Follow the Fleet

Follow the Fleet
Follow the Fleet DVD cover
Directed by	Mark Sandrich
Produced by	Pandro S. Berman
Written by	Allan Scott Dwight Taylor
Based on	Shore Leave by Hubert Osborne
Starring	Fred Astaire Ginger Rogers Randolph Scott Harriet Hilliard
Music by	Irving Berlin Max Steiner
Cinematography	David Abel
Editing by	Henry Berman
Distributed by	RKO Radio Pictures
Release date(s)	February 20, 1936 (U.S. release)
Running time	110 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Follow the Fleet (RKO) is a 1936 Hollywood musical comedy film with a nautical theme and stars Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Randolph Scott, Harriet Hilliard, and Astrid Allwyn, with music and lyrics by Irving Berlin. Lucille Ball and Betty Grable also appear, in small supporting roles. The film was directed by Mark Sandrich with script by Allan Scott and Dwight Taylor based on the 1922 play Shore Leave by Hubert Osborne.

Dance commentators Arlene Croce and John Mueller point out that, aside from the obvious weakness -- a discursive and overlong plot lacking quality specialist comedians to bring its whimsical elements to life, a flaw which also characterised Roberta -- this film contains some of the Astaire-Rogers partnership's most prized duets, not least the iconic "Let's Face the Music and Dance." According to Croce: "One reason the numbers in Follow the Fleet are as great as they are is that Rogers had improved remarkably as a dancer. Under Astaire's coaching she had developed extraordinary range, and the numbers in the film are designed to show it off." That this film's remarkable score was produced immediately after his smash-hit score for Top Hat is perhaps testimony to Berlin's claim that Astaire's abilities inspired him to deliver some of his finest work. As an actor, however, Astaire makes an unconvincing attempt at shedding the wealthy man-about-town image by donning a sailor's uniform, while Rogers, in this her fifth pairing with Astaire, brings her usual comedic and dramatic flair to bear on her role as a nightclub entertainer.

Follow the Fleet was extremely successful at the box office, and during 1936, Astaire's recorded versions of "Let Yourself Go", "I'm Putting all My Eggs in One Basket", and "Let's Face the Music and Dance" reached their highest positions of 3rd, 2nd, 3rd respectively in the US Hit Parade. Harriet Hilliard and Tony Martin made their screen debuts in this film. RKO borrowed Randolph Scott from Paramount and Astrid Allwyn from Fox for the production.

Synopsis

"Bake" Baker (Fred Astaire) and Sherry (Ginger Rogers) are former dance partners, now separated, with Baker in the Navy and Sherry working as a dance hostess in a San Francisco ballroom, Paradise.

Bake visits the ballroom with his Navy buddy "Bilge" (Randolph Scott) during a period of liberty, reuniting with Sherry while Bilge is initially attracted to Sherry's sister Connie (Harriet Hilliard). When Connie begins to talk about marriage, Bilge quickly diverts his attention towards a friend of Sherry's, Iris (Astrid Allwyn), a divorced socialite.

The sailors return to sea while Connie seeks to raise money to salvage her deceased sea-captain father's sailing ship. When the boys return to San Francisco, Bake attempts to get Sherry a job in a Broadway show, but fails amidst a flurry of mistaken identities and misunderstandings. He redeems himself by staging a benefit show which raises the final seven hundred dollars needed to refurbish the ship.

After the concert, Bake and Sherry are offered a show on Broadway which Bake accepts on the proviso that Sherry asks him to marry her.

Cast

• Fred Astaire as Bake Baker
• Ginger Rogers as Sherry Martin
• Randolph Scott as Bilge Smith
• Harriet Hilliard as Connie Martin
• Astrid Allwyn as Mrs. Iris Manning
• Betty Grable as Trio Singer
• Harry Beresford as Captain Hickey
• Russell Hicks as Nolan
• Brooks Benedict as David Sullivan
• Ray Mayer as Dopey Williams
• Lucille Ball as Kitty Collins
• Tony Martin as Sailor
• Jane Hamilton as Paradise Ballroom Waitress
• Mary Jane Irving as Minor Role
• Thelma Leeds as Minor Role
• Doris Lloyd as Mrs. Courtney
• Kitty McHugh as Minor Role
• Gertrude Short as Cashier, Paradise Ballroom

Key songs/dance routines

Hermes Pan collaborated with Astaire on the choreography, which dwells on themes of sudden changes in tempo, rhythm and direction^{[citation needed]}. Competitive challenge is another important component.

• "We Saw The Sea": The film introduces Astaire with this song.

• "Let Yourself Go": Backed by a trio which includes Betty Grable, a nautically-attired Ginger sings this Berlin standard, which is followed after a short interlude by a comic tap duet with Astaire. This routine begins as a competitive challenge between Astaire-Rogers and another couple (Bob Cromer and Dorothy Fleischman, who soon withdraw) and develops into an energetic duet with much emphasis on galloping kicks, leg wiggling and scampering moves.

• "Get Thee Behind Me Satan": Sung by Harriet Hilliard, this number was originally intended for Ginger in Top Hat.

• "I'd Rather Lead A Band": After singing this number Astaire embarks on a tap solo in which he dances on, off and around the beat - an ability for which he had long been famous in theatre. After leading the band in the song, he discards the baton and begins the solo part of his routine. After this, he is joined by a chorus of sailors who are alternately led and challenged by him.

• "Let Yourself Go" (solo dance): This is Ginger Rogers' only solo tap dance in her ten films with Astaire.

• "I'm Putting all My Eggs in One Basket": As in the "I Won't Dance" number from Roberta, the song is preceded by a solo piano display by Astaire - a playing style he termed his "feelthy piano". Then Astaire and Rogers sing alternate choruses before embarking on a comic dance duet which plays on the notion of both dancers being unable to keep in step with each other. Incidentally, Lucille Ball appears just before this number to put a sailor admirer down with the line "Tell me little boy, did you get a whistle or a baseball bat with that suit".

• "But Where Are You?": Sung by Harriet Hilliard.

• "Let's Face the Music and Dance": Astaire sings this to Rogers after which the dance begins slowly and culminates in a static exit pose. The dance is filmed in one continuous shot lasting two minutes and fifty seconds. During the first take, Ginger's dress, which was heavily weighted so as to achieve a controlled swirling action, hit Astaire in the face midway through the routine, though the effect is barely discernible. He nonetheless selected this take out of twenty overall for the final picture. The set - designed by Carroll Clark under the direction of Van Nest Polglase - is frequently cited as a leading example of Art Deco-influenced art direction known as Hollywood Moderne. Film clips of this routine were featured in the 1981 film Pennies from Heaven - detested by Astaire, - where it was also reinterpreted by Steve Martin and Bernadette Peters with revised choreography by Danny Daniels.

Note: Two songs, "Moonlight Maneuvers" and "With a Smile on My Face" were written for the film but unused.

References

• Fred Astaire: Steps in Time, 1959, Heinemann, London
• Arlene Croce: The Fred and Ginger Book, Galahad Books 1974, ISBN 0-88365-099-1
• John Mueller: Astaire Dancing - The Musical Films of Fred Astaire, Knopf 1985, ISBN 0-394-51654-0
• Tim Satchell: Astaire, The Biography. Hutchinson, London. 1987. ISBN 0-09-173736-2

It appears that the Battleship that Fred Astaire is assigned to is of the Colorado Class...perhaps the USS Colorado (BB-45); USS Maryland (BB-46) or USS West Virginia (BB-48).... The Colorado Class had the Main Battery of 8-16" 45 caliber guns. Note the only ship of the Colorado Class never commissioned: USS Washington (BB-47) she was never completed due to the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922.

External links

• Follow the Fleet at the Internet Movie Database
• Follow the Fleet at the TCM Movie Database
• Follow the Fleet at AllRovi
• Follow the Fleet at Reelclassics