dances in honor of heads of state -- "the Obama Slide"

[Paul Parish]

When I lived in England 40 years ago, I had Scots friennds who taught me to do the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, so I could comport myself at the Argyllshire Gathering, at the Ball. [Princess Anne was there.] it was a complicated version of the kind of dance Americans know as the Virginia reel, or Sir Roger de Coverley. There were many dances that night ["Duke of Perth," "the Dashing White Sergeant," the eightsomes were my favorites -- none as difficult in the figures as the "DnD of Edinburgh"]. I did not dance with Princess Anne, nor was I presented, but i did see her from across the room.

I wonder if there are American social dances in honor of our presidents -- aside from those created in honor of President Obama, of which there are many. Seriously, does anybody know of any? A George Washington, john ADamds, or Thomas Jefferson? A Dolly Madison, an Old Hickory Stomp? Washington was an excellent dancer. There is a Martha Washington cake, a Lady Baltimore cake. no dances in honor of our leaders? if there are, why aren't they better known?

This is my favorite of the Obama dances:

. Elegant, tricky, fun, danced to "Aint no stopping us now" [alternatively to "Signed, sealed, delivered.']

Recently, the hula master Patrick Makuakane of San Francisco invented a new hula "about the birth-certificate controversy." The fact that it's a satire should not undermine its status as a piece of new choreography in a vernacular mode that HAS AN IDEA IN IT -- here's the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zy3L9AWoids

[diane]

Very nice! I do not know of any others, but I will be on the lookout. Hmmm. I am in Germany, so I wonder if there is a "Merkel Polka" or something? If not, why not? Perhaps I need to think one up.

-d-

[Mashinka]

The Cameron fling will be performed when the voters fling him out of office at the next election, along with his clog (sorry Clegg) dancing poodle.

Not a political opinion by the way, but a certainty according to the polls.

[sandik]

I love these both, but the instruction part of the Obama Slide is particularly wonderful.

[bart]

I'll bet there are a ton of dance tunes and novelty dances composed in honor of political figures and their families. "Sweet Llittle Alice Blue Gown" comes to mind. But actual choreography would be harder to locate.

There's a 1913 film of former President Teddy Roosevelt watching the performance of a Hopi Indian Snake Dance. You may notice a couple of brief bits reminiscent of the Obama Slide. It's more effective, however, to watch while playing the audio of the Birth Certificate Hula.

P.S.: I am trying to imagine something like a "Millard Fillmore Polka" "Grover Cleveland Two Step," or "Woodrow Wilson Bunny Hug."

.

[KarenAG]

I don't know how to load YouTube clips but check out the fun Obama line dance called the "Yes We Can, Can" with music by the Pointer Sisters.

[lmspear]

There was a mixer style dance names after John Paul Jones.

[bart]

Impspear, I remember that from my youth -- but under the name Paul Jones. I recall vividly the men moving in a circle in one direction while the women's circle, inside ours, moved in the other direction. Someone called out "Paul Jones" as a signal to stop, pick partners, and dance for a while. Can't for the life of me remember what we actually danced when we had a partner.

Is this really named after the American Revolutionary War sea captain?

[lmspear]

According to the Oxford dictionaries web site it was! http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/american_english/Paul%2BJones

noun:

a ballroom dance in which the dancers change partners after circling in concentric rings of men and women.

Origin:

1920s

: named after John Paul Jones (1747–92), Scottish-born American admiral

[bart]

I can report that this was MUCH easier to dance than the Obama Slide appears to be. Lots of fun, too, although we men had to move quite briskly, since our circle was larger than the women's. I wonder what the connection with John Paul Jones actually was.

[lmspear]

I learned about it by watching "The Great Zigfield." Myrna Loy and William Powell were taking a break from the Thin Man series as Zigfield and Billie Burke and the dance was used in the scene about their meeting.