Oh, Lady Be Good! Oh, Lady Be Good! "Oh, Lady Be Good!" is a 1924 song by George and Ira Gershwin. It was introduced by Walter Catlett in the Broadway musical "Lady, Be Good!" written by Guy Bolton, Fred Thompson, and the Gershwin brothers and starring Fred and Adele Astaire. The song was also performed by the chorus in the film "Lady Be Good" (1941), although the film is unrelated to the musical. Recordings in 1925 were by Paul Whiteman, Carl Fenton, and Cliff Edwards. A 1947 recording of the song became a hit for Ella Fitzgerald, notable for her scat solo. For her
Fred Astaire film for Paramount, "Funny Face" (1957), teamed him with Audrey Hepburn and Kay Thompson and despite the sumptuousness of the production and the strong reviews from critics, it failed to make back its cost. Similarly, Astaire's next project – his final musical at M-G-M, "Silk Stockings" (1957), in which he co-starred with Cyd Charisse, also lost money at the box office. As a result, Astaire withdrew from motion pictures for two years. During 1952, Astaire recorded "The Astaire Story", a four-volume album with a quintet led by Oscar Peterson. The album, produced by Norman Granz, provided a musical overview of