Three Evenings with Fred Astaire, Barrie Chase and Chrysler

Barrie Chase and Fred Astaire

I recently posted General Motors' 50th Anniversary television show, and noted in passing that while I had honored GM and Ford (after a sort; it was an Edsel promo), Chrysler had not yet been in the spotlight. Then reader Jeff M. reminded me that the Chrysler Corp. had sponsored three Fred Astaire specials, in 1958, 1959 and 1960, and had issued promotional LPs for each show.

Fortunately I have those LPs and they are the basis of today's post, which also gives me the opportunity to discuss the auto styling then in vogue at Chrysler.

On each of the programs, Astaire was partnered by dancer Barrie Chase, who is little heard on the LPs. Fortunately, Fred was a singer as well as dancer, or we would have a few hours of background music and guest stars.

Also, as a bonus, to honor one of Astaire's earlier (and most famous) partners, I am posting the singles that Fred and Ginger Rogers issued separately in connection with their 1938 film Carefree. It's on my other blog and features a nifty picture label with Fred's floating head front and center (well, to the left of the spindle hole anyway).

An Evening with Fred Astaire (1958)

The first show in the series was broadcast on October 17, 1958. As did GM, Chrysler chose this fall to show off its newly introduced models. As I mentioned with GM's 1958 models, the cars of the time were becoming ever more bloated. The top of the line 1959 Imperial below resembled a luxurious barge with fins, suitable for emperors and anyone else with the appropriate amount of cash.

The 1959 Imperial

Jonah Jones

The TV show was not nearly so ostentatious. Besides Barrie Chase, the program showcased trumpeter Jonah Jones and David Rose and his orchestra. The dance numbers are backed alternately by Rose and Jones, the latter of whom also gets a solo spot on "St. James Infirmary." Jones' trumpet playing is pure Louis Armstrong, his singing is Armstrong strained through Fats Waller. Jones' group was quite a swinging combo. Nothing original here, but still entertaining. Rose's orchestra and arrangements are enjoyable, too: good thing because we can't see the dance routines.

This is a good time to mention that the program was the first to be captured on video tape and can be seen in color on YouTube. should you want to see what Astaire, Chase and Hermes Pan cooked up. It is well worth watching. Fred was still a supreme dancer, and Chase was one of the best partners he ever had.

It also gives you a chance to see the Chrysler ads that were tastefully left off the LP. They are from another world than today's commercials, with a stentorian announcer leading into a male chorus, a la Mitch Miller's Sing-Along Gang, with a musical run-down on the cars' many attributes.

Fred sings "Change Partners," the superb Irving Berlin song from Carefree (which as noted above can be found in its original commercial release on my other blog), then a medley of his many hits, a feature he would continue through the next two shows.

The critics were ecstatic about the program. Jack Gould of the New York Times proclaimed it "a joy, an hour that will rank among the great contemporary theatre nights in any media." The show went on to win nine Emmy awards, and led to the two encore evenings we discuss next.

Missing the dancing, the LP is not worthy of such elaborate praise, although Jones' and David Rose's contributions are enjoyable. (Rose had a terrific piano player.) Reader Jeff was concerned about the sound quality on this LP, and it did prove to be screechy right out of the sleeve. However, with some adjustments, it and its successors now sound very good.

I do like the cover for this LP, with line drawings and calligraphy reminiscent of the jazz LP designs by David Stone Martin, Andy Warhol and Burt Goldblatt. The designer was Emrich Nicholson.

Another Evening with Fred Astaire (1959)

The first evening was so successful that Chrysler brought back the same team for an encore in 1959, and another promotional LP. They did vary things a bit by adding announcer Ken Nordine, who had issued a few quasi-hipster albums of what he called "Word Jazz." The bit on this show is a standard concept pivoting on the word "baby" and involving that popular cliché of the time, a visit to a beatnik hangout. (Astaire and Hermes Pan had done something similar in Funny Face.) Fred and Barrie Chase make the scene into an amusing dance nonetheless, which you can see on YouTube. Nordine's record company rushed out a single of "My Baby," noting on the label that it was "from the TV spectacular 'Another Evening with Fred Astaire.'"

Prop cover for "That Face"

Also new to the troupe were the excellent Bill Thompson Singers, who added some aural variety to the mix. They back Astaire as he sings and dances to "That Face," written for him by Alan Bergman and Lew Spence. In this, Astaire is inspired by a mock-Vogue cover with Barrie Chase's portrait.

Astaire himself wrote "The Afterbeat" with Johnny Mercer. It took the combined genius of those two distinguished fellows to come up with a piece that sounds just like "The Bunny Hop."

In another number, Chase dances with several swains, only to end up with Fred, who is wearing a mask of Mad magazine's Alfred E. Newman. Some reviewers thought this tasteless.

Jonah Jones and ensemble made a return appearance, accompanying Astaire in a "Night Train" scenario. "Train" is not a great composition, despite its Ellington roots, but Fred and the singers do well with its repetitive riffs.

Fortunately, Astaire left "The Bunny Hop," "Night Train" and Alfred E. Newman behind for a concluding medley of his many vocal hits.

It may have been "Valiant," but it sure wasn't attractive

As with the previous special, Chrysler used the platform to proclaim the merits of its new 1960 models. The best designed was probably the low-priced Plymouth, with its simple lines and swooping tail fins. New that year was the small Valiant, a clumsy looking effort that nonetheless was a preview of Chrysler's new design direction.

The critics were once again complimentary, with several saying that "Another Evening" was superior to the award-winning first "Evening." "Fred Scores Again! Tops 1st Triumph!" was one breathless headline. 

The cover of this second LP was not as striking as the first one, but did give Astaire a chance to show off both his immaculate footwork and his splendid wardrobe.

Astaire Time (1960)

The final edition in this three-year run (there was to be a reprise in 1968) was Astaire Time of 1961.

For this concluding episode, Jonah Jones's small group was replaced by Count Basie's big band, which ovr the years had evolved into a chrome-plated musical limousine such that the Chrysler Corporation never imagined. Basie himself is in exceptional form, and the remarkable band is propelled by his new drummer, Sonny Payne. The crew can be seen on YouTube, with Astaire dancing to "Sweet Georgia Brown."

Count Basie

Basie's vocalist, Joe Williams, is featured in a blues medley, which was his specialty. I think he sang "Everyday I Have the Blues" every time he appeared on TV. That's OK; it never got old.

Astaire and Barrie appear in Cole Porter's "Miss Otis Regrets," a famous if overworked tune. Their routine can be seen on YouTube. Fred later presents Porter's "Thank You So Much, Mrs. Lowsborough-Goodby," a sub-Noel Coward piece that I have never taken to. This is the lead-in to Astaire's third medley.

Chrysler, meanwhile, was introducing its 1961 lineup. The higher-priced lines still had the gigantic tail fins that had been a Chrysler signature for several years. The low-priced Plymouth, however, had tamped down the fins into a sweeping design that was very attractive. The dowdy Valiant soldiered on, this time with a sibling, the similar Dodge Lancer.

1961 Plymouth

As for the reaction to the show, the critics were again battling to see who could be most effusive with the praise. The winner was probably John Crosby, who insisted that, "Not only did it set a high mark for television, but it set a new high mark for everything else ... stage or screen or nightclubs."

As I mentioned, Astaire and Chase were to present one more special, The Fred Astaire Show, in 1968. Musical tastes had changed and in place of Count Basie were the immortal Simon & Garfunkel and the now-forgotten pop-rockers The Gordian Knot. No LP exists for this show, to my knowledge.

Just a reminder that Fred and Ginger can be heard in songs from Carefree on Buster's Swinging Singles.