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Engraved portrait of Ginger Rogers
Film & Screen · 1930s

Ginger Rogers

In memoriam 1911–1995

“She matched Astaire step for step, backward and in heels, and made it look like joy.”

Virginia Katherine McMathReal name
July 16, 1911, Independence, MissouriBorn
April 25, 1995, Rancho Mirage, CaliforniaDied
Best Actress for Kitty Foyle (1940)Academy Award
Partnered with Fred Astaire in ten moviesAstaire films
The Turning Point

Rogers won a Charleston contest as a teenager and broke through on Broadway in Girl Crazy (1930). Her pairing with Fred Astaire beginning in Flying Down to Rio (1933) made her a major movie star, and she later won a dramatic Oscar for Kitty Foyle (1940).

Ginger Rogers in a studio portrait
Ginger Rogers in a studio portrait

Vaudeville Roots

Born in Missouri, she began performing as a teenager after winning a Charleston contest and touring in vaudeville. Her success in the 1930 Broadway musical Girl Crazy led quickly to Hollywood.

Ginger Rogers as Roxie Hart, 1942
Ginger Rogers as Roxie Hart, 1942

Dancing with Astaire

Paired with Fred Astaire across ten RKO films, she helped define the 1930s movie musical with hits like Top Hat and Swing Time. Their blend of romance, comedy, and dazzling dance made the team box-office royalty.

A Dramatic Star

Determined to prove her range beyond musicals, she won the 1940 Best Actress Oscar for the working-girl drama Kitty Foyle. She remained a leading comic and dramatic actress through the 1940s and later returned to the stage.

Career Timeline

  1. 1911Born Virginia Katherine McMath in Independence, Missouri
  2. 1925Wins a Charleston dance contest, tours vaudeville
  3. 1930Stars on Broadway in Gershwin's Girl Crazy
  4. 1933First teamed with Fred Astaire in Flying Down to Rio
  5. 1935Co-stars in Top Hat
  6. 1936Dances "Pick Yourself Up" in Swing Time
  7. 1940Wins Best Actress Oscar for Kitty Foyle
  8. 1942Stars in the comedy The Major and the Minor
  9. 1949Reunites with Astaire in The Barkleys of Broadway
  10. 1965Stars in Broadway's Hello, Dolly!
  11. 1992Receives Kennedy Center Honors
  12. 1995Dies in Rancho Mirage, California, aged 83

Biggest Hits

1933
Flying Down to RioFirst on-screen pairing with Fred Astaire
1935
Top HatBox-office smash with "Cheek to Cheek"
1936
Swing TimeCelebrated Astaire-Rogers musical
1937
Stage DoorEnsemble comedy-drama with Katharine Hepburn
1940
Kitty FoyleDramatic role that won her the Best Actress Oscar
1942
The Major and the MinorHit comedy directed by Billy Wilder
1949
The Barkleys of BroadwayFinal film reunion with Fred Astaire
Did You Know
  • A famous quip holds she did everything Astaire did "backwards and in high heels."
  • Her nickname "Ginger" came from a young cousin's mispronunciation of Virginia.

The Moment You Remember

In a flowing feathered gown she sweeps across a polished floor with Fred Astaire to Cheek to Cheek, the two of them turning a song into weightless conversation. That image of effortless partnership came to stand for an entire era of Hollywood glamour.

Portrait: John Miehle (1902-1952) · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons

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