Why Fred Astaire Never Liked Watching His Own Movies

Cavett's soothing voice and laid-back demeanor often brought out a lot of candor in his guests, and Astaire was not immune to his powers. Speaking of old Astaire films, Cavett apparently wanted to know if the legend took as much pleasure in his older films as audiences; after all, many of them are irresistible. Except for Astaire, who had a very visceral reaction to the question:

"I actually don't look at them. I pass them sometimes, and I get a little shocked. And then I go 'Ew!' and I turn around, and I continue. Because I really don't like looking at them!... I don't like looking at myself because you always wish you had done something better. Once in a while, if it lasts long enough, you think back to what you did, and all of a sudden you say 'Oh, I didn't know it was that good' or 'Oh, it wasn't too bad', something like this."

In other words, the older they were, the more comfortable Astaire was watching his own movies. Astaire continued to act in films and on television throughout his life, appearing in "Finian's Rainbow" in 1968 and "Midas Run" in 1969. These were the most recent screen appearances that Astaire walked away from. He told Cavett:

"Watch it right now, like a movie, the minute you do it? 'Oh, bro. Watch this.' So I don't often watch the rushes of the film. The dialogue, and that sort of thing. I always watch the musical numbers, because I have to check the choreography, and I have to see if it's okay. But I just don't watch my old movies late, late, late... late, late."