Those of you who know me know that I dance quite a bit. Out of all the dance styles I do, it is Lindy Hop (the grand daddy of all swing dances) that I dance most.
So, I was saddened this morning to wake up to the news that Frankie Manning, one of the original father's of Lindy Hop had passed away. He was a few weeks shy of 95. The whole Lindy Hop community from all around the world were all getting ready to gather in New York to celebrate his 95th birthday next month. Now it looks like it will be a memorial gathering instead :(
Those of you who don't dance Lindy Hop will probably have never heard of Mr. Manning. But for Lindy dancers, Frankie was the great ambassador of the dance and an inspiration for all Lindy Hoppers of all levels. He was still giving classes and shaking it with the best of them up until last year when he injured himself.
Here's a famous footage from the 1941 film "Hellzapoppin" featuring Frankie (he's the guy in the mechanic's dungarees) and his fellow Lindy dancers (known collectively as Whitey's Lindy Hoppers) doing what they do best:
RIP Frankie.
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