Hayley
Yes, these two were AMAZING dancers, and they did influence many dances, but they did much more, too. The saying goes: He (Astaire) gave her class, and she (Rogers) gave him sex appeal. They made dancing much more appealing to to the masses, as the men wanted to dance like Astaire and the ladies wanted to dance like Rogers. This was also in part because of the acting involved, as Rogers made dancing with Astaire look like the most thrilling experience ever. Dancing was already on the rise with Lindy Hop and Jitterbug, but these two brought the classical ballroom dances back into the limelight. Think too, that this was during the Depression era...1929 was when that hit and many were struggling during the years that followed. These two gave many a way to 'escape' for a while; watching their films at the theater (when one could afford it) offered time to forget about one's troubles. If nothing else, like in the first point; people would dance; remembering how happy these two looked when they danced. The became popular 'household names' heard everywhere; with one rarely (if ever) heard without the other. It was always Fred and Ginger or Astaire and Rogers, like salt and pepper or bacon and eggs. They were constantly associated with each other. These two became a symbol of class, with their extravagant costumes, graceful movement and carefree attitudes. Another side note: Rogers turned into a bit of a symbol for women in that she was both beautiful and smart enough to "Do everything Fred Astaire does, but backwards and in high heels." I am reminded of "anything you can do I can do better..." for some reason... Hope I helped!