The "Lindy Hop" was invented during a dance marathon in Harlem in June 1928.

George "Shorty" Snowden and Mattie Purnell, who danced regularly at the Savoy Ballroom, were standouts due to their fast and innovative dance steps. 

At one point, Shorty decided to do a move called a "breakaway" -- he flung Mattie forward and improvised a few solo steps on his own:




The effect was electrifying!

Responding to a journalist's inquiry, Shorty spontaneously dubbed their creation "The Lindy Hop," a reference to Charles Lindbergh, the American aviator who had become famous for making the first non-stop solo transatlantic airplane flight the year before:




“Shorty” went on to become quite famous himself:




He found great success dancing with partners:


as well as with his dance troupes, performing in ballrooms, nightclubs, and on Broadway.

In the movie "You Were Never Lovelier,"



Fred Astaire and Rita Hayworth dance a tribute to Shorty George in this number, co-choreographed by Astaire and Hermes Pan:

Rita Hayworth made more than 60 movies in her 40-year career.
 



Many of them were very successful.  But she always said that the two movies she made with Fred Astaire were the only ones that meant anything to her.


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