Top Hat (1935)
- kbroer
- Jun 9, 2023
- 2 min read
Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Edward Everett Horton, Helen Broderick
Directed by Mark Sandrich
Available to stream on Amazon Prime
Fred and Ginger are at the top of their game in this light story of mistaken identity, as they fall in love over lots of beautiful music and dancing.
Why we love it:
Fred and Ginger at the their best! For four years during the worst of the Depression Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers made four iconic musicals with their unequaled dancing – and with songs by some of the most famous songwriters of the 1930’s.
In 1934 it was The Gay Divorcee with songwriter Cole Porter’s “Night and Day” and “The Continental;” in 1935 Top Hat with Irving Berlin’s songs “Cheek to Cheek” and “Top Hat, White Tie, and Tails.” Swing Time was their 1936 film with Jerome Kern-Dorothy Fields’ music: “A Fine Romance” and “The Way You Look Tonight.” In 1937 it was Shall We Dance with George Gershwin songs “They Can’t Take That Away” and “Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off.”
In addition to their inimitable dancing and their beautiful music, there were Ginger’s glamourous gowns – and the impossibly beautiful nightclubs and hotel rooms. For escapism from economic depression it was all perfect. Audiences loved them. Altogether the team of Astaire and Rogers appeared in nine movies together, but these four were the hits that make them remembered nearly ninety years later.
Fun facts:
Ginger's costume during the "Cheek to Cheek" number kept shedding feathers throughout the dance, which annoyed Fred Astaire. From then on his nickname for Ginger was "Feathers."
Lucille Ball plays a small part as the girl in the flower shop at the beginning of the film.
To read film reviews from the time, go to the Fan Magazines page.
Featured Cocktail
Horse’s Neck
Helen Broderick’s drink of choice in Top Hat, this drink is a highball with a complicated garnish. While other liquors are sometimes used, bourbon is the most accepted.
2 oz (60 ml) bourbon
About 6 oz (180 ml) ginger ale
Peel a medium to large lemon in a continuous spiral. Place the spiral into a tall glass, leaving enough hanging over the rim to hold it. Fill the glass with ice, add the bourbon and top with ginger ale.
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