"Puttin' on the Ritz" is a popular song written and published in 1929 by Irving Berlin and introduced by Harry Richman in the musical film "Puttin' on the Ritz" (1930). The title derives from the slang expression "putting on the Ritz," meaning to dress very fashionably. The expression was inspired by the swanky Ritz Hotel.
The original version of Berlin's song included references to the then-popular fad of flashily-dressed but poor black Harlemites parading up and down Lenox Avenue, "Spending ev'ry dime / For a wonderful time". The song was featured with the original lyrics in the 1939 film "Idiot's Delight", where it was performed by Clark Gable and chorus, and this routine was selected for inclusion in "That's Entertainment" (1974).
The above video was performed by Fred Astaire in 1946 in "Blue Skies". Fred Astaire (May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was born Frederick Austerlitz. He was an American film and Broadway stage dancer, choreographer, singer and actor. His stage and subsequent film career spanned a total of 76 years, during which he made 31 musical films. He was named the fifth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute. He is particularly associated with Ginger Rogers, with whom he made ten films.
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