Editing Fred Astaire (section)

===1899–1916: Early life and career===
[[File:Fred & Adele Astaire, ca. 1906.jpg|left|thumb|Fred and his sister Adele in 1906]]

Fred Astaire was born Frederick Austerlitz on May 10, 1899, in [[Omaha, Nebraska]], the son of Johanna "Ann" ({{née|Geilus}}; 1878–1975) and Friedrich "Fritz" Emanuel Austerlitz (1868–1923), known in the U.S. as Frederic Austerlitz.<ref name="Billman"/><ref name="Fred Astaire (1899-1987)">{{cite web |url=http://www.germanhollywood.com/astaire.html#pop4 |title=Fred Astaire (1899–1987) aka Friedrich Austerlitz |last=Flippo |first=Hyde |website=The German–Hollywood Connection |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090102022043/http://www.germanhollywood.com/astaire.html#pop4 |archive-date=January 2, 2009 |url-status=dead |access-date=July 10, 2015}}</ref><ref name="AdeleAusterlitzBiog">{{cite web |url=http://www.adherents.com/people/pa/Adele_Astaire.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060228182304/http://www.adherents.com/people/pa/Adele_Astaire.html |url-status=usurped |archive-date=February 28, 2006 |title=The Religious Affiliation of Adele Astaire |publisher=Adherents |date=September 20, 2005 |access-date=August 24, 2008}}</ref><ref name=Way>{{cite web |title= Frederick Austerlitz (1899-1987): An American with Austrian Roots |website= The German Way and More |url= https://www.german-way.com/notable-people/featured-bios/fred-astaire/ |access-date= May 25, 2021}}</ref> Astaire's mother was born in the U.S. to [[Lutheranism|Lutheran]] German immigrants from [[East Prussia]] and [[Alsace]]. Astaire's father was born in [[Linz]] in [[Upper Austria]], then part of the [[Austro-Hungarian Empire]], to [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] parents who had converted from [[Judaism]].<ref name="Billman"/><ref name="Austerlitz">{{cite book
 |last        = Garofalo
 |first       = Alessandra
 |url         = http://www.uni-service.it/austerlitz-sounded-too-much-like-a-battle-the-roots-of-fred-astaire-family-in-europe
 |title       = Austerlitz sounded too much like a battle: The roots of Fred Astaire family in Europe
 |publisher   = Editrice UNI Service
 |year        = 2009
 |location    = Italy
 |isbn        = 978-88-6178-415-4
 |url-status  = dead
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20110722060132/http://www.uni-service.it/austerlitz-sounded-too-much-like-a-battle-the-roots-of-fred-astaire-family-in-europe
 |archive-date = July 22, 2011
}}</ref><ref name="bookref09">{{cite book|last=Levinson|first=Peter|author-link=Peter Levinson|title=Puttin' On the Ritz: Fred Astaire and the Fine Art of Panache, A Biography|publisher=St. Martin's Press|date=March 2009|pages=1–4|isbn=978-0-312-35366-7}}</ref><ref>Satchell, p. 8: "'Fritz' Austerlitz, the 23-year-old son of Stephen Austerlitz and his wife Lucy Heller"</ref>

Astaire's father Fritz Austerlitz arrived in New York City at the age of 25 on October 26, 1893, at [[Ellis Island]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.libertyellisfoundation.org/login/czo2ODoiL3Bhc3Nlbmdlci1kZXRhaWxzL2N6b3hNam9pTmpBME9URTNNRFV3T0RVMklqcz0vY3pvNE9pSnRZVzVwWm1WemRDSTciOw==|title=The Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island|website=Libertyellisfoundation.org|access-date=October 18, 2019|archive-date=July 9, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200709145159/https://www.libertyellisfoundation.org/login/czo2ODoiL3Bhc3Nlbmdlci1kZXRhaWxzL2N6b3hNam9pTmpBME9URTNNRFV3T0RVMklqcz0vY3pvNE9pSnRZVzVwWm1WemRDSTciOw==|url-status=dead}}</ref> Fritz was seeking work in the brewing trade and moved to Omaha, Nebraska, where he was employed by the [[Storz Brewing Company]]. Astaire's mother dreamed of escaping Omaha by means of her children's talents. Astaire's older sister [[Adele Astaire|Adele]] was an instinctive dancer and singer early in her childhood. Johanna planned a brother-and-sister act, common in [[vaudeville]] at the time, for her two children. Although Fred refused dance lessons at first, he easily mimicked his older sister's steps and learned [[piano]], [[accordion]] and [[clarinet]].

When their father lost his job, the family moved to New York City in January 1905 to launch the show business careers of the children. They began training at the Alvieni Master School of the Theatre and Academy of Cultural Arts.<ref name="nyt">{{cite news |last=Bentley |first=Toni |title=Two-Step: 'The Astaires,' by Kathleen Riley |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/03/books/review/the-astaires-by-kathleen-riley.html |newspaper=[[The New York Times Book Review]] |date=June 3, 2012 |page=BR32}}</ref> Fred and Adele's mother suggested that they change their name to Astaire, as she felt that Austerlitz was reminiscent of the [[Battle of Austerlitz]]. Family legend attributes the name to an uncle surnamed L'Astaire.<ref>Thomas p. 17</ref>

The children were taught dance, speaking and singing in preparation for developing an act. Their first act was called ''Juvenile Artists Presenting an Electric Musical Toe-Dancing Novelty''. Astaire wore a top hat and tails in the first half and a lobster outfit in the second. In an interview, Astaire's daughter Ava Astaire McKenzie, observed that he was often given a top hat to make him look taller.<ref>''A Couple of Song and Dance Men'', 1975</ref> In November 1905, the comedic act debuted in [[Keyport, New Jersey]] at a "tryout theater." The local paper wrote that "the Astaires are the greatest child act in vaudeville."<ref>Bill Adler, ''Fred Astaire: A Wonderful Life'', Carroll & Graf Publishers, 1987, p. 13, {{ISBN|0-88184-376-8}}</ref>

As a result of their father's salesmanship, Fred and Adele Astaire landed a major contract and played the [[Orpheum Circuit]] in the Midwest, West and some Southern cities in the U.S. Soon Adele grew to at least three inches taller than Fred, and the pair began to look incongruous. The family decided to take a two-year break from show business to let time take its course and to avoid trouble from the [[New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children|Gerry Society]] and the child-labor laws of the time. In 1912, Astaire became an [[Episcopal Church (United States)|Episcopalian]].<ref name="Astaire">{{cite book
  | last = Astaire
  | first = Fred
  | title = Steps in Time
  | publisher = Heinemann
  | year = 1959
  | location = London
  | oclc=422937 }}</ref> The career of the Astaire siblings resumed with mixed fortunes, but with increasing skill and polish, as they began to incorporate [[Tap dance|tap dancing]] into their act. From vaudeville dancer Aurelio Coccia they learned the tango, waltz and other ballroom dances popularized by [[Vernon and Irene Castle]]. Some sources<ref>e.g., Croce, 1st edition, 1972, footnote p. 14, removed at Astaire's request in 2nd edition, 1974 – see Giles (p. 24). Satchell pp. 41–43 claims to have detected their presence as extras "Even with the benefit of an editing machine, slow-motion, and stop-frame, the Astaires are almost lost in the mass of bodies"</ref> state that the Astaire siblings appeared in a 1915 film titled ''[[Fanchon the Cricket|Fanchon, the Cricket]]'', starring [[Mary Pickford]], but the Astaires have consistently denied this.<ref>Astaire p. 42 and Billman p. 4: "They observed the filming as visitors, but insisted they did not appear in the film."</ref><ref>"The cast may also have included Fred Astaire, then sixteen, and his sister Adele. There is no proof of this, and they do not surface in surviving reels."—{{cite book | last=Brownlow | first=Kevin | title=Mary Pickford Rediscovered | publisher=Harry N. Abrams, Inc. | year=1999 | location=New York | isbn=0-8109-4374-3}}</ref><ref>{{rp|103}}</ref>

By age 14, Astaire  had assumed the musical responsibilities for their act.<ref name="nyt"/> He first met [[George Gershwin]], who was working as a [[song plugger]] for [[Jerome H. Remick]]'s music publishing company, in 1916.<ref>Astaire p. 65: "We struck up a friendship at once. He was amused by my piano playing and often made me play for him."</ref> Astaire had already been hunting for new music and dance ideas. Their chance meeting was to affect the careers of both artists profoundly. Astaire was always on the lookout for new steps on the circuit and was starting to demonstrate his quest for novelty and perfection.