1914-2009
We lost a national treasure today. Dance innovator, Tony award winner, and all around wonderful person Frankie Manning passed away this morning.
If you never met him, this clip should give you an idea of the joy he brought to people on and off the dance floor:
After the jump I’ll post some clips of him from the 1940s when he was, by all accounts, the best lindy hopper to emerge from a generation of great dancers. Both clips are ensemble numbers, but he should be easy to spot: just look for the biggest smile plastered across the face of the most athletic dancer and that’s him.
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One more good one: