Shall We Dance (1937 film) their musicals since "The Gay Divorcee" (1934) – contributed to their least profitable picture to date. Astaire was no stranger to the Gershwins, having headlined, with his sister Adele, two Gershwin Broadway shows: "Lady Be Good!" in 1924 and "Funny Face" in 1927. George Gershwin also accompanied the pair on piano in a set of recordings in 1926. Rogers first came to Hollywood's attention when she appeared in the Gershwins' 1930 stage musical "Girl Crazy". "Shall We Dance" was named at the suggestion of Vincente Minnelli, who was a friend of the Gershwins. Minnelli originally suggested "Shall We Dance?" with
The Passing Show of 1918 elaborate Broadway revues at the Winter Garden Theatre, using the name "The Passing Show of 19XX", designed to compete with the popular Ziegfeld Follies. They featured libretti by Atteridge and music usually by Romberg, George Gershwin or Herman Finck. Willie and Eugene Howard starred in many editions of the series and in the many editions of the George White's Scandals. Other stars included Charlotte Greenwood, Marilyn Miller, Ed Wynn, De Wolf Hopper, Charles Winninger, Fred Astaire and his sister Adele, Marie Dressler, Fred Allen, George Hassell, and Violet Englefield. Most of the Shubert shows, including the 1918 show, were staged