A few days ago Courtney Bluebird and I were swapping nostalgic video clips when she completely floored me with this one – Young Frankenstein – Putting on the Ritz!
For those of you who are not old time musical fans, or were born far too late to know what you are missing, this video clip is a parody of the very famous Fred Astaire version, also called ‘Putting on the Ritz’.
What? You haven’t heard of Fred Astaire either? Oh my god…. Ok, consider this post to be Old Time Musicals 101 then.
First up I give you Fred Astaire, so you have a point of comparison. Please note the smooooooth elegance and sheer style of the man. He makes everything look so effortless and easy.
And now for the Gene Wilder version. You many remember Gene Wilder from the original Charlie and the Chocolate Factory movie. [And yes, Johnny Depp was great in the role but nothing beats Wilder’s… ambiguity. Is he a good guy or a master villain?].
In Young Frankenstein Wilder plays the role of Dr Frankenstein, a singing and dancing Dr Frankenstein, so what could be more natural than for him to partner with the monster of his creation? [I’m going to buy the whole movie so I can tell you exactly what the story is about but for now you will have to make do with just this teaser].
And now, without further ado I give you Dr Frankenstein and his monster in – Putting on the Ritz!
I know I shouldn’t gush like a giggly school girl but – isn’t the monster simply wonderful?
Authors' favourite books
NANO 2012
May 16th, 2012 at 10:44 am
Young Frankenstein is my all-time favorite comedy. Last August, I was walking through a neighborhood in Berlin that I didn’t know. I heard music in the distance and saw a crowd and a big marching band in uniforms. They were playing in a plaza with a fountain designed by an artist I’d just learned about in one of the museums, so I wandered over to take a closer look. The next song was ‘Putting on the Ritz.’ The crowd went crazy — and so did I.
May 16th, 2012 at 10:48 am
Yes! You are good people Candy Korman :D
May 16th, 2012 at 3:00 pm
Absolute classic ! I’m going to buy platform shoes and learn to tap dance. I just hope I don’t fall in the sink too often.
May 16th, 2012 at 8:38 pm
You plan on tap dancing on the kitchen benches????
May 16th, 2012 at 10:41 pm
On the taps. Isn’t that what tap shoes are for?
May 16th, 2012 at 10:20 pm
wonderful clips. thank you for this. there is a wonderful clip doing thew rounds on You Tube I believe of Fred Astaire and \Ginger Rodgers, among others, dancing to the Bee Gees disco classic ‘Staying Alive’
and as for ‘Young Frankenstein’ a terrific parody of Mary Shelley’s novel; it stands up well even now
May 17th, 2012 at 10:05 am
What? Fred and Ginger doing ‘Staying Alive’? This I must find!
Thanks for the tip John. I’m on it :)
May 17th, 2012 at 10:13 am
Just found one for Astaire and Kelly! I’m amazed how someone managed to sync the music to the dancing so well. The only thing I missed was the sound of tapping :D
May 18th, 2012 at 12:53 pm
wonderful movie. mel brooks was on johnny carson, and johnny asked him why a black and white movie. mel said, “we couldn’t find crayons.”
May 18th, 2012 at 9:51 pm
lmao – where has that amazing, biting wit gone to? That man knew about sound bites before they were even invented :)
May 18th, 2012 at 10:05 pm
they knew funny without cursing.
May 19th, 2012 at 7:52 am
They did indeed :D Also very bygone era but… do you by chance know the Goon Show? 1950’s England? Spike Milligan, Peter Sellers, Harry Secombe?
May 19th, 2012 at 8:19 am
spike mulligan, yes. peter sellers i.e. pink panther and many wonderful movies. not familiar with harry secombe or goon show. big python fan though.
May 19th, 2012 at 9:13 am
Ah hah! The Goons were a radio act and more or less ad-libbed every show. If you ever get a chance to listen to their take on 1984 [ ‘it’s good to be alive in 1985′] I think you’ll fall in love with their manic brand of humour :)
Love Monty Python :D ‘No-one expects the Spanish Inquisition!’
May 19th, 2012 at 9:45 am
not the comfy chair!
May 19th, 2012 at 12:43 pm
mwahahahaha!
May 19th, 2012 at 2:09 pm
Don’t forget Michael Bentine who was part of the Goons who also went on to do a children’s show called Potty Time which featured a flea circus and battles. Not one single flea was hurt during the making of……
The Goons are brilliant and Harry Secombe ( a famous singer too) had the most infectious laugh in the world.
May 19th, 2012 at 2:12 pm
I beg to disagree! The title of most infectious laugh in the world goes to a friend of my daughter’s. When they were both in primary school this little boy could make us all laugh just by giggling. Harry Secombe does come in at a close second though ;) And apologies to Michael Bentine :D