Maybe the fact that F. Scott Fitzgerald has been one of my favorite authors since long before I discovered jazz dancing, goes to show that it was always in me, even if I didn’t know it yet. I don’t know if many of you know it, but I actually have a bachelor’s degree in English Literature. Ahh, my bookworm days. The Great Gatsby is my sentimental favorite (and though the Robert Redford/Mia Farrow film is darling, if you haven’t read the book you’re still missing out – snappy dialogue and witticisms that would make Oscar Wilde blush!). But anyway, I just found this pic of the original dust jacket for Tales of the Jazz Age, with those wonderful dance illustrations, and had to share…

A few more images of Irene Castle, since she was such a fashion visionary. She wore cutting edge fashions, and – as a dancer’s convenience – wore shorter skirts and even bobbed her hair in 1915, long before it became de rigueur.

On 23rd August 1943, LIFE Magazine featured the Lindy Hop and declared that “a true national folk dance has been born in the USA”. It featured a short article and a 10 page photographic editorial (pages 95-103). The dancers were Leon James and Willa Mae Ricker (of Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers fame), and Stanley Catron and Kaye Popp, teenagers who had been performing Lindy Hop in the Broadway musical, Something for the Boys.

Here are the famous photos from that editorial, that I see on t-shirts and posters in Lindy Hoppers’ homes all around the world (click to enlarge):

But here are some other photos from the shoot that I see far less often, and are just wonderful:

Download a PDF version of the article here: LIFE Magazine August 1943.

Or you can read the issue, in its entirety, on Google Books here.

You can also download all the Lindy Hop images from the magazine here.

My mum and I just decided to have a holiday in Paris, a few weeks from now! Woopee! After the Provence Swing Festival in a few weeks time, I’m going to abandon Juan and flit off to gay Paree to meet ma mere and trip the light fantastic for a week, before heading on to Genoa, Italy for the Be-Lindy Camp. Hoorah! My mum lives in Dubai (not Australia – yes, we’re a very international family), so I rarely get to see her, it’s a real treat!

Found this photo of 1940s New York City, glistening in the rain, over at Chronically Vintage.

Reminded me of my 2006 visit: