This old-time dancing is called flat-footing or buck dancing. I was inspired to learn more about it after laughing at this video on Kottke.org and I love it. Watch this great clip from Talking Feet, a full-length documentary on the subject.
Here’s the whole film. I’m home now and got to I watch it with my mom this morning over coffees. It’s worth seeing for the characters who love this kind of dancing and the very strange style of interviewing a person with their family distracting you from the background. I don’t think filmmakers intend to mock the subjects of the film, but some of them are so enjoyably strange it’s hard not to smirk as you admire their smirk inducing dancing.
Comments
Smirk inducing? You try it. I’ll bet this guy is from Tennessee or Kentucky. Taken very seriously there. Thanks for sharing.
Kev,
Check out Jesco White on youtube.
Pretty sure that’s his daddy.
They’re from West VIRGINIA
there’s a whole movie on the Whites.
That was the craziest part of the morning. My mom and I were watching Talking Feet and my dad came in with a DVD of The Wild and Wonderful Whites he’d borrowed. “If you really want to see something we should watch this.” Then sure enough it got to the part where they explain that this is granddaddy White. A wild and wonderful coincidence.
And Susan: I smirk also because this is how I dance.