Earl Snakehips Tucker

Earl "Snakehips" Tucker (1905 – 1937) became known as the "Human Boa Constrictor," after the dance he popularized in Harlem in the 1920s called the "Snakehips (Dance)". [Jookin' The Rise of Soical Dance Formations in African-American Culture Katrina Hazzard-Gordon Temple University Press 1990 pages 122-123]

Tucker frequented Harlem music clubs, and was a regular at the Savoy Ballroom. He built his reputation by exhibiting his odd style of dance, which involved a great deal of hip motion. The snake hips dates back to southern plantations before emancipation. [Jookin' The Rise of Soical Dance Formations in African-American Culture Katrina Hazzard-Gordon Temple University Press 1990 pages 122-123] Tucker would make it appear that he was as flexible as a snake, and eventually the dance became his calling card. He became popular enough to eventually perform at Connie's Inn and the Cotton Club. In 1935, Tucker reached the peak of his fame when he appeared in a short film called Symphony in Black: "A Rhapsody of Negro Life". The film was based around a Duke Ellington composition, and included clips of Ellington composing, as well as Billie Holiday singing and Tucker doing the "Snakehips".

References

* [http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/exploring/harlem/faces/tucker_text.html Drop Me Off in Harlem ] at artsedge.kennedy-center.org