follow the fleet

the year: 1936

the genre: musical

the cast: Fred Astaire (Bake Baker); Ginger Rogers (Sherry Martin); Harriet Hilliard (Connie Martin); Randolph Scott (Bilge Smith); Lucille Ball (Kitty Collins)


the plot: When the fleet puts in at San Francisco, sailor Bake Baker tries to rekindle the flame with his old dancing partner, Sherry Martin, while Bake's buddy Bilge Smith romances Sherry's sister Connie. But it's not all smooth sailing: Bake has a habit of losing Sherry's jobs for her; and despite Connie's dreams, Bilge is not ready to settle down.

count: how many taps Fred and Ginger make on the stage - just kidding!



don’t miss: Harriet Hilliard as Connie - she would later in life be Harriet Nelson (of "Ozzie and HARRIET" fame) - and Lucille Ball as Kitty.

check out: Fred getting smacked in the face with Ginger's beaded gown during the final dance sequence on the boat. The sequence was shot again 23 times in the hope of capturing the magic of that take without the accident, but it wasn't to be, so the original take was used.

listen for: quite possibly, my favorite Irving Berlin song ever: