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Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Edna May Oliver, Walter Brennan, Lew Fields ... see more see more... , Etienne Girardot , Janet Beecher , Rolfe Sedan , Leonid Kinskey , Robert Strange , Douglas Walton , Clarence Derwent , Sonny Lamont , Frances Mercer , Victor Varconi , Donald MacBride , Buzz Barton , Joe Bordeaux , Eugene Borden , Lynton Brent , Don Brodie , Neal Burns , Marge Champion , Tom Chatterton , Adrienne D'Ambricourt , Roy D'Arcy , Hal K. Dawson , Elspeth Dudgeon , Dick Elliott , Billy Franey , Wesley Giraud , Eleanor Hansen , Neal Hart , Russell Hicks , George Irving , Tiny Jones , Jacques Lory , Dorothy Lovett , Hugh McArthur , Louis Mercier , Leonard Mudie , Esther Muir , Bill Patton , Jack Perrin , Kay Sutton , Theodore von Eltz , Melinda Wood Allen , David MacDonald , Frank Mills , Bruce Mitchell , Frank O'Connor , John Meredith , Mary Brodel , Claire Willis , Armand Cortez

The last of RKO's Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers vehicles, The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle is also the least typical. At their best playing carefree characters in gossamer-thin musical comedy plotlin... read more read more...es, Fred and Ginger seem slightly ill at ease cast as the real-life dancing team of Vernon and Irene Castle. The stripped-to-essentials storyline boils down to novice dancer Irene (Rogers) convincing vaudeville comic Vernon (Astaire) to give up slapstick in favor of "classy" ballroom dancing. With the help of agent Edna May Oliver, the Castles hit their peak of fame and fortune in the immediate pre-World War I years. When Vernon is called to arms, Irene stays behind in the US, making patriotic movie serials to aid the war effort. Vernon is killed in a training accident, leaving a tearful Irene to carry on alone. To soften the shock of Astaire's on-screen death (it still packs a jolt when seen today), RKO inserted a closing "dream" dancing sequence, with a spectral Vernon and Irene waltzing off into the heavens. The film's production was hampered by the on-set presence of the real Irene Castle, whose insistence upon accuracy at all costs drove everyone to distraction--especially Ginger Rogers, who felt as though she was being treated like a marionette rather than an actress. In one respect, Mrs. Castle had good reason to be so autocratic. Walter, the "severest critic servant" character played by Walter Brennan, was in reality a black man. RKO was nervous about depicting a strong, equal-footing friendship between the white Castles and their black retainer, so a Caucasian actor was hired for the role. Mrs. Castle was understandably incensed by this alteration, and for the rest of her days chastised RKO for its cowardice. As it turned out, it probably wouldn't have mattered if Walter had been black, white, Chicano or Siamese; The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle was a financial bust, losing $50,000 at the box office. Perhaps as a result, Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers would not team up again for another ten years. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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5 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 33 min.

Directed by: H.C. Potter

Release Date: June 1, 1939

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DVD Release Date: October 24, 2006

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Flixster Reviews (65)

  • binky013
    March 20, 2009
    binky013
    And they are gone: ay, ages long ago
    These lovers fled away into the storm.

    These lines, the opening of the final stanza of John Keats' The Eve of St. Agnes, come to mind as the long run of Ginger and Fred comes to an end. It's their escape into the realm of legend.

    ... read more

    Heartbreaking. Although they would reunite through a twist of fate a decade later, this was the last intentional pairing of Rogers and Astaire, the end of their nine film run into cinematic history.

    Perhaps because this tragic story is based on the real lives of Vernon and Irene Castle, and, of course, the untimely death of Vernon Castle, that story and the end of the Rogers and Astaire dynasty combine for an even sadder double impact. To see them, in the end, dancing off into the distance in Ginger's/Irene's imagination heightens the melancholy of the moment. The characters and the actors are gone, ay ages long ago. The greatest dancing duo in movie history -- then, now, and forever.
  • jjnxn
    August 28, 2008
    jjnxn
    Different from other Fred & Ginger movies in being a bio and probably not too factual but great dancing, their chemistry and Edna May Oliver make it a fine entertainment.
  • placeinthesun455
    August 14, 2008
    placeinthesun455
    a fitting final film for Fed & Ginger at RKO. by no means their best work, but it really can't compare to other musical comedies, as it wasn't all that musical or funny. still some very dynamic dancing and vaudeville entertainment. the film's biggest flaw perhaps lies in the s... read moreuccess montage--where a modern biopic would have delved more into the Castles' rise to stardom, this hammy picture covered it all in a dialogueless 2-minute musical interlude. so not the strongest in storytelling or musical comedy, but it's still a fitting performance and memorable second-to-last collaboration for the best dance duo in the business.

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Critic Reviews

Gabe Leibowitz
October 13, 2011
Gabe Leibowitz, Film and Felt

It's not exactly a stretch for Astaire and Rogers, but they do the old rags-to-riches angle seamlessly, and the finale is surprisingly touching. Full Review

Ken Hanke
May 24, 2006
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Lesser Astaire-Rogers vehicle, but pleasant.

James Sanford
March 18, 2005
James Sanford, Kalamazoo Gazette

The duo's most unusual film, a surprisingly effective tearjerker

March 26, 2009
Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

Frank S. Nugent
March 25, 2006
Frank S. Nugent, New York Times

Click to read the article Full Review

Emanuel Levy
October 18, 2005
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

Michael Szymanski
October 7, 2005
Michael Szymanski, International Press Academy

No review available.

Derek Adams
February 9, 2006
Derek Adams, Time Out

Click to read the article Full Review

May 24, 2003
Film4

Click to read the article Full Review

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The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle Trivia

The Story of Vernon and Irene Cas... Trivia

  • ****AFTER A LONG STRING OF SUCCESSES THAT INCLUDED ?TOP HAT? AND ?SWING TIME?, FRED ASTAIRE AND GINGER ROGERS MADE THEIR LAST FILM TOGETHER FOR RKO IN 1939. UNLIKE THEIR OTHER RKO FILMS, THIS ONE WAS BASED ON A TRUE STORY. WHAT WAS THE TITLE OF THIS FILM****  Answer »
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