Why did the sound designer play the skating sound so loud? The music is non-diegetic. The taps were added in post-production. It's a great scene and a highlight of Golden Age filmmaking.
Semi-related- Fred got into Skateboarding in his 70s, even breaking his wrist practicing in his driveway. He said he'd wished Skateboards became popular a few years earlier because he could have come up with killer routines using them, which I'm sad we'll never get to see.
From oldhollywoodfans on Instagram: “Shall we dance”, (1937). •The seventh (of ten) dancing partnership of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. •The scene where Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers dance on roller skates took about 150 takes, according to one of the VHS versions of the film. •At the end of the roller skate dance number in the park the stars flop onto the "lawn". In the film both Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers appear uncomfortable as they get up. This is because both were bruised from more than fifteen earlier takes and were actually in pain. #oldhollywood
@meilingmoore9631 In one documentary, someone said that they took 22 takes dancing up a staircase. The man relating this said that he noticed Ginger's shoes were pink but she'd started in white. He thought she'd changed her shoes until he realised it was blood.
It was Gingers idea to do the roller skates, and it was definately Ginger, she NEVER used a stand in for her dancing as she was the top overall dancer of her time.
