In the '30s and '40s, you went to Harlem's Savoy Ballroom for the ultimate
source of swing era dance style. In the '50s, you went to your living room!
On any school day, you could return home and dig the 3pm broadcast on
ABC-TV of WFIL Philadelphia's nationally syndicated AMERICAN BANDSTAND.
Most '50s teens learned JITTERBUG, as the Bandstand dancers called it
(although some NYC-NJ area dancers insisted on calling it LINDY!) from
their peers on this TV show. But, whereas the top dancers of the Savoy were
stage and screen pros of enormous dedication and attainment, the
Bandstanders were not chosen for dance ability: they just showed up. The
teens came to the TV studio mainly from two local high schools: West
Catholic and South Philadelphia.
In order to conform to the carefully crafted Bandstand image, Dick Clark,
the show's gifted producer and host, did not permit aerials, lifts, dips,
partnered charlestons, or jazz moves. Also, the tight confines of the
studio's hard concrete floor, obstructed by bulky moving TV cameras, and
criss-crossed with thick video cables, was hardly condusive to flash
dancing. Even the really good dancers that came to Bandstand could only
display a small fraction of their chops. But since the Bandstand dancers
were the primary dance models for '50s America teens, you can understand
how the vast repertoire of early Lindy Hop (on the TV, at least) now
achieved its ultimate simplification for mass consumption.
Numerous teen viewers added their own playful genius to the TV basics,
developing entirely new repertoires of moves. After all, rock'n'roll has a
distinct feel; one would expect new moves and stylings. In the Carolinas,
for example, huge groups of '50s teens had independently taken a dance they
called JITTERBUG (unique in style, and eventually re-named CAROLINA SHAG)
to incredible heights of sophistication. That didn't happen on Bandstand.
Since Dick Clark did not allow his regulars to perform professionally, they
received little encouragement to develop as dancers. In fact, many of the
best regulars NEVER practiced on their own.
MORE ON...
http://people.cornell.edu/pages/kpl5/fifties_one.html
