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Swing Time Overview:

Swing Time (1936) was a Comedy - Musical Film directed by George Stevens and produced by Pandro S. Berman.

SYNOPSIS

Here is one of the high points of the Astaire-Rogers team, and, therefore, one of the greatest of Depression-era song-and-dance spectaculars. The story involves a gambler and dancer (Astaire - and how many times do you see that combination?) who's engaged to marry Furness, but first must raise $25,000 to prove he can support her. When he meets dance teacher Rogers at Blore's dance academy, all thoughts of money fly away. The scene in which Rogers teaches Astaire to dance and the justly famous "The Way You Look Tonight" sequence are standouts. Stevens gives the familiar formula a witty lift and the Kern-Fields numbers delight. Priceless. The laserdisc edition includes audio commentary by John Mueller (author of Astaire Dancing: The Musical Films), a photo scrapbook of behind-the-scenes stills, and a clip for the 1935 RKO film Hooray for Love, with Bill "Bojangles" Robinson and Fats Waller.

(Source: available at Amazon AMC Classic Movie Companion)

Swing Time was inducted into the National Film Registry in 2004.

Academy Awards 1936 --- Ceremony Number 9 (source: AMPAS)

AwardRecipientResult
Best Music - SongMusic by Jerome Kern; Lyrics by Dorothy FieldsWon
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Swing Time BlogHub Articles:

Swing Time (1936)

By Cameron on Oct 25, 2017 From The Blonde At The Film

via: http://beverlygray.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/lights-out-for-la-la-land.html   Unless otherwise noted, all images are my own. Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire are back in their sixth of ten films together. Swing Time (1936) is usually considered one of the best of the bunch, mostly because of the sc... Read full article

DOUBLE BILL #3 Top Hat (1935) and Swing Time (1936)

By Carol Martinheira on Jun 4, 2017 From The Old Hollywood Garden

DOUBLE BILL #3 Top Hat (1935) and Swing Time (1936) On June 4, 2017June 4, 2017 By CarolIn Uncategorized Musicals of the 1930s are pretty much screwball comedies with songs. And they’re absolutely fabulous. Especially Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers ones. Ten adorable... Read full article

Swing Time (1936) – Updated

By 4 Star Film Fan on Jan 13, 2016 From 4 Star Films

I wondered to myself, after watching Swing Time once again, if anyone else might have easily taken Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers’ places as films greatest dancing couple, and then I quickly discarded this heretical idea. They appeared in 10 films together with this film directed by George Ste... Read full article

Review: Swing Time (1936)

By 4 Star Film Fan on Jan 13, 2016 From 4 Star Films

I wondered to myself, after watching Swing Time once again, if anyone else might have easily taken Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers’ places as films greatest dancing couple, and then I quickly discarded this heretical idea. They appeared in 10 films together with this film directed by George Ste... Read full article

Review: Swing Time (1936)

By 4 Star Film Fan on Jan 13, 2016 From 4 Star Films

I wondered to myself, after watching Swing Time once again, if anyone else might have easily taken Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers’ places as films greatest dancing couple, and then I quickly discarded this heretical idea. They appeared in 10 films together with this film directed by George Ste... Read full article

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Quotes from Swing Time:

Lucky Garnett: A fine romance, with no kisses. A fine romance, my friend, this is. We should be like a couple of hot tomatoes. But you're as cold as yesterday's mashed potatoes. A fine romance, you won't nestle. A fine romance, you won't wrestle. I've never mussed a crease in your blue serge pants. I never had the chance. This is a fine romance. A fine romance, my good fellow. You take romance. I'll take jello. You're calmer than the seals in the Arctic Ocean. At least they flap their fins to express emotion. A fine romance, with no quarrels, with no insults, and all the morals. You're just as hard to land as the Ile de France. I never get the chance. This is a fine romance. A fine romance, with no kisses. A fine romance, my friend, this is. True love should have the thrills that a healthy climb has. We don't have half the thrills that "The March of Time" has. A fine romance, with no clinches. A fine romance, with no pinches. You never give the orchids I send a glance. No, you like cactus plants. This is a fine romance.
Mabel Anderson: [after having just been hit in the face with a snowball] You know, snow tastes just as bad as water.
Penny Carroll: Listen. No one could teach you to dance in a million years. Take my advice and save your money!
Mabel Anderson: [Mable thinks she's talking to Pop and turns to a young lady sitting at one of the tables] Oh, listen girlie! Don't worry about me. I always talk to myself... you see, I'm my own grandmother and I have to keep the old girl interested!
Mabel Anderson: Beautiful, isn't it?
Everett 'Pop' Cardetti: What is?
Mabel Anderson: The music.
Everett 'Pop' Cardetti: What music?
Mabel Anderson: The music they're playing.
Everett 'Pop' Cardetti: Oh, yeah.
[pause]
Everett 'Pop' Cardetti: What made you think of it?
Mabel Anderson: Think of what?
Everett 'Pop' Cardetti: The music.
Mabel Anderson: [said sarcastically] Oh, I don't know; my mind was wandering, I guess.
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Facts from Swing Time
The climax of "Never Gonna Dance" took 47 takes in a single day and required many demanding spins of Ginger Rogers; her feet bled.
44th American President Barack Obama referred to a quote from the movie in his inauguration acceptance speech on 20th January, 2009.
The sixth (of ten) dancing partnership of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.
The film originally began with a musical number, "It's Not in the Cards," which was cut due the film's length and because the number was judged as not very good. Only a bit remains in the final version. The music is also used in the background during the first few scenes.
This was Ginger Rogers' favorite of her films with Fred Astaire.
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