Whitey's Lindy Hoppers performing the Big Apple (1939)

[@JudgeJulieLit]

Source of (inspiration for) Elvis's wildly and hiply acrobatic 1950s onstage moves! Amazing to see they date from at least 1939. I believe Elvis meant his as an homage. His performing them b4 tv audiences in then mostly white America and Europe quantum-leap more widely publicized & popularized them.

[@Latinsoul65]

African Americans are the innovators of so many american dances. THANK YOU!!! for posting this video. It's not that often I get to see film footage of African Americans dancing american popular dances like: swing, jitterbug, lindy hop, charleston etc on film. It's a shame that even though most of these popular dances stem from African American communites they never really spotlighted African Americans on screen dancing these dances especially the Charleston which is an African American dance.

[@mickglasgow12]

Frankie is there alright..Freexe it on 2:09, he's the one w/ BIG smile!!

[@RizzyMissy]

Hey 2011 people, this is REAL dancing.

[@jeangonnella]

we are so blessed to known some of these dancers....it's really not that long ago if you think on it. Bless up Frankie and WHitetey's lindy hopping :) come dance with us! !OVE always = dance!

[@PatsBooks]

Wonderful! My grandmama was 28 years old in 1939.

[@gcrav]

Joy for what was. Sadness for what is.

[@tilliepizzella4299]

This is Real Lindy Hoppin - It puts pep in your step!

[@marcquessa]

4:15 is my favorite move of all time!

[@jnccod]

AWESOME FOOTAGE. I, also, am just flattened by the idea that this is from 1939! So so many people would have all around better lives knowing how to Lindy Hop. It comes with great appreciation of insanely great music *coupled* with something that is PERFECT cardio exercise for anyone who is tired of running in place on a treadmill. Thank you for the great GREAT post! ,':OD

[@vintagequeen56]

We learned this in my swing class, and it's amazing!

[@cwb0051]

Just Great Dancers!..Wow!

[@ballinagra13]

Wonderful footage!

[@GeneralTarik]

WOW! The winner of the competition is Shorty Snowden! One of the greatest Lindy Hoppers and the man who gave the dance the name “Lindy Hop”!

[@TheJackieo2006]

The original soul train line. I love it!!!!

[@229kara]

love this a lot

[@trsumbry]

lovely to see what plus size looked like back then. i want that dress.

[@MancaLaura]

..@gcrav: Idk about "sadness for what is".. I can relate to joy for what was.. recognize that it's continuing to inspire people to dance, & make it new for themselves. If we could simplify our lives, and focus, we could dance like this. It takes dedication, discipline, joy-- and not worrying too much about impressing people. These awesome dancers moved from the inside out, like an explosion, rather than thinking too much about how they looked. Ironically, they LOOKED GREAT when they danced.

[@KyndalSarah]

SOOO amazing! I love love love it!

[@SpeegBJ]

Rather watch vintage footage of the most beautiful people and moves together than eat food.

[@vicmor899]

AMAZING

[@tommy2chips]

Cool stuff. I dig this

[@silvietta41]

It 'amazing how the rhythms in this video are modern but you can taste a certain african's scenografy

[@joijaxx]

I love this!

[@browncoat697]

There's regular swing dancing in my town, including some lindy hop, and at least half the attendees every week are teenagers.

[@bethpauls8651]

we do big apple at music I love how they dance

[@HonzoHasegawa]

Amazing.Looking at this and looking at some of the stuff today..make you wonder what happend?..but great vid:-J

[@cavaleer]

+Hanzo Hasegawa Two things happened simultaneously- Be-Bop and Rock and Roll. After the War Jazz began tranforming from a social music to a high art form that didn't want or inspire dancing. So the dancing big band music began to morph into early Rock n Roll, all of which came directly from the Swing style and traditions. By the 1950s the commercial potential of Rock n Roll made it impossible for the Swing Era to return as it was, and the high art form of Jazz was in full flight. That's the way things often work in America. Sad in a way because my grandparents had so much FUN doing this stuff. haha

[@229kara]

@BRazor78 agree with you fully.......Great dancers here

[@LittleKim1001]

Great!!

[@woldewhosonolden]

@HimeBerrii - You might be a good candidate to update Wikipedia with some citations, then. From what I'm reading, the piano as we know it descended from the European harpsichord and clavichord and is credited to an Italian inventor. If you're thinking of a set-up where strings are struck with tools to produce a musical note, there are multiple types of these instruments that bear more resemblance to a xylophone than a piano and have origins in asia and europe, not solely from africa.

[@2008topshelf]

Looks like the Boom Boom Room.

[@aliciawhite6839]

Whoop I need some water after watching this!!!🙌

[@CodyCole80]

GIT DOWN!

[@nurulpss]

Hell yeah, BRazor78! \m/

[@kandita7]

Amen!

[@HimeBerrii]

@woldewhosonolden The xylophone also has it origins in africa. And if you look at the origin of human and the diaspora it wouldn't faze me that a lot of this are similar but all of it links back to Africa. Also I am very aware of the harpsichord but i was wrong when i thought it was where the piano started.

[@emmifranzi796]

I need a time machine

[@idontnoapassword]

respectively she was refering to grinding. not contemporary or jazz dancing.

[@HimeBerrii]

god i love my culture.

[@woldewhosonolden]

@HimeBerrii - Could you be more specific about why you believe that the piano did not descend from the harpsichord? Was it not invented by an Italian off of these influences?

[@PatsBooks]

LatinSoul, I agree with you saying that we are innovators. All the the dances that you mentioned are an African/Black American creation. America doesn't have a culture. The culture of Amerca reast with Black Americans. We give them culture.

[@keocntsy]

Makes me tired just watching it, but WOW!!! I can't imagine our couch potato youth now doing something as physically demanding as this is. Dancing used to be so much more energetic than the shuffle and sway dancing of today. Ah, to have been young at that time.....

[@sanfor43]

ROCK AND ROLL IN 1939, IT'S GOOD.-

[@Prometevsberg]

ah that part of the 1950ies that started in 1939!

[@HimeBerrii]

@woldewhosonolden lets go with the very last quote.

[@Khultan]

Was there always a dance for the music? Can anyone, in the know, really explain, please, thank you.

[@HimeBerrii]

actually, if you take a world music class, the piano was taking from africa, and the europeans just developed it more. The guitar is from the lute family, and it has its origins in the middle east/north africa. the only dance styles that europe gave to america is partner dancing.

[@novametal0385]

Can you post the names of the dancer please?

[@Lisamould]

Anyone out there know which song they dance this to?????

[@JENDALL714]

Like Soul Train without the big fro's and bell bottoms.

[@HongLulu]

Kitűnő ! Capital !

[@agillespie]

How did they organize this? There was no internet back then.

[@woldewhosonolden]

@HimeBerrii - If the argument then is that human origin can be traced to Africa, I can hardly contest this. I'm confused by your second paragraph. Do you mean "I am aware of the harpsichord, but Wikipedia is wrong to say that it's the origin of the piano"? Or do you mean "I'm aware of the harpsichord, and I was wrong when I thought that the piano started elsewhere?" Or do you mean "I am aware of the harpsichord; I also thought that this was the origin of the piano, but I was wrong."

[@Khultan]

'Flattened by the idea that this is from 1939?' This is one of the few instances, I take, that you actually attempt to go beyond the horizon?

[@jerste]

Jittering Jitterbugs?

[@Marianvalkyrien]

An illustration of why obesity wasnt as much of a problem in theold days!Love it!

[@LindyPenguin]

I don't believe the song was actually named - I'm pretty sure it was written for the film. To my knowledge no original recording (other than what's in the film) of it survives. However a modern swing band, The Solomon Douglas Swingtet, has recorded a version of this song.

[@EMCEMITCH]

pure exuberant joy of american dance---it started in congo square new orleans in the early 1800's

[@jnccod]

What are you talking about? I was just blown away at how great the footage was and that it was so old and historic and that we all get to the privelage. That has nothing to do with "going beyond my horizon"... Next time? I recommend you think twice before you type something that makes you look like a complete and utter toolbag, okay?

[@madhurirupert8463]

nice moves but why is the dance called as big apple

[@idontnoapassword]

it's called youtube.

[@QED_]

LOL . . .

[@MrsWilliamTheBloody]

I feel so white and unco watching them. God damn.

[@PockASqueeno]

What song is this?

[@Alexbossler]

@BRazor78 And if someone from 1939 had a time machine, they would travel back to 1880, steal a bunch of dancers and show those dam swing kids what 'real' dancing looked like. I hate everything as much as the next internet citizen but its all relative.

[@joelarama]

Can we recreate this? I can!!X

[@wernertrptube]

Who is the trumpet Player ?

[@BAMitsrosei]

@BRazor78 I'm 14 and I'm in level 2 going on level 3 of swing dancing... (:

[@PatsBooks]

@crazydaysful Obviously you are bothered by it. If you don't care, so be it. But if I care, what is it to you.

[@get2knowmii]

lmao. ha ha...

[@HimeBerrii]

So I suggest the next time you want to be technical about things. Maybe you should read some.

[@crazydaysful]

The dances and sounds were created by blacks so it doesn't matter. And who cares who invented the piano and other music instruments - it's how you play the thing and they type of music you create from them! And I know africans and black americans invented a lot of instrument we use today especially the drums!

[@Khultan]

Fair, fair, Jnccod, but now you go on and insult me as your farewell. Utter toolbag? Really?

[@choward5430]

What happened to American dance? Is it because the music is foul and not fun?

[@elizalove47]

*Wow! & re-Wow!☆😅💦🌹 ♪♫ • ♡*

[@PatsBooks]

@ospunky28 Who cares that your girlfriend is Polish?

[@ozulu45]

@BRazor78 UHH EXCUSE ME MACK.... BE CAREFUL ABOUT THAT! GOING BACK IN TIME IN 1939! BEING BLACK IN AMERICA WAS NOT ALL FUN AND GAMES LIKE WHAT YOU SEE HERE! GOING OUTSIDE THE BLACK COMMUNITY WAS HEAVILY RASICT AND SEGREGATED! SO IF YOU CAN HANDLE THAT BACK THEN! GOD BLESS YA!

[@Lisamould]

Anyone out there know which song they dance this to????????

[@PauletteBrockington]

Who is the song by?