You appear like a radiant star

I've been debating what to do with my next post on dancing couples. I liked the whole two-fer thing and I thought of doing that again but, if I do, then I'll end up 6&5, 4&3, 2&1. And I really like counting down with 3, 2, 1 - it makes the whole thing more exciting, don't you think? So, instead, I think I'll do a three-fer feature instead, discussing couples 6, 5, and 4 - in that order.

6. Fred Astaire and Rita Hayworth



Favorite dance: I'm always going back and forth on this one. On the one hand, I say the tap duet from You'll Never Get Rich and on the other hand, I say "So Near, Yet So Far," also from You'll Never Get Rich.

I love their elegance and sexiness. I like the way they look together as a couple. The more I watch their scenes together, the more I like them. I really think I need to revisit their movies.


5. Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse


Favorite dance: I am going to choose to waffle again (because waffles and waffling can be fun) and say that it's a toss up between "Dancing in the Dark" from The Band Wagon and "All of You (Reprise)" from Silk Stockings.

I think Fred Astaire was a very good balletic partner because he was always dependable and solid and Cyd Charisse was a perfect ballerina because she was graceful, fluid, athletic, and sexy. Thus, they made a perfect pairing. They could be sweet and gentle (as in "Dancing in the Dark"), fun and athletic (as in "All of You") or jazzy and dangerous (as in "Girl Hunt Ballet").

Now, for number 4... this bit is a little funny because I've actually changed this 3 times since I started this post. I originally had one couple but changed it because I was going on and on about how absolutely wonderful their dance was... and then I was talking about another couple and was wondering why they weren't in the top 3. So, after much deliberation, I've decided to rearrange a bit and make this couple number 4. They really are tied very closely to number 3 (who is tied, I might add, very closely to number 2).

4. Cyd Charisse and Ricardo Montalban



Favorite dance: Here I go again! Hmm... I'm thinking "Dark Duet" from On An Island With You is very close to being the top one. But their dance in Fiesta (of which I have shamefully forgotten the name) is remarkable as well.

They were two incredibly beautiful, athletic, and sexy dancers who should have been paired together more often, in my humble opinion. They were paired on several occasions, but not as often as I'd like. I don't think their romance was ever brought to the forefront of any plotline and so their dance routines were more like fillers, thrown into the movie as if as an afterthought. It's a shame, really because they were both so talented and I think they worked really well together. Maybe the producers didn't think they had any chemistry (although, goodness knows, that didn't stop them on other occasions). I'm not really a good judge of such things. In any case, I'm grateful for their dances together, however few they may be.
(Also, I love, love, love that photo of them. I want to hang it up on my wall.)