Widely known as the creator of the air step in Lindy Hop, a choreographer and Tony award winner, Frankie Manning recalls how his first tentative steps as a teenager at Harlem's Savoy Ballroom eventually led him to a career as chief choreographer and lead dancer for Whitey's Lindy Hoppers, who appeared on Broadway stages, Hollywood films, and stages around the world. He brings the Swing Era to life with recollections of the headliners as well as the dozens of uncelebrated dancers who helped to make the Lindy an international sensation. With collaborator, Cynthia Millman, Manning traces the evolution of swing dancing from those early days in Harlem through the post War War II period until it was eclipsed by rock and roll, then disco. Never one to sit on the sidelines, Manning ended his 35-year hiatus from dancing during the early years of the swing revival, and he has been performing and teaching ever since. This wonderful memoir will be a revelation to the new generations of Lindy Hoppers as well as dance historians.
