Fred Astaire wartime drama "The Sky's the Limit" (1943), in which he introduced Arlen and Mercer's "One for My Baby" while dancing on a bar counter in a dark and troubled routine. This film, which was choreographed by Astaire alone and achieved modest box office success, represented an important departure for Astaire from his usual charming happy-go-lucky screen persona, and confused contemporary critics. His next partner, Lucille Bremer, was featured in two lavish vehicles, both directed by Vincente Minnelli: the fantasy "Yolanda and the Thief", which featured an avant-garde surrealistic ballet, and the musical revue "Ziegfeld Follies" (1946), which featured a memorable
Fred Astaire the box office and among critics. Astaire continued to act in the 1970s, appearing on television as the father of Robert Wagner's character, Alexander Mundy, in "It Takes a Thief" and in such films as "The Towering Inferno" (1974), in which he danced with Jennifer Jones and for which he received his only Academy Award nomination, in the category of Best Supporting Actor. He voiced the mailman narrator in the 1970s animated television specials "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" and "The Easter Bunny Is Comin' to Town". Astaire also appeared in the first two "That's Entertainment!" documentaries, in the