Frankie Manning: Ambassador of Lindy Hop
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Foreword Mercedes Ellington 9Frankie Manning: An Appreciation Cynthia R. Millman 11Acknowledgments 19Prologue: Too Stiff 25First Steps (1914-Circa 1933) 29Jazz Baby 31Early Ballroom Forays 42Savoy Dancer (Circa 1933-1936) 59To the Savoy at Last 61Whitey, Shorty, and Stretch 75Win Win 82Up in the Air She Goes 93Whitey's Lindy Hoppers (1936-1943) 109Going Pro 111Big Time at the Cotton Club 123A Big Apple for Whitey 138On Broadway and in the Movies 160Down Rio Way 180War and Home (1943-1984) 189Dancer Interrupted 191The Congaroo Dancers and a Day Job 203Second Act (1984-2007) 223Revival 225Appendixes 243Frankie Manning Time Line 243Biographical Sketches of Lindy Hoppers 245Swing Dance Resources 255Notes 259Sources 273Index 279
\ From the Publisher"On behalf of all of the Hoofer’s, we thank you and salute you for every moment of truth, love and dedication translated to us all through your art form, your dance. Thank you Frankie Manning. I Love You!"\ —Savion Glover\ \ \ \ \ \ Publishers WeeklyFrankie Manning spread swing dancing's popularity throughout the world while touring with Whitey's Lindy Hoppers in the 1930s and '40s. Dance writer and swing dancer Millman conducted extensive interviews with Manning for a vivid account of his career. Manning became a star in Harlem's popular Savoy Ballroom with his unique style, including dancing at a sharp angle to the ground like a track runner, speed and musicality. In a dance competition, Manning astonished the crowd with the first-ever Lindy aerial, or air step (where the man sends his partner flying). Later Manning toured with jazz greats such as Duke Ellington and Count Basie, and performed in several films, including Everybody Sings with Judy Garland. After a long hiatus from dancing, he was a consultant for Spike Lee's Malcolm X and coached a new generation of dancers in the swing dance revival of the '80s and '90s. While the first-person accounts of Manning's life capture his vibrancy, humor and charm, the narrative is interrupted by short sections of historical notes; their formality is at odds with Manning's ease and charisma. Still, this vivid memoir by one of swing dancing's innovators and stars is a must for lovers of dance, jazz and African-American history. 36 b&w illus. (May)\ Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information\ \
