Happy Birthday Peggy Lee

For those of us who are into swing music, especially western or rockabilly swing, Peggy Lee needs no introduction. She was born in wind-swept North Dakota and led a troubled childhood of abuse at the hands of an alcoholic step mother. Artistry often springs from adversity, though, and soon Peggy was singing professionally on Valley City, ND’s KOVC radio. Later she got a radio series for which she was paid in food. After finishing high school, Peggy left North Dakota behind and heading for Los Angeles at the age of 17.

 

While working the Palm Springs’ Doll House with her trademark purr, Peggy was noticed by hotel owner Frank Beringin. He brought Petty to the Ambassador Hotel’s Buttery Room in East Chicago where she was first seen by Benny Goodman. She would join his band in 1941 and stay on for two years.

The picture above is from Life Magazine and shows Peggy with copies of her hit Manana. I found a kitschy video of her performing the song on YouTube, it’s worth a listen if only to get an idea of how different Peggy’s style is from what you’d expect of the time. She would have been 94 today and I'm sure she'd still have been rocking it.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Not really a dancing card, but Happy Valentine's Day!

Any Time is Dancing Time - Victrola Ad

Cold winter night and you don't feel like going out to the local dance hall? No problem, toss a cylinder on the good old Victrola and any time turns into dance time! The ad comes from the July 1918 issue of Metropolitan Magazine.

1911 Saint-Julien Claret Cooler for the Ballroom

Thought I'd shake things up by sharing a 1911 ad for St. Julien Claret. Back in the days before air conditioning there was nothing more refreshing than a wine cooler after a little strenuous dancing.

Yule 2013 and HNY 2014

Haven't been posting much lately...no excuse really, just haven't, but Gary and I have both re-committed to our blog. Don't need to as far as dancing goes...we've been doing that as much as usual. :-)

So...December 2013 was a fun and busy dancing' season. First, we tried the Paramount Christmas Tree Dance in Anderson, Indiana. The setting was lovely; decorated trees lined the dance floor creating an enchanted space. My parents came with us. We had a good time, but would probably not go back; t'was a bit ballroomy for us, aka, flying ballroom arms and we WILL do this pattern even if it runs people off the floor. We still had fun though.

Our beloved Terry Lee and the Rockboogie band came to our Moose club this December! And while not specially a holiday event, he did play some Christmas songs, and, well, he's Terry Lee so he was fab. Hopefully he will come again to Moose Lodge 500.

We also attended the annual Indy Dancer Christmas Dance at the old Stutz building downtown Indy. It was great to see the old cars, we had fun dancing, but the floor was concrete and the sound system not so great. Also very crowded, as many people love these events. We're thinking if the dance isn't in a large venue next year we will probably skip.

New Year's Eve was a return to Raleigh, Indiana, where it costs ten bucks a person and a covered dish to get in. The evening was magical. My parents came with us, which adds extra sparkle to any event. The decorations were charmingly old fashioned, the people, as always, welcoming. Ahhhh...a perfect way to start 2014.

Pics below: