# Who was the better dancer: Fred Astaire, or Gene Kelly?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-better-dancer-fred-astaire-or-gene-kelly/988816>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [August 20, 2023, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-better-dancer-fred-astaire-or-gene-kelly/988816 "2023-08-20T02:44:03Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\
**Post date:** [August 20, 2023, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-better-dancer-fred-astaire-or-gene-kelly/988816/1 "2023-08-20T02:44:03Z")

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Deleted. I need to find out how to make a poll.

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**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\
**Post date:** [August 20, 2023, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-better-dancer-fred-astaire-or-gene-kelly/988816/2 "2023-08-20T02:58:25Z")

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I’m going to answer anyway. They were very different dancers, but I’m going to give my nod to Kelly as the more versatile – he could do everything dancing that Astaire could do and much more besides. He made a more convincing love interest too (as Dorothy Parker said of Astaire, Ginger Rogers “gave him sex,” but Kelly didn’t need anyone to do that). Astaire was a marginally better singer, but you didn’t ask that.

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**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\
**Post date:** [August 20, 2023, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-better-dancer-fred-astaire-or-gene-kelly/988816/3 "2023-08-20T03:00:33Z")

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> [@Roderick\_Femm](#):
>
> I’m going to answer anyway.

I’ve asked for the thread to be closed, pending receiving instructions on how to post a poll. (It was easy before Discourse.)

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**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\
**Post date:** [August 20, 2023, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-better-dancer-fred-astaire-or-gene-kelly/988816/4 "2023-08-20T03:08:52Z")

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