#lindy hoppers

[thefugitivesaint]

''Life'', Dec. 28, 1936  Some selections from a year end overview by ‘Life’ Magazine, one with some dated terminology. Speaking of which, the “Lindy Hop” "is a partner dance that originated in 1920's and 30's Harlem, New York. The Dance itself consists of both 8 and 6 count steps and it includes footwork borrowed from the Charleston and Tap.” The dances exact origins are unclear, “The Harlem Lindy Hop developed probably from four possible sources, or some combination thereof: the breakaway, the Charleston, the Texas Tommy, and the hop.”  “What was special about the Lindy Hope was that it left room for the dancers to improvise. The Savoy and other ballrooms would often host competitions and dance marathons where guests would compete against each other and come up with wild variations on the moves. The dance allegedly got its name at one of these dance marathons when in 1927 a reporter asked the famous dancer George “Shorty” Snowden what the dance he was doing was called. Inspired by pilot Charles Lindbergh’s recent solo “hop” across the Atlantic, Shorty George replied “the Lindy Hop” and gave the new dance craze its name” You learn something new every day. All I know is that I love dancing. Here’s clip from the 1941 film ‘Hellzapoppin' that’s considered by some to be “the greatest Lindy hop sequence ever filmed.” (I’m not getting into the thorny business of contextualizing black performances for white audiences on film and how what’s shown might reflect American racism and/or racist expectations of black physicality but at least the clip avoids the unfortunate black face adorned by the Marx Brothers in the 1937 film ‘A Day At The Races’ at the end of another ‘Lindy Hop’ dance sequence. But, if you want to see it, you’ll get to hear Ivie Anderson sing and that’s pretty great shit right there.)  Source

[tfbsafeageappropriatedance]

Here's a fun experiment to do:

Play THIS SONG:

Over THIS VIDEO:

To this dance history hound - and due to the over-glorifying of tricks and Eurocentric-rooted skills like grandes pirouettes a la secondes releves done by females via mass media - this is what my brain REALLY sees whenever I'd watch footage of dance competition interpretations of the above cover of Duke Ellington and Don George's "Hit Me With a Hot Note."

And that brings me to my Christmas wish every year: I wear a size "Two-and-Four" video of a vernacular jazz interpretation of THAT COVER.

And many more.

I created a Spotify playlist for all the Lindy hoppers out there who are skilled in solo jazz. Introducing...

It's not just a listening-pleasure playlist. My intent is to share it with the Lindy Hop community so they can do their Africanist, vernacular takes on those songs listed, most of which are frequently-interpreted "hits" at mainstream multigenre dance competitions like NUVO or Starquest.

A dance history fan only can dream of the day when the late Natalie Cole's cover of "Orange-Colored Sky" looks like this (with character shoes with heel heights between 1-2" instead of sneakers, preferably):

And A WHOLE LOT LESS like these:

Speaking of Natalie Cole's cover of "Orange-Colored Sky," feel free to play it over above example of a vernacular jazz solo to see what I mean. (Also, feel free to play it over the video of a rhythmic gymnastics individual apparatus routine to help you envision what my brain would see whenever I'd watch whenever I'd watch footage of dance competition interpretations of said cover.)

[notherpuppet]

Headcanon that alastor learned how to move like that in battle because he was a Lindy hopper

[thechanelmuse]

Black Americans are Soul People. 

The amount of times I just watched this compilation made by BlackPowerBA. I love us. We are vibrant people with a culture unlike any other.

And that double dutch transition into Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers is the chef’s kiss.

[lindyloowho]

ILHC Europe All-Star Classic Routine: Tamara Lobato Nieto & Héctor San Andrés Jaime (Spain / Spain)

From ILHC Europe All-Star Classic Routines

[iddstar]

IYKYK

As part of my continued campaign to convince whoever I need to to let me make the official Callisto 6 comic book, here’s one of my favourite moments from the show.

[moonibinbon]

Leads that listen and respond to their follows are the most fun to dance with. Follows that play and improvise and surprise their leads are also the most fun to dance with!

Dance (especially swing) is all about communication and connection and yup that is exactly what’s happening here.

Oh, this is incredible.

Improv swing dance to a Todrick Hall song?

And they killed it!

*thanks to the people who pointed out my oops

[travsd]

The Norma Miller Centennial

Born 100 years ago today, Norma Miller (1919-2019). Remarkably, this Harlem Renaissance Woman (who came a long a shade too late for the Harlem Renaissance) nearly lived to see this day. She passed away back in May. While mostly known as a dancer and choreographer, Miller was also an actress, comedian, author, and teacher. As a kid, Miller hung around outside Harlem clubs like the Savoy Ballroom…

[badbitchstromboli]

California Dreamin’

( @elizabethepb )

Sleepy spindly spiderlegs set cracks in dreams, spread, further than fathoming and what can we fathom at such a distance?

Oh the pricking of my thumbs says something’s on its way, something blowing in the wind; there is a wind for sail, a winding price for tea— steeplechase? What seahorses may be, adept at ditches, britches striped and capped, all ready set for a long nighttime nap.

I call on Barbie and Ben, the sleeping friends, to take me to a land beyond, abscond with me beyond the sea oh won’t you, Bobby D? And the spidercracks that stretch their way to stepping, step me down to stumbling ‘round like a teenaged lousy lindy-hopper— pull the stopper and the plug!

Sleep and I are not lovers, barely friends; I’ve not networked with dreaming, surely we share some channels? One never knows with those shadows.

I have dreamt, with blessings of Amaterasu, golden, gilded things one might associate or dissociate with— I have daydreamt myself anew, and daydreamt myself an old; I dance the Regression! I do the Backslide! I shake and shimmy off the shawl of self-help! I hip and hop, heaving healing at the wall!

What sticks there? At the wall? Snatch whispers at my snout, but what sticks at the wall? What spaghetti can be had? What marinara? Why, healing does look an awful lot like spaghetti— comfort and cold, leftover and piled high at the past potluck; pasta everpresent; past that lingers as reddened fingers stained with hunger hunger hunger—

What hungers in you, in dreams? What hungers for you there too?

Perhaps the dreamers are abed, taking care to have been fed; ‘haps the dreamers dream spaghettiless dreams.

Perhaps I have thought too much of spaghetti.

I must untwirl my tangled meaty-phors, and make some veg of it all— an ensalada en suite, adjoined, though separate, stately.

Forgive my famished fathoms— I cannot go such distance but we try, we try. The sea and me we rock to sleep, though the ocean gets there quicker; if ‘twere up to me, to race to sleep, we’d ought needs call a vicar.

Give me Ben and Barbie, then, Ben Zo and Barbie Tall, keepers of the steeples that we chase; oh, nuns and their habits.

You’ve told me of dreams—

Am I in my homeland, in your dreaming? My homeland, here we come— strictly, directionally speaking, strictly locationally speaking; am I coming through that golden gate?

Are you?

One wonders if spaghettiless dreamscapes could compare to my homeland, but one trusts you and your dreaming; one trusts a poet; one must, for a poet has the whole thing wrought, and a poet has his heart in hand, better dreaming than the knot— one trusts that you have made long the journey, fathomed of homeland and its sprawl. One trusts the dreamscape you’ve dreamt-scoped is grand as sand.

It is better, I bet.

[bieups]

It's my last week of vacation~ I've spent 90% of this break at my house, sleeping whenever I want and playing video games

But last weekend I went to help my friend teach a dance class (we did the California routine, for any lindy hoppers out there) and I felt like my Korean speaking was terrible...so now that my brain is rested, it's time to talk to people again!

I'll be going back to teach swivels after I move, so I gotta start looking up some helpful vocab/phrases to use in that lesson

[lindyloowho]

THIS GETS ME SO EXCITED ABOUT JAZZ DANCING

[brookstonalmanac]

Holidays 5.26

Holidays

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World Dracula Day

World Lindy Hop Day

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Portland Rose Festival begins (Oregon) Friday in late May; thru June 26]

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Independence Days

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Lucky & Unlucky Days

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Premieres

Absolutely Free, by Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention (Album; 1968)

American Pie, by Don McLean (Song; 1971)

Avengers Assemble (Animated TV Series; 2013)

Beatlemania! (Broadway Musical Tribute; 1977)

Big Jake (Film; 1971)

Buddy of the Apes (WB LT Cartoon; 1934)

Caspar (Animated Film; 1995)

Dracula, by Bram Stoker (Novel; 1897)

Flying Home, recorded by Lionel Hampton (Song; 1937)

Games People Play, by Eric Berne (Self-Help Book; 1966)

God’s Men, by Pearl S. Buck (Novel; 1951)

Johnny Mnemonic (Film; 1995)

Kung Fu Panda 2 (Animated Film; 2011)

Mad Love (Film; 1995)

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (Film; 2017)

Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, by The Beatles (Album; 1967)

Sourcery, by Terry Pratchet (Novel; 1988) [Discworld #5]

The Whole Truth and Nothing But, by Hedda Hopper (Memoir; 1963)

X-Men: The Last Stand (Film; 2006)

Yellow Submarine, recorded by The Beatles (Song; 1966)

Today’s Name Days

Alwin, Philipp (Austria)

Anamarija, Filip, Zdenko (Croatia)

Filip (Czech Republic)

Beda (Denmark)

Miina, Minna, Valme, Valmi, Vella, Velli, Vilma, Vilme (Estonia)

Miina, Mimmi, Minna, Minni, Vilhelmiina, Vilma (Finland)

Bérenger (France)

Marianne, Philipp (Germany)

Alfaios, Karpos, Sinesios (Greece)

Evelin, Fülöp (Hungary)

Filippo, Pellegrino (Italy)

Eduards, Edvards, Varis (Latvia)

Algimantas, Eduardas, Milvydė, Vilhelmina (Lithuania)

Annbjørg, Annlaug (Norway)

Beda, Filip, Marianna, Paulina, Więcemił, Wilhelmina (Poland)

Carp (România)

Dušan (Slovakia)

Felipe, Mariana (Spain)

Vilhelmina, Vilma (Sweden)

Felipe, Flip, Phil, Philip, Philippa, Phillip (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 146 of 2024; 219 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 5 of week 21 of 2023

Celtic Tree Calendar: Huath (Hawthorn) [Day 13 of 28]

Chinese: Month 4 (Ding-Si), Day 8 (Jia-Shen)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 6 Sivan 5783

Islamic: 6 Dhu al-Qada 1444

J Cal: 25 Bīja; Foursday [25 of 30]

Julian: 13 May 2023

Moon: 42%: Waxing Crescent

Positivist: 6 St. Paul (6th Month) [St. Monica]

Runic Half Month: Odal (Home, Possession) [Day 2 of 15]

Season: Spring (Day 68 of 90)

Zodiac: Gemini (Day 6 of 32)

[ginger-grimm]

🥀 + Melinda Parker, please?

@dancingsunflowers-ocs 🖤

Oh, my lil baby, this is going to hurt!

Okay, so, first of all, Lindy's mother Joanne would obviously be absolutely devestated to have lost her daughter. Like, Lindy was her one and only. She gave birth to her, raised her, loved her ferociously. So if she ever died, Jo would be done with everything. Unfortunately, due to past mistakes, Jo wouldn’t be able to visit her grave.

Dustin and Lindy have the tumultous romance of a lifetime, that's for sure. It's on and off and on and off, but one thing is for sure: these two dummies will always love one another. If Lindy ever died, Dustin might actually stay at her grave for the rest of his own life if he's not removed. Their love is for the ages.

Max and El would be at her grave for a while as well. The rest of the party would come in seperately and grieve for a while.

Hopper would pay his respects as well. He and Jo had been close friends since High School, and Lindy was like a second daughter to him before El showed up.

[rosies-emporium]

Oh, I'm quite sure of that! I'd love to learn your favorite dance, Alastor. Knowing you, it should be beyond entertaining! You move with such flair, it's a delight puttin' on those dancing shoes with you-

Well, knock knock! Come down now, open the door for your special guest~ Basic etiquette, sir, you don't make a lady wait!

Oh, how I missed tuning in to your show! How are you doing, dear friend? Do visit me again sometime! (from @rosies-emporium)

Oh Rosie my dear! It’s so good to hear from you again you know I am always available for tea time with you darling, just give me a time and day and I will be there~

< @rosies-emporium >