Broadway Melody of 1940 Broadway Melody of 1940 Broadway Melody of 1940 is a 1940 MGM film musical starring Fred Astaire, Eleanor Powell and George Murphy. It was directed by Norman Taurog and features music by Cole Porter, including "Begin the Beguine". The film was the fourth and final entry in MGM's "Broadway Melody" series of films, and is notable for being the only on-screen pairing of Astaire and Powell, who were considered the finest film musical dancers of their time. Johnny Brett (Fred Astaire) and King Shaw (George Murphy) are a dance team so down on their luck they're working in a dance
Cole Porter the following: "Oscar Peterson Plays the Cole Porter Songbook" (1959); "Anita O'Day Swings Cole Porter with Billy May" (1959); "" (1965); "Rosemary Clooney Sings the Music of Cole Porter" (1982); and "" (1989). In 1990 Dionne Warwick released "Dionne Sings Cole Porter". In that same year, "Red Hot + Blue" was released as a benefit CD for AIDS research and featured 20 Cole Porter songs recorded by artists such as U2 and Annie Lennox. Additional recording collections include "Frank Sinatra Sings the Select Cole Porter" (1996) and "John Barrowman Swings Cole Porter" (2004; Barrowman played "Jack" in the 2004 film