their 1931 appearance in "The Band Wagon" would be an appropriate finale to their partnership. It was one of the finest revues of the period, with an impeccable Schwartz-Dietz score including "A New Sun in the Sky," in which Fred dressed for a night on the town in an attempt to beef up his stage presence so that his transition into a solo career would be easier. That transition occurred in 1932 with Astaire's introduction of "Night and Day" in Cole Porter's "Gay Divorce." "Fred struggled on without [Adele] for a while," wrote Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse," but finally threw his hand in and disappeared. There is a rumor that he turned up in Hollywood. It was the best the poor chap could hope for after losing his brilliant sister."
Source: Excerpted from BROADWAY: THE AMERICAN MUSICAL by Michael Kantor and Laurence Maslon. Published by Bulfinch Press.
Really great footage from my favorite film dancer (alongside with Vera Ellen) Fred Astaire. With sister Adele here and with no wig - looks more naturally.
Really great footage from my favorite film dancer (alongside with Vera Ellen) Fred Astaire. With sister Adele here and with no wig - looks more naturally.
Really great footage from my favorite film dancer (alongside with Vera Ellen) Fred Astaire. With sister Adele here and with no wig - looks more naturally.
Ginger Rogers presenting Fred Astaire with a Special Award for his unique artistry and his contributions to the technique of musical pictures at the 22nd Academ...
Ginger Rogers presenting Fred Astaire with a Special Award for his unique artistry and his contributions to the technique of musical pictures at the 22nd Academy Awards® in 1950. Introduced by Paul Douglas.
Ginger Rogers presenting Fred Astaire with a Special Award for his unique artistry and his contributions to the technique of musical pictures at the 22nd Academy Awards® in 1950. Introduced by Paul Douglas.
Fred and Adele Astaire performing George Gershwin's "I'd Rather Charleston", with Gershwin at the piano. Recorded in London in 1926, from his score for "Lady Be...
Fred and Adele Astaire performing George Gershwin's "I'd Rather Charleston", with Gershwin at the piano. Recorded in London in 1926, from his score for "Lady Be Good". Remastered and clean by Tormented Artist Ink (me). Wonderfully light, a rare touch now.
Fred and Adele Astaire performing George Gershwin's "I'd Rather Charleston", with Gershwin at the piano. Recorded in London in 1926, from his score for "Lady Be Good". Remastered and clean by Tormented Artist Ink (me). Wonderfully light, a rare touch now.
I Love Louisa (Howard Dietz -- Arthur Schwartz) Fox Trot from the revue "The Band Wagon" -- Fred Astaire with chorus & Leo Reisman and His Orchestra, Victor 193...
I Love Louisa (Howard Dietz -- Arthur Schwartz) Fox Trot from the revue "The Band Wagon" -- Fred Astaire with chorus & Leo Reisman and His Orchestra, Victor 1931
NOTE: "The Band Wagon" tells the story of an aging musical star who hopes a Broadway play will restart his career. However, the play's director wants to make it a pretentious retelling of Faust, and brings in a prima ballerina who clashes with the star. The songs were written by Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz, and some were created for the original 1931 Broadway musical also called The Band Wagon, with a book by George S. Kaufman and starring Fred Astaire and his sister Adele. Interestingly, after "The Band Wagon" Fred and Adele never more appeared on stage together. In 1953 a musical comedy film "The Band Wagon" was made, again with Fred Astaire starring in it.
I Love Louisa (Howard Dietz -- Arthur Schwartz) Fox Trot from the revue "The Band Wagon" -- Fred Astaire with chorus & Leo Reisman and His Orchestra, Victor 1931
NOTE: "The Band Wagon" tells the story of an aging musical star who hopes a Broadway play will restart his career. However, the play's director wants to make it a pretentious retelling of Faust, and brings in a prima ballerina who clashes with the star. The songs were written by Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz, and some were created for the original 1931 Broadway musical also called The Band Wagon, with a book by George S. Kaufman and starring Fred Astaire and his sister Adele. Interestingly, after "The Band Wagon" Fred and Adele never more appeared on stage together. In 1953 a musical comedy film "The Band Wagon" was made, again with Fred Astaire starring in it.
Fred Astaire (1899-1987)
Adele Astaire (1896-1981)
George Gershwin (1898-1937)
The dancing partner who made Fred Astaire famous isn't the one most people remember. Fred, born in 1899, and his sister, Adele were the children of an Austrian immigrant named Austerlitz who had settled in Omaha, Nebraska. Their mother had a notion that they should learn to dance, so they journeyed east to New York in 1903 and began a long vaudeville career as a boy-and-girl specialty duo. The transition to adulthood was an awkward one for the Astaires; it was not until 1917 that their charm and dancing specialties reached a Broadway audience. They were featured in several revues from then on, and it was the gamine Adele, not her more serious and disciplined brother, who usually got the better notices. He didn't mind; he'd rather spend his time crafting new numbers or innovative steps for them to master.
One of the steps, incorporated into most of their shows, was the "oompah trot" or the runaround, where Adele and Fred, side by side, would ape riding in huge circles on an imaginary bicycle. Audiences went wild for this particular antic, especially in London, where the bright-eyed, exuberant Americans were welcomed even more enthusiastically than in their own country.
Fred had known George Gershwin since 1916, when he went to the composer looking for a vaudeville number. They had vowed they'd work together some day; that day came on December 1, 1924, when the Astaires headlined George and Ira's first full-length New York musical, "Lady, Be Good!" Playing a brother-and-sister dance team down on their luck, the Astaires had found the perfect vehicle for their talents. George not only provided them with some of their best tunes, he suggested a couple of dance steps to help Fred with the ending for "The Half of It, Dearie, Blues." Fred got his first solo, while the romantic end of things was held down by his sister and the leading man. It proved to be such a felicitous match that critic Alexander Woollcott later wrote, "I do not know whether Gershwin was born into this world to write rhythms for Fred Astaire's feet or whether Fred Astaire was born into this world to show how the Gershwin music should really be danced."
The Astaires followed up that success with another Gershwin smash, "Funny Face" (1927), where Adele got to introduce "'S Wonderful." When the show made its inevitable visit to London, Adele met a stage-door Johnnie from the B-list of the British aristocracy and was soon engaged to be married. Mindful of her incipient retirement from the stage, the duo made sure their 1931 appearance in "The Band Wagon" would be an appropriate finale to their partnership. It was one of the finest revues of the period, with an impeccable Schwartz-Dietz score including "A New Sun in the Sky," in which Fred dressed for a night on the town in an attempt to beef up his stage presence so that his transition into a solo career would be easier. That transition occurred in 1932 with Astaire's introduction of "Night and Day" in Cole Porter's "Gay Divorce." "Fred struggled on without [Adele] for a while," wrote Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse," but finally threw his hand in and disappeared. There is a rumor that he turned up in Hollywood. It was the best the poor chap could hope for after losing his brilliant sister."
Source: Excerpted from BROADWAY: THE AMERICAN MUSICAL by Michael Kantor and Laurence Maslon. Published by Bulfinch Press.
Really great footage from my favorite film dancer (alongside with Vera Ellen) Fred Astaire. With sister Adele here and with no wig - looks more naturally.
Ginger Rogers presenting Fred Astaire with a Special Award for his unique artistry and his contributions to the technique of musical pictures at the 22nd Academy Awards® in 1950. Introduced by Paul Douglas.
Fred and Adele Astaire performing George Gershwin's "I'd Rather Charleston", with Gershwin at the piano. Recorded in London in 1926, from his score for "Lady Be Good". Remastered and clean by Tormented Artist Ink (me). Wonderfully light, a rare touch now.
I Love Louisa (Howard Dietz -- Arthur Schwartz) Fox Trot from the revue "The Band Wagon" -- Fred Astaire with chorus & Leo Reisman and His Orchestra, Victor 1931
NOTE: "The Band Wagon" tells the story of an aging musical star who hopes a Broadway play will restart his career. However, the play's director wants to make it a pretentious retelling of Faust, and brings in a prima ballerina who clashes with the star. The songs were written by Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz, and some were created for the original 1931 Broadway musical also called The Band Wagon, with a book by George S. Kaufman and starring Fred Astaire and his sister Adele. Interestingly, after "The Band Wagon" Fred and Adele never more appeared on stage together. In 1953 a musical comedy film "The Band Wagon" was made, again with Fred Astaire starring in it.
Adele Astaire (born Adele Marie Austerlitz; September 10, 1896– January 25, 1981) was an American dancer, stage actress and singer. She was Fred Astaire's elder sister, and his partner in a 27-year career in vaudeville and theater, beginning when he was five and she was eight.
A teacher's suggestion that the two children might have a stage career if trained for it prompted the family to move from Omaha to New York, though the father returned to Omaha to work. Adele, Fred and their mother lived in a boardinghouse, and the children began attending the Alviene Master School of the Theatre and Academy of Cultural Arts. They adopted the more American sounding name 'Astaire' after trying several variations on the original family surname.
will always love you Uncertainty I love you Spacious skies I love you I'll find new ways to love you All these miles of ghostly west The Hopis lost to Spain Now belong to me I'm the American I could be a cowboy Or just a hired hand Twisters come in April And rearrange the land Pick me up and throw me west A thousand miles from home Dreaming up my fix I'm the American Abilene, old New Mexico High and dry Flagstaff Arizone Cool water Sipping silver stream This is my American dream I know a squaw in Winslow Who swears by candlelight She said she'd leave the back door Open tonight Three weeks pay will keep me off The wrong side of the law Dreaming up my fix Getting somewhere quick I'm the American