What was the real difference in height between Fred Astaire and Judy Garland? In this film she's wearing killer heels, so it's hard to tell.
"What I got don't need pearls." -- Linda Darnell (1923-65)
Fred Astair claimed 5'9"..although most agree he was no taller than 5'7". Judy Garland was 4'11" barefoot.
shareThanks! I never knew he was that vertically impaired. For some reason, he always struck me as over 6'. I guess that's movie magic for you.
"What I got don't need pearls." -- Linda Darnell (1923-65)
Helps to be that slender and long-legged. I think he was more like 5'8" at 48, though (shorter in his old age); an average height in those days.
shareWatching it again there were some scenes where they looked about the same height.
shareHe was short for a male dancer especially since the girl dancers were all so tall. Gene Kelly had the same problem. You'll notice in this movie that Ann Miller goes from heels in the magazine cover song to flats instantly when she begins to dance with Fred. Similar things happen with Fred and Cyd in Band Wagon and Gene and Cyd in Singing in the Rain and Brigadoon.
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Sigh...Even the females were shorter in those days and very RARELY did
height create problems for Astaire and Kelly.
Forty-eight is not "old age" and he wouldn't have lost an inch of height at that age.
shareHuh? Since when is 5'7 "vertically impaired?" Good grief.
shareIt was certainly an issue for movies!! Bogie stood on a box for some scenes with the tall Ingrid Bergman in Casablanca (but it certainly did not faze him because he married the super tall Lauren Bacall!). Charles Boyer wore big lifts to star with Ingrid Bergman in Gaslight. I can't imagin e the platform shoes Dustin Hoffman must have to wear ;) Tom Cruise is said to be 5'7" in his dreams... Hollywood has had many small men throughout its history--from Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin on. Fred Astaire was only short because the women dancers had to be so close--in his arms and moving around him. He was an artist at working with women from under five feet tall to as tall or taller than he was. The only hint we get is the shoes the women wear.
Watch how many female dancers wear ballet flats when dancing with Astaire--besides Ann Miller, in the Stepping Out number, the first woman to dance with him has ballet slippers with a funny round frizzy-looking thing on them. The second woman, who is shorter than the first, has low heels with a wider heel like Naturalizers--not what dancers and actresses normally wear....
In Band Wagon, with Cyd Charisse, 5'7 1/2" tall, she always wears flats. In Daddy Long Legs, Leslie Caron was only 5' 1 1/2" tall, much like Judy Garland's 4'11". I recall Audrey Hepburn, 5'7" tall, always wearing flats in Funny Face, but I could be wrong.
Ginger Rogers fell comfortably in between the heights--at 5'4 1/2" she was safe in small heels which her beautiful gowns required! I can't imagine her wearing any of those sparkling, flowing works of art with ballet flats!
As an aside, I noticed that the director also pulled a smart move to make Astaire appear taller when with Ann Miller: he had her a foot forward of Astaire when they stood next to each other and spoke. It was in a scene after she performed a dance number, and they are speaking.... He is standing about a foot farther back than she, and so the tops of their heads are level. It would not work everywhere, and an actress who was not as thin as Ann Miller could not pull it off.
Judy Garland was very petite so there were probably height issues for every co-star she had. (Except Mickey Rooney of course.)
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