Historical SourcePublic Domain
How to Charleston Correctly (Bemis Walker / Great Northern Publishing Co., c.1925)
Publisher: Bemis Walker / The Great Northern Publishing Co. (Eagle Printing Company, Delano, MN; the publisher dissolved shortly after this booklet was published, dating publication c.1925-1926 at the height of the US Charleston craze). 31-page illustrated pamphlet featuring Georgia Snow of Atlanta GA on the cover ('internationally known dancer, who has taught the Charleston from coast to coast'). Source: Richard Powers collection (POWERS/How_to_Charleston.txt — 167 lines OCR). Contents: Preface (history of dance from Pharaohs to the Charleston, with David Bennett's role bringing the dance from an Alabama children's chant to the Club Alabam revue and subsequently to Broadway and the nation); General Instructions (six pedagogical principles including practice slowly, no partner until mastered, count rhythmically); Position 1 (heels-together toes-out); Position 2 (knees-in heels-out pivot, with Exercise Chart); Position 3 (Left Foot Up); Position 4 (Right Foot Up); Ballroom Charleston (correct partner position with right hand on lady's back, almost-directly-in-front-of-each-other dance position); Double Charleston (forward and backward); Children Dance the Charleston (public schools and gymnasiums teaching the Charleston as physical culture); Cross Step; Open Position; 16 lettered Exercises (A-R) covering Basic Pivoting Step, Left Foot Up, Right Foot Up, Charleston on Each Side, Double Charleston Left/Right/Both Feet, Single Charleston Forward/Backward, Cross Step Left/Right, Side Step Traveling Left/Right, Double Charleston Traveling Forward, Single Charleston Forward and Backward; closing Suggested Routine for the Ballroom Charleston (10-section sequence totaling 240+ counts). The Charleston Scarecrow Kick is named at p. 9 as 'commonly used on the stage', distinguishing the stage / exhibition Charleston from the ballroom Charleston Walker recommends for crowded ballroom use. Pedagogically distinct from Wayburn 1925 (Hartford Daily Courant Sunday Magazine, ballroom-Charleston-as-Fox-Trot-variation framing) and Casani 1927 (English smoothed Flat Charleston with knees-bent rhythm) — Walker's pedagogy preserves the high-kick / heel-pivot form with explicit pedagogical positions and traveling variations. The Great Northern Publishing Co. dissolution mentioned in the back-matter is the only known dating evidence for the booklet; no explicit copyright year appears on the OCR'd cover. Has_Step_Detail = Partial (count notation 4-1-2-3 with 'and' off-beat counts and foot-direction prose; no CBM/sway/rise-and-fall — pre-Silvester technical vocabulary).Year: 1925Family: powers-c1925-walker-charlestonCatalog: local
Dance manual/reference by Bemis Walker / The Great Northern Publishing Co. (Eagle Printing Company, Delano, MN; the publisher dissolved shortly after this booklet was published, dating publication c.1925-1926 at the height of the US Charleston craze). 31-page illustrated pamphlet featuring Georgia Snow of Atlanta GA on the cover ('internationally known dancer, who has taught the Charleston from coast to coast'). Source: Richard Powers collection (POWERS/How_to_Charleston.txt — 167 lines OCR). Contents: Preface (history of dance from Pharaohs to the Charleston, with David Bennett's role bringing the dance from an Alabama children's chant to the Club Alabam revue and subsequently to Broadway and the nation); General Instructions (six pedagogical principles including practice slowly, no partner until mastered, count rhythmically); Position 1 (heels-together toes-out); Position 2 (knees-in heels-out pivot, with Exercise Chart); Position 3 (Left Foot Up); Position 4 (Right Foot Up); Ballroom Charleston (correct partner position with right hand on lady's back, almost-directly-in-front-of-each-other dance position); Double Charleston (forward and backward); Children Dance the Charleston (public schools and gymnasiums teaching the Charleston as physical culture); Cross Step; Open Position; 16 lettered Exercises (A-R) covering Basic Pivoting Step, Left Foot Up, Right Foot Up, Charleston on Each Side, Double Charleston Left/Right/Both Feet, Single Charleston Forward/Backward, Cross Step Left/Right, Side Step Traveling Left/Right, Double Charleston Traveling Forward, Single Charleston Forward and Backward; closing Suggested Routine for the Ballroom Charleston (10-section sequence totaling 240+ counts). The Charleston Scarecrow Kick is named at p. 9 as 'commonly used on the stage', distinguishing the stage / exhibition Charleston from the ballroom Charleston Walker recommends for crowded ballroom use. Pedagogically distinct from Wayburn 1925 (Hartford Daily Courant Sunday Magazine, ballroom-Charleston-as-Fox-Trot-variation framing) and Casani 1927 (English smoothed Flat Charleston with knees-bent rhythm) — Walker's pedagogy preserves the high-kick / heel-pivot form with explicit pedagogical positions and traveling variations. The Great Northern Publishing Co. dissolution mentioned in the back-matter is the only known dating evidence for the booklet; no explicit copyright year appears on the OCR'd cover. Has_Step_Detail = Partial (count notation 4-1-2-3 with 'and' off-beat counts and foot-direction prose; no CBM/sway/rise-and-fall — pre-Silvester technical vocabulary). (1925). Imported from local collection.