May 26th is a very special day in the Lindy Hop Community (the original Swing Dance) as it’s ‘World Lindy Hop Day‘ AND the birthday of one of the founders of the dance, Frankie Manning. Many communities around the world will be celebrating and here in Toronto we are hosting a Big Band Swing Dance. I’m the emcee for the night and it’s going to be a wonderful night of music and dance.

For today’s Vintage Photo Tuesday (collection of vintage photo posts) I wanted to share images of the Lindy Hop/Jitterbug that myself and so many others have enjoyed over the years.

Let the dancing begin!

Vintage Photos of the Lindy Hop

Lindy Hop at the Savoy Ballroom.

The History of Lindy Hop

It begins in the African American communities of Harlem, New York during the late 1920s in conjunction with swing jazz. Lindy Hop is closely related to earlier African American vernacular dances but quickly gained its own fame through dancers in films, performances, competitions, and professional dance troupes. It became especially popular in the 1930s with the upsurge of aerials. The popularity of Lindy Hop declined after World War II, and it converted to other forms of dancing, but it never disappeared during the decades between the 1940s and the 1980s until European and American dancers revived it starting from the beginning of the 1980s (Source).

NOTE: For a much more detailed and excellent read on this dance, please check out Yehoodi’s-Lindy Hop: Its Origins, Innovators, and Legacy

The Vintage Images

Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers was a professional performing group of Savoy Ballroom swing dancers, started in 1935 by Herbert “Whitey” White. Frankie Manning mentioned above was part of this troupe.

Frankie Manning & Ann Johnson in 1941, demonstrating an Aerial Step that Frankie was the original creator of.

Original swing dancers Willa Mae Ricker & Leon James, dance the Lindy Hop for Life Magazine in April 23rd, 1943.

Jitterbug contest, 1939.

Lindy Hopping at the famous Savoy Ballroom, in Harlem New York.

Kaye Popp and Stanley Catron also demonstrating The Lindy Hop for Life magazine, April 23rd 1943.

Washington, D. C. Jitterbugs at an Elk’s Club dance, 1943.

Jean Veloz and little brother Ray Phelps, famous swing dancers in the 1940s.

Lindy Hop dance in the 1940s.

Dorothy McGuire doing the Lindy at the Stage Door Canteen. -1940s photo.

I will leave you with one last photo of Frankie Manning and Ann Johnson perfecting an Aerial Move. Truly a work of art!

I hope you enjoyed browsing these wonderful vintage Lindy Hop Photos and if you are not a swing dancer yet, maybe this post will enourage you to make the move. It truly is loads of fun!

FURTHER READING:

• Swing Dance & The Big Band Era – Archived blog posts from the Vintage Inn Blog
• Ontario Vintage Dance Hall History – Archived blog posts on various dance halls
• Prom in the 1940s & 1950s
• Vintage Photo Tuesday-The 1947 Dance Teachers Strike
• Vintage Photo Tuesday: The Social Dance
• Vintage Dance Cards
• Time to Dance! Vintage Instructions to get you dancing in no time
• 1940s Women’s Fashion Ideas For Your Next Vintage Dance
• The Dancing Side of the Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend

Liz