I have a large assortment of swing era clothing and accessories. they are on my web site. (I see you have already found my store front at Baker's Row in Frederick, MD on your Travel Guide )
Cordially,
Sue Shatto

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Swing Jam in the UK
By: Iver Cooper

Dear Frank:
Thought I'd pass on the announcement for the Swing Jam in the UK. I went last year, and I enjoyed. What I found amusing is that while here the trend is for events which used to be solely WCS to add Lindy, in the UK, WCS is still small and on the upswing (sorry...), so Swing Jam is adding a WCS track to what used to be an all-Lindy event.

Here Goes

Time is running out - don't miss out!!!

If you haven't already booked for what many people think is the UK's best Lindy Hop weekend (ask Frankie, Rob et al!), then you had better get a move on!

Seriously though, folks, the site is not infinitely expandable and this year's event looks like being more popular than ever - and don't forget that the Swing Jam has NEVER been cancelled and this is its sixth CONSECUTIVE year!!

For the first time in any UK event, we are offering a complete stream of West Coast Swing to compliment the ever-popular Lindy Hop, so this could be YOUR chance to learn a dance to do when the music is slower and groovier - don't just stand there saying "It's too slow, I can't Lindy to that"! And if you want to improve your Lindy with the world's best teachers and still try a bit of West Coast to see what all the fuss is about, there will be a West Coast 'taster' workshop on Saturday morning.

The setting for all this is Brunel University's lovely Runnymede campus set in the beautiful Berkshire countryside. It's close to Heathrow and a main-line train station for the convenience of all you out-of-towners. All activities are on-site including accommodation and great food for residents. Each resident has their own room (some twins are available but they are nearly all taken by those couples who want to be 'together'). Each room has a wash-basin while showers and baths are all nearby in the halls.

If you can't manage the full weekend, we have great evening dances going on each night until 2.00am! Friday features Blue Harlem with Aisha Khan, Saturday is Vile Bodies with Stacey Kent, plus the Finals of the UK Lindy Hop Championships, and Sunday night is DJ and Cabaret night.

Advance Ticket prices are œ10 for Friday or Saturday, œ8 for Sunday. All advance price tickets must be booked by Friday 21 August. On-the-door prices are œ12 for Friday or Saturday, œ10 for Sunday. For full details why not check out our web site http://www.live2jive.ndirect.co.uk - you can even book on-line.

Our new Lindy course in High Wycombe is due to start on Tuesday 9 September and West Coast Swing at Watford will take a break on Thursday 27 August and 3 September only, beginning again on Thursday 10th September.

'Swing Fever' our West Coast Swing club which takes place on the first and third Friday of each month will only miss Friday 4 September. Our fortnightly Lindy Hop Club a.k.a. the Saturday Swing Dance Club which meets on the second and fourth Saturday of each month will only miss Saturday 22 August; We're there again on Saturday September 12th. For more info, see our website.

There is plenty going on from Live2Jive so don't miss out on ANYTHING; if you miss the Swing Jam then you will be really sorry! Everyone else will be on a dancing high for weeks.

See you there
Beckie and Fred
Live2Jive

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Swing Observations
By: Mark Judge

Hey F & C
Saw a beautiful sight today. The Tower records in Rockville has a new "listening booth" dedicated entirely to swing. There were two young girls, about 8 and 10 I'd guess, in front of it. They looked like sisters, but they wre fighting over the one pair of headphones. The smaller one won, pushed the Cab Caolloway selection, and started tapping her foot and moving her hips like a regular Norma Miller.

Let the future begin. Now if we could only get the private sector to open up some spaces for us. It strikes me that we don't necessarily need a new, grand ballroom, but a bunch of places like America to open their doors all over the city. they wouldn't even need bands right away - just a good juke box, like the 50s. God, what is stopping them? It's like printing money at this point.
---Mark Judge

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Glen Echo on British TV
By: Mike Michniewski

Hi Frank,
I was watching my video tape of the day's TV as I did situps last night ( (8-12-98), and guess what! The ITN ((British)) Independent Television News) broadcast last night a segment on Swing dancing at Glen Echo. The ITN guys do the best international TV news of any I've seen, and their segment on GE reflects this. I saw a lot of familiar faces, and they managed to catch the old Spanish Ballroom looking quite grand. There is a R ealVideo version of the piece. You will also need the Player.

Unfortunately the video quality is pretty poor, and you can't recognize many of the faces of the dancers. My video tape has better quality, but the Howard University TV station is far enough away that there is a good deal of static on the tape. Pretty neat piece though.
Cheers,
---Mike

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Note from Randi-Sue
By: Randi-Sue Rimerman

I got the pictures back from my wedding, and they're awesome. I have a probably a hundred photos of people lindying. And the photographer took pictures of the jam in black and white, so they look extra cool. I can't wait to show everyone -- once the dust settles at my house (I've basically been travelling for 5 weeks -- I spent last week in Alaska), I'll have to have everyone over.

Swing has hit Anchorage. One of the bigger bars has a swing lounge. I didn't have a chance to go, because I was working too hard. I did, however, manage to find one of the best vintage stores I've ever been to -- The Rage. There were so many forties dresses in great condition to choose from. I managed to keep my purchases down to two. Now if I could only find a snood!
---Randi

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Help Jeff Out!
By: Jeffrey Frederick

Frank & Carole:
I don't think you know me specifically, but I am in the Tom & Debra gang.

Anyway, I need a favor. Next time you send out an email update or post to your site, can you add something for me to spread the word. I am looking for a large church fellowship hall that will fit at least 500 dancers and one that has wood floors. This is a great chance for a church to make some easy cash. It would be great if you could put out a little note asking people to write me if they have any ideas.

Thanks!
Jeffrey M. Frederick

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Swing Weekend in Cleveland
Bill Benhoff

What: Ain't Misbehavin' - Cleveland's Swing Music and Dance Weekend
When: Labor Day Weekend September 4th through the 6th, 1998
Where: Lakewood Masonic Auditorium, 15300 Detroit Road, Lakewood, OH

Swing dance and music lessons will be offered by many instructors, including Frankie Manning, Norma Miller, Rusty Mason, Ken Haltenhoff and Donna Barker, and Paulette Brockington.

Cost: $90.00 for Big Daddy package - all lessons and all dances.

Contact: Terry Brennan at (440) 734-2511 for registration information.

It is not full yet, but time is running out.

Check out Chilly Willy's Swing Dance Cleveland at:
www.geoc ities.com/BourbonStreet/Delta/9215

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New Swing Venue

Monday, August 24: Swing night Featuring DJs, Red Steve and the Reverend Fish Ffree lessons at NICK'S (642 S. Pickett St, Alexandria VA) $2 cover ($5 for under 21) 9 pm 18 to Swing - 21 to Drink

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Vintage Auction Site
From: Bill Lehman
wlehman@ccpace.com

Check out the the online auction www.ebay.com. Search on deco, bakelite, streamline*, 30s, 40s.
---Bill

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Charlie Wyler is Teaching!!
By: Charles Wyler cmwyler@erols.com

Hi Frank,
I will be teaching at a new and wonderful dance studio here in Baltimore named Experimental Movement Concepts. 3618 Falls Rd. This place is huge!! Very convienient : Take I-95 to I-395 to Pratt to 83 north to Falls Road. Studio is on the left. I'll be there each Wed. in October at 7PM teaching a beginning jitterbug and a begining Lindy class. I am also available for privates in the now popular Collins Style or any thing else. This building also has a huge Air Conditioned Ballroom about 2/3 the size of Glen Echo and I am DREAMING of holding a special event there some day. Any way I would really love it if you could include my schedule in your site. I am also thinking of holding a practice/dance session there on Wednesday nights if all goes well.

[Editor's Note: This is some of the best news that I have heard in a long time. Not only is Charlie a hell of a nice guy, but he also has the smoothest, most fluid style that I have ever seen. If it were possible to get only 5% of Charlie's style, most of us would improve our dancing a hundredfold. We strongly advise you to see Charlie!]

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STARLIGHT FOUNDATION - 5K RUN
By: Greg at Zones Zonesdc@aol.com

All right everybody.....it's time to dust off those running shoes or roller-blades and limber up for the: Starlight Children's Foundation/Outback Steakhouse 5K Run (walk)/10K In-Line Race and Run

• Saturday, September 12, 1998
• 7:00-7:45 AM Registration
• 8:00 AM First Race
• Alexandria, Virginia at Cameron Run Regional Park
• ($20/adult, $15/kids under 15, $25 after 9/5)

All proceeds of this event go to the Starlight Children's Foundation whose goal it is to deliver wishes to seriously ill children ages 4 though 18 years.

Enter your company as a team or do it with friends!

What do I have to do?

Walk, Run, or Skate on a beautiful September day, eat a free lunch from Outback Steakhouse, enjoy great music form the Z104 Van, win prizes, get a free T-shirt, have a great time, and most of all.......help a worthy cause and some great kids!!!!!

Get more information on the Starlight Foundation and the race by checking out the DC Starlight Website

Come on every one!!! This is a great organization and a great event. Sign up your whole family....pass this mail on to friends....get involved!!!!

If you have any questions or want a brochure mailed to you contact Jennifer at ( 301-907-3202 x 109 or jgehring@alarm.org)

To sign up on-line visit: www.ra cepacket.com/races/sep98/starlight.html

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Dancing in Russia
By: Deborah Brooks BrooksD@PartnersFirst.com

I recently returned from a two-week cruise from St. Petersburg to Moscow by way of the Neva and Volga rivers. The trip was fantastic except in one respect, there were no male Lindy Hoppers aboard. If anyone wants to know more about the fabulous palaces, museums, cathedrals, birch forests, etc. that I saw on my visit, please feel free to ask anytime. As with most cruises, the majority of evenings were spent motoring along so that we would reach the next port by morning. The only cities we stayed in long enough to explore the nightlife were St. Petersburg and Moscow. St. Petersburg did not seem to have any clubs that even played swing music but in Moscow, there was one that played swing in addition to Dixieland jazz and something else that escapes me at the moment.

The club is the Nostalgie Art Club at 12a Chistoprudny Bulvar, phone 095 916 9978. By the time we reached Moscow, I was starting to get sick so I didn't have the chance to check it out personally even though it looked somewhat promising. On board ship, the only Lindyable music that the band played was a few Elvis Presley tunes so I threw myself on the mercy of a few gentlemen who knew some rudimentary East Coast Swing. At one point, I was reduced to LEADING, and spent a whole song just trying to get the basic step down. I now have a new respect for all our wonderful leads in the DC area who make it look and feel so effortless.

I did find that you can Charleston to almost anything if desperate enough, including techno and Russian disco hits. None of the Russian staff had ever heard of Lindy Hop (big surprise) so I stayed up until 3 AM one morning describing Lindy Hop (which is hard to do without a partner) to the aerobics instructor and the manager of the on-board souvenir stand and gave them some basic instruction in Charleston. I even got the lead singer of the band into tandem Charleston! I plan to send them a few swing CDs and tapes (including Glenn Miller's "Song of the Volga Boatmen") as well as videotapes so they can see what Lindy Hop is really supposed to look like.

As with any cruise, we were given adequate opportunities to make fools of themselves for the general amusement of the staff and other passengers. So in addition to being a woodland fairy in the enactment of a Russian fairy tale (I actually have a photo of this) and a mermaid in the King Neptune festival, I also volunteered to do a solo dance routine for the Talent Show. I chose Louis Armstrong's "Flat Foot Floogee" from the ship's surprisingly large selection of swing music (they played swing music in the afternoons over the PA system between Voice of America broadcasts). 48 very short hours later, I performed a 3 minute Charleston routine (with a little St. Louis shag and shim sham steps to fill in the empty spots) to over 150 people. I'll admit to feeling a little pressure but the nice thing about a solo is no one can tell when you mess up. At the end of it, I got a HUGE round of applause and people came up to me for days afterwards to say how much they enjoyed it. I guess they don't get too many dance routines in the talent show but given the average age of the passengers on a cruise, I think I know why. On a more serious note, touring Russia during a period of economic crisis is great for the tourist but at the expense of the Russian people. While we (the tourists) were all spending like drunken sailors on shore leave, many of the staff had not been paid in months and were living off the tips they received. The wife of one crew member had died earlier in the cruise season and he could not take any time off without losing his job with which he supports his family. During the off-season, one of the staff makes $40 a MONTH teaching English in her home province. Many professional folk dance and music ensembles performed for us just for tips.

It's all too easy to take for granted the freedom and high standard of living we enjoy in America. Let's all hope that Russia's current economic crisis ends soon and that it does not signal an end to democracy in that country.

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Lindy Hop and Swing Dance site
By: David F. Cole BigBandSound@compuserve .com

Wow! What an excellent site! I've been surfing swing dance sites for a while and hadn't come across yours before - Great job! You have a very comprehensive list of links.

Friends of mine run the swing dances for the Hudson Valley Country Dances organization in Upstate New York (Poughkeepsie area.) Please add a reference to their web site - http://www.bestweb.net/~tamara/chdance.html - on your links page under the Upstate New York section.

Also, I run a big band called The Big Band Sound that plays for swing dances in the area. Please add a reference to our web site - http://www.thebigbandsound.com - to your links page under the Big Band section. In addition to information about our band, we also have a Music and Book Store where people can purchase big band CDs and books.
Thank you!
---Dave Coles

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Flycats at the Kennedy Center
By: Todd Tenenholz todd@lindy.ab.umd.edu

Hi Frank and Carole!
Sorry I haven't seen you recently, but the med school thing, not to mention the FlyCats, are keeping me busy. Besides, Glen Echo is way too crowded and way too hot :-(. I just wanted to give you the latest on Swing Baltimore's website address. We have a spiffy new site, thanks to the hard work of Mark Ormbsby and the courtesy of the Baltimore Sun. The new URL is:

community.citysearc h.com/swing/

It would be great if you could update your link to us, so that all of the online swingers will again have access to the Swing Baltimore Calendar.

I also wanted let you know that the FlyCats will be performing at the Kennedy Center on Sun., Sept. 13 at 3 and 4:15 pm, as part of the annual Open House. In addition to performing a couple of our pieces, this will be a participatory event where the audience will be encouraged to join us in open dancing after the performance. In other words, this is everybody's opportunity to dance with the FlyCats *onstage at the Kennedy Center*. Needless to say, it should be a blast. Hope to see you there.
---Todd

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HAIR AND MAKEUP FOR THE SWINGIN' GALS OF THE DC AREA
By: Christina Santarlas girlsinger@hotmail.com

Hi all of you swingin' gals out there! I'm Christina Santarlas, pretty new on the swing scene. Some of you saw me recently at America, the night Fox 5 came to tape. I had my hair all done up and many of you asked me "how did you do that?" Well, I'd be glad to show you. I've been doing 1940's hair and makeup for three and half years, and theatrical makeup for more than eight years, and I'd be happy to share some tricks of the trade. I would like to propose Hair and Makeup classes to kick of the fall and get us all looking great! I will need some suggestions from you all to format this to best fit your needs. I'll explain the plan and give you some questions to think about. Please do e-mail me with your ideas and we'll get this show on the road!

Classes:

• Basic Hair: rolls, twists, and basic styling (and how to use those crazy 'ratz'!)
• Advanced Hair: finger waves, advanced styling, hot rollers, accessories, etc.
• Basic Makeup: 1940's basic face/correction makeup (hiding freckles, evening out skin tones, etc.)
• Advanced Makeup: glam face

Each class would happen once in a month (one class each week), location undecided, price $12.00 each class, or $40.00 for all four classes (you'd save eight bucks). I think pre-registration would help the first time out. I would be happy to put supply kits together and you could just purchase everything from me to keep from running all around town to find things. The hair class really doesn't need a kit, but a makeup kit would probably be helpful, since 40's makeup is different from our makeup today.

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