Techotic

A Fred Astaire and Michael Jackson fan remixed this video starring Fred Astaire, Cyd Charisse, and Leslie Caron dancing to Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal” in the hope of introducing young people to Astaire. The video footage came from the 1953 film The Band Wagon and the 1955 film Daddy Long Legs.

I love both Astaire and Michael Jackson. I want young people to know Astaire stuff, that is why I made this. The video features scenes from the Girl Hunt ballet in The Band Wagon (1953) starring Astaire and Cyd Charisse (those supreme legs!! The most perfect body a woman could have. So sensual, so elegant), to which MJ gave homage in his Smooth Criminal vid (also in a performance of Get Happy on the Jacksons show in the 70s as well as You Rock My World in 2001), and, as an intro, a sequence from Daddy Long Legs (1955) featuring Leslie Caron (in motion pictures, you mustn’t put a coin into a jukebox in an ordinary way!).

My initial idea was using also Yolanda And The Thief (1945) where Astaire appeared with the same costume, a white suit, hat and a blue shirt, but I eventually omitted it.

Michael Kidd worked with Janet in the Alright vid in 1990, featuring Cyd Charisse (in the red dress!), the Nicholas Brothers and Cab Calloway.

[via boingboing]