Dance of the Sleepwalkers: The Dance Marathon Fad

By Frank M. Calabria

Book Overview

Dance marathons were a phenomenally popular fad during the manic 1920s and depressive 1930s. What began as a craze soon developed into a money-making business which lasted 30 years. Some 20,000 contestants and show personnel participated in these events; audiences, the majority women, totalled in the millions. "A Poor Man's Nightclub," dance marathons were the dog-end of American show business, a bastard form of entertainment which borrowed from vaudeville, burlesque, night club acts and sports.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0879725702
• ISBN13: 9780879725709
• Release Date: June 1993
• Publisher: University of Wisconsin Press
• Length: 226 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.0"