Fred Astaire

American film and Broadway stage dancer, choreographer, singer, musician and actor, born 10 May 1899 in Omaha, Nebraska, USA, died 22 June 1987 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

Father of [a=Ava Astaire], brother of [a=Adele Astaire].

Astaire was the American movie dancer of the 1930s and 1940s. Famed for his mixture of elegance and nice-guy charm, he was a popular romantic lead despite his lack of typical movie star good looks. His dance routines are a staple of movie highlight reels. He was often paired with dancing actress [a=Ginger Rogers]; their movies together included Flying Down to Rio (1933), Top Hat (1935), and Swing Time (1936).

Astaire was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his non-dancing appearance in the 1974 disaster film The Towering Inferno.