Dedicated to the Preservation of the Carolina Shag and Beach Music. If you like to travel,

Transcription

1 Dedicated to the Preservation of the Carolina Shag and Beach Music A Proud Member of: President s Corner by Dave Bushey Volume XX, No. 5 May 2014 Ahhhhhhh! Spring has If you like to travel, Danc e Pros thi s Dave Bushey sprung (a-choo! Yup, the Pollen Vortex is upon us!). And, it s Party Season! The Band of Oz returns to Fredericksburg on May 10th for the a n n u a l V i r g i n i a G e n tl e me n P a r ty. Check it out! Many of us consider BOZ to be the ultimate Beach Show Band, so this is a Can t Miss Party. NVSC is celebrating with a Big Picnic at the Fai r fax Hu n t on Sunday, May 18th. We ll supply the burgers and franks and soft drinks. You bring an appetizer, a salad or a dessert. And your consider going down to Atlanta for Grand N a t i o n a l D a n c e Championships over the long Memorial Weekend! Everyone should go at least once. It s quite a spectacle of superior dancing. AND, it s quite a Party, too. Some other May Parties include Beckley s 20th Mountain Boogie Walk, Brushy Mountain s Shag Club Dance, Palmetto Shag Club s Southern Comfort. Check them out on And, right now, put July 26th on your calendar for NVSC s Garden Party Capital summer are Ashley and Tobitha Stewart (who also just happen to be the sponsors/mentors for the Junior Shag Dance Team, so MAYBE what do you think? Should we invite them, too?). Co-Chairs Pam Hamer and Jeanne Potter have some tricks up their sleeves, so watch your Hello Shaggers and Shag Rags in the coming weeks! Pam and Jeanne will be looking for some volunteers to help on the logistics of the Capital Classic. Please volunteer NVSC doesn t work without YOUR help! Special points of interest: NVSC Annual Picnic (page 3) Band of Oz in Fredericksburg (page 4) 2014 NVSC Capital Classic (pages 5 & 6) Interview with a DJ (page 7-8) Shag in Myrtle Beach (page 9-10) Seeking Club Historian (page 10)Humor (page 12) Recipe (page 12) Beckley Boogie Walk (page 13) bottle of Classic at the Dulles Westin Hotel! Our See you on the dance floor! Inside this issue: When and Where to Dance 2, 11 Through the National FastDance Association, our club dance activities are licensed by: Due to increased costs, primarily in red meats, the Elk's Lodge has been forced to raise dinner pricing to $9.00, effective May 7, Lessons & DJs 2 New Members 3 Birthdays 4 News and Announcements 10 Contact Information 14

2 Page 2 When and Where to Shag Every Wednesday, 6:30 10:30 p.m. at the Elks Lodge, 8421 Arlington Blvd., Fairfax, VA (on Route 50 near Prosperity Avenue). Cover charge: Non-members $6.00, members $5.00; free lessons at 7:30 p.m., no partners needed. Buffet dinner 6:45 8:00p.m., $9.00, or order from the menu. For example, Appetizers (Buffalo Wings, Quesadilla, etc.), Salads (Caesar, Chef), Burgers & Sandwiches (Bacon & Blue, Pulled Pork BBQ). See more places to dance with other ACSC Virginia Shag Clubs, listed on page 5. May 4th and 18th at JW & Friends, 6531 Backlick Road, Springfield, VA, 5:00 8:00 p.m.; no cover charge Thursdays at Shannon s Bar & Grille, Fredericksburg; Battlefield Boogie Club (battlefieldboogieclub.com) Dance Lessons at the Elks on Wednesdays DJ Schedule Beginner Level Shag Steps Intermediate Level Shag Steps 5/7: Craig Jennings 5/14: Dennis Gehley 5/21: Eddie O Reilly 5/28: Eddie O Reilly 5/7 Basic and Female Turn 5/7 Crossover Basic (from Male and Female Turns) 5/14 Basic and Start 5/14 Behind Sailor & Side Pass 5/21 Basic and Male Turn 5/21 Applejack 5/28 Basic, Half Turn, Triple Basic 5/28 Stutter Basic & Kick Basic Beginner lessons are FREE to non-members, but membership is required for the Intermediate class. Membership is $25/year. Lessons begin at 7:30 p.m. Social dancing from before and after lessons to 10:30 p.m. Please remember to ask Red Dot beginner dancers to dance. It takes lots of practice to become a better dancer!

3 Volume XX, No. 5 Page 3 Welcome to our New members Margie Crisp Diane McGibbon NVSC Picnic May 18

4 Page 4 Band of Oz at Fredericksburg, May 10th Virginia Gentlemen s Spring Dance and Beach Party to benefit Rappahannock Big Brother's Big Sisters SATURDAY MAY 10, :00PM TO MIDNIGHT May Jeffrey Ray 01 John Romito 01 FREDERICKSBURG EAGLES 21 COOL SPRINGS ROAD FEATURING THE MUSIC OF William (Billy) Meyer Greg Birmingham Martin Simpkins Jane Totman 06 Hilda Clemann 07 Louise Brown 08 Jeff Kincheloe 09 Gary Koerner 09 Heidi Mackey 10 Joanne Sinclair 10 Rick Green 12 Christine Werner Audrey Anderson Bob Lutz 19 $60 per couple (single tickets also available at $30) Beer and Mixers Provided (All attendees must be of age with a valid ID) BYOL and light snacks permitted RESERVE A TABLE with the purchase of 5 couple's tickets (10 people). Please call Joan McKinney 20 Ann Shimel 24 Kevin Goeller 25 Betty Elliott 26 Joan Ledebur 26 Joe Miante 28 Anita Simpkins 28 Colleen Hoar 29 CATHERINE MILLER- SALLER, PC Robert Matthews Connie Randolph PURCHASE YOUR TICKETS NOW OR CONTACT OUR OFFICE AT FOR MORE INFORMATION

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6 Page 6 Don t Miss the Capital Classic!

7 Volume XX, No. 5 Page 7 Dennis Gehley, how did you become a DJ? An interview by Jim Scanlon How did you end up in the business of being a DJ? Three factors contributed to my 25 year part-time career as a mobile DJ: (1) a Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) dance in 1960; (2) a performance at the Bishop O Connell High School gymnasium in 1962 by a singing group from Philadelphia; and (3) my 20 th wedding anniversary present from my wife Nancy. 1. In 1960, I attended my first CYO dance after graduating from 8 th grade at St. James Elementary School in Falls Church, VA. When I arrived at the dance, all the girls were standing on one side of the room, talking to each other, and all the boys were doing the same thing on the other side of the room. In walked Charlie Boone, who put down his 45 RPM record player, plugged it into the wall socket, and put some 45 RPM records on the spindle. As soon as the first song played, the dancers on both sides of the room came to the middle of the dance floor and started dancing with each other. The rest of us backed away to watch. I said to myself then and there: Self, that is what YOU want to do someday be the guy to play the music that makes people want to come out and DANCE! 2. In 1962, a Catholic boys high school in Philadelphia sent its Glee club to perform at Bishop O Connell. The entire school was assembled in the gym to hear a medley of show tunes, pop standards, and finally a rock and roll tune (originally done by Maurice Williams and the Gladiolas (later Zodiacs) from Lancaster, South Carolina). Of course, none of the kids in all -white O Connell High in Arlington had ever heard of Maurice or the Gladiolas. But when that Philadelphia glee club started out with the cow bell and t h e i n t r o t o t h e Diamonds (Canada) Little Darlin, you would have thought that Elvis had just walked into the gym. The girls started screaming and yelling and yanking and pulling on their sweaters and stomping their feet. Because it was a Catholic high school in the early 60s, there was no throwing of panties onto the stage as eventually would happen with Elvis or Tom Jones, but that did not matter to m e. T h e s p o n t a n e o u s outpouring of female emotion after hearing a song that struck them like lightening made me say, once again: Self, that is what YOU want to do someday be the guy to play the music that makes the LADIES want to come out and DANCE! The guys will figure this out. 3. In 1989, for our 20 th wedding anniversary, Nancy gave me $3,000 (of my money, she said) to buy equipment and CDs and start a DJ business. So I did. She became my partner in the DJ booth for 19 years until cancer reduced the partnership to one in What influences your decision about what music you play for our Wednesday night dances and for some of our NVSC special events? My Wednesday night play lists are influenced largely by (1) who shows up and (2) what songs people like to dance to week after week, year after year. 1. Who shows up means that I know certain ladies, certain men, and certain couples have a favorite song or two. I make a mental note when I see them and I plug their favorite(s) into the playlist. I try to show no favoritism toward anyone. It does not matter to me whether or not we are friends. What matters to me is that you like to dance, you have a favorite song or two, and I have a DJ obligation to play what you like, not what I think you should dance to. 2. What songs people like... year after year... means that there are certain songs like Lady Soul by the Temptations and I Used to Cry Mercy Mercy by the Lamplighters that are guaranteed to put dancers on the floor. Stay by Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs. Hey, Baby! by Bruce Chanel. Just One Look by Doris Troy. You get the picture. Special events to me usually mean the Capital Shag Classic and the Shag-A-Thon. For the Classic, I always ask the Classic Coordinator if I can play on Sunday morning, specifically the Gospel Hour from 9:00 to 10:00 and the finale from 10:00 to 12:00. It is a pretty laid back time for everyone and I like to be the DJ who puts the cap on the weekend. For the Shag-A- Thon, I choose mostly moderate tempo stuff so that the dancers don t tire too early in the afternoon. We would like for our members to get to know you better. I think one of the reasons why you do not receive the compliments you deserve is because the members don t know enough about you and what you do to prepare to give a delightful evening of dance music. I basically look at what I played the last time I was in the booth and make sure that I get the right balance between old stuff

8 Page 8 Interview with Dennis Gehley, cont d and new stuff. My experience over 15 years as a DJ for NVSC is that most dancers are very traditional, that is, they are comfortable with hearing 80% to 90% of songs that they are already familiar with and have heard before, and danced to before, and only 10% to 20% of new stuff. If you try to introduce too much new stuff all at once, dance crowds, like herds of deer, start to get a little skittish. And then they throw themselves on the windshield of your car. (Just kidding!) Also, how do you decide to play line-dance music and what specific line dance do you choose for us? I like to play one line dance each Wednesday because some people, unfortunately, do not get asked to dance by a potential partner, and/or they are too shy to ask someone to dance. Or they just like to get some independent exercise without someone hanging onto them. Some line dances are very songspecific, that is, when you hear that song you know what steps to do: Electric Slide, Cha Cha Slide, Biker Shuffle, etc. Other line dances are so traditional that you can use any number of songs to go with line dances such as the Bus Stop, Carolina Mambo, Charleston, Continental, and Tush Push. If someone asks me for a specific line dance and I have the music, that pretty much decides the one line dance I will play for the evening. If no one asks, I will select a dance that I did not play the last time out of the chute. Line dance requests tend to ebb and flow. A hot line dance for several months will recede after a while, often being added to the line dance songs we will always ask for. Other songs/dances fall by the wayside to become a mere footnote in shag music history. For example, can anybody remember the line dance songs that we used to do the J.C. Strut to? The Capital Classic? The Down & Dirty? I rest my case. I hope this gives you some insight into what goes on in the DJ s head while trying to keep everyone happy and dancing at NVSC events. It s not just a job, it is an adventure. See you on the dance floor! Advertise Your Business in the! CONTACT Dave Bushey at dbushey99@gmail. com for details.

9 Volume XX, No. 5 Page 9 Shag is still popular in the Myrtle Beach area 30 years after becoming the state dance By Jo Ann Mathews, for The Sun News April 10, 2014 Thirty years ago on April 10, 1984, Gov. Richard Riley signed Act No. 329 designating the shag the official dance of South C a r o l i n a. N a t i v e S o u t h Carolinians grew up hearing their parents talk about it, watching their parents do it and taking lessons themselves. North Myrtle Beach residents Charlie Womble and his wife, Jackie McGee, are multiple-time national shag champions and are in the Shaggers Hall of Fame and Swing Dance Hall of Fame. They are avid teachers of the dance, hold workshops and have been giving free lessons during the SOS (Society of Stranders) Spring Safari April 4-13 in North Myrtle Beach, an event that attracts thousands of devoted shaggers every year. When asked how the shag differs from other dances today, Womble had a ready answer. It s how you move, he said. In the shag, we go up and back in accordion fashion. We use one hand. The guy is more active. This is in contrast to other dances in which the partners go side-to-side, in a circle or forward and backward. The shag consists of six counts, which are the key to doing it correctly. What makes the shag unique is how you move your body and your feet within the basic count, Womble said. The origin of the shag isn t definite, but it appeared in the mid-1940s after World War II, possibly around Virginia Beach, Va. It traveled south, becoming a hit in Carolina Beach, N.C., and continuing south where it has made North Myrtle Beach its ultimate home. In the early 1950s, the shag centered on the O.D. Pavilion, Roberts Pavilion and other clubs, specifically on Ocean Drive, also referred to as OD and O.D. That all changed with Hurricane Hazel in One of the clubs that has a history from the 1950s and maintains a shag only policy is Fat Harold s Beach Club at 212 Main St. in North Myrtle Beach. It has won Beach Club of the Year 11 times and was prepared for SOS Spring Safari. Ron Amick, Fat Harold s nephew who began working for his uncle in 1968, said nobody thinks of the Spring Safari as an anniversary. People shag all year round, he said. Lulu Quick, the club s office manager, began working for Harold in There s nothing special for the anniversary, she said. I was really not aware of it. She recalls, however, the actual proclamation in I remember Harold got all dressed up. So many dignitaries showed up for the tea we had on the beach. You don t really have tea on the beach. Does she shag? After four white Russians, I m the best out there, she said with a hearty laugh. Gary Bass, entertainment director at Fat Harold s, came to the club as a disc jockey decades ago. If you wanted to be a DJ relative to beach music, you came to Fat Harold s, he said. Bass knows the history of the shag and remembers Fat Harold s as the mecca for the shag. More than 100 shag clubs across the U.S. are active today, dance competitions are held and activities that attract shaggers take place throughout the year. The Association of Carolina Shag Clubs Inc. operates to preserve and promote the shag and coordinates activities among the clubs. It also manages and operates SOS. Ron Whisenant of Little River has been president of SOS since 2000 and a shagger since high school. He said the highlight of SOS Spring Safari is the parade, but the best part is reuniting with shagger friends. It s like a family reunion, he said. It s a great camaraderie we enjoy besides the great dance and the great music. Womble explained that the shag is passed on from parents to their children and the dance is taught in South Carolina schools. The Junior Shag Association and Junior Society of Stranders are open to young people. Quick said Harold s has a junior shagin social the first Saturday of each month and teens and children as young as age 4 participate. Zachary McDonald, 31, of North Myrtle Beach, said he s a thirdgeneration shagger and was in Junior SOS. He was named to Keepers of the Dance, an honor bestowed on former junior shaggers who continue to participate and keep the shag alive. In October 2014 he will be inducted into the Shag Hall of Fame. I decided I was going to have fun. That s what it s all about, he said. He explained that only about 100 members were junior This article is reprinted with the permission of Carolyn Murray, Editor, The Sun News, PO Box 406, Myrtle Beach, SC 29578

10 Page 10 Shag is still popular in the Myrtle Beach, cont d shaggers when he was growing up, but now there are about 2,000 members. They are keeping our state dance alive, he said. The shag lifestyle is a wonderful lifestyle, Whisenant said and praised the events and a c ti vi ti es th e g r o up i s experiencing through SOS Spring Safari. This is the Garden of Eden for us. More information about the shag is at Books about the shag include And the Bands Played On and Fat Harold, The Legendary King of Shag by Howie Thompson and Save the Last Dance for Me, a Love Story of the Shag and the Society of Stranders by Phil Sawyer and Tom Poland. News and Announcements Where do I Get a Copy of the? Go to the N V S C w e b s i t e, click on Newsletters tab, click on the month you want. It s in PDF format. Also, copies will be available at the Fairfax Elks on Wednesdays. Hello Shagger s Are you getting the Hello Shagger s? If not, you visit our website at On the left side, click on the blue box that says "Hello Shagger list" and give us your address! Hello Shagger Change Anyone with information to be included in the Hello Shagger (including DJ schedules and menus) should send the i n f o r m a t i o n t o helloshagger@nvshag.org, instead of sending directly to Donna Romito. Keep Your Membership Information Current Have you moved, changed phone numbers or ? Contact Bonnie Arms at bjrwa@verizon.net or Dave Bushey at dbushey99@gmail.com. The deadline for input is the 25 th of every month. Please send content (including opinions, humor and recipes!) to Jim Scanlon at jamesscanlon@me.com. NVSC is Seeking a Club Historian! The NVSC sorely needs someone to volunteer to be its historian. Highlighting this need is that Larry Camp has all of the s from the onset of the club in several binders. He would like to get rid of them and they would be invaluable for historical reasons. One of our NVSC members will pick them up at SOS and have them available for our historian; they provide an excellent starting point for compiling our club s history. To volunteer for this important position, please contact Dave Bushey at dbushey99@gmail.com.

11 Volume XX, No. 5 Page 11 When and Where to Dance in the Future (Take a few minutes to enter these on your calendar) 2014: More Places to Shag When What Where May 18th NVSC Picnic Fairfax Hunt Club June 22 NVSC Sunday Social TBD July 26 NVSC Classic Westin Hotel in Herndon May Beckley WV S Boogie Walk August 1-3 Richmond Shag Club s Boogie on the James August 23 Battlefield Boogie Club s Anniversary Party Fredericksburg Country Club August Beckley WV S Hangar Party September SOS Fall Migration North Myrtle Beach September 16 NVSC s SOS Party at Fat Harold s, Fat Harold s 2-4 p.m. October 25 NVSC s Shagathon Herndon Community Center October December 13 DC Hand Dance Assn. s Amish Country Fall Event NVSC s Christmas Party TBD Kingstowne Snyder Community Center, Alexandria, VA 2015: Association of Carolina Shag Clubs (ACSC) Summer Workshop July 10-12, 2015 at the Hyatt Dulles Hotel. This is a huge 3-day shag event. The presidents of all the Association s shag clubs will be attending as well as other members from their clubs. It is one humongous party that will include dancing, many dance workshops, vendors galore, huge 50/50 s, dancing, Friday and Saturday Free Pours (& maybe Thursday!!), dancing exhibitions. And did we say dancing?? Other ACSC Virginia Shag Clubs Visit the club websites for venues and schedules. Battlefield Boogie Club, Boogie On The Bay Shag Club, Colonial Shag Club (Newport News), Danville Shag Club, Franklin Shag Club, gramelia@yahoo.com Lynchburg Shag Club, Richmond Shag Club, Roanoke Valley Shag Club, Virginia Beach Shag Club,

12 Page 12 Send your opinions, favorite recipes and humor to the editor, Jim Scanlon, com Humor Tom had been in business for 25 years. Finally sick of the stress, he quits his job and buys 50 acres of land in Alaska as far from humanity as possible. He sees the postman once a week and gets groceries once a month. Otherwise it's total peace and quiet. After six months or so of almost total isolation, someone knocks on his door. He opens it and a huge, bearded man is standing there. "Name's Cliff, your neighbor from forty miles up the road. Thought you might like to come at about 5:00." Having a Christmas party Friday night. "Great", says Tom. "After six months out here I'm ready to meet some local folks. Thank you." As Cliff is leaving, he stops. "Gotta warn you. Be some drinking." "Not a problem" says Tom. "After 25 years in the business, I can drink with the best of 'em". Again, the big man starts to leave and stops. "More 'n' likely gonna be some fighting' too." "Well, I get along with people, I'll be all right! I'll be there. Thanks again." "More'n likely be some wild sex, too." "Now that's really not a problem" says Tom, warming to the idea. "I've been all alone for six months! I'll definitely be there. By the way, what should I wear?" "Don't much matter. Just gonna be the two of us." Recipe (from Fran Mong) BAKED BRIE 1 wheel of brie (large or small) Brown Sugar Pecans, chopped Slice the brie in half, cover the entire surface with brown sugar, top with pecans (as many or as few as you prefer - many is better). Add the other half of the brie, cover the entire surface with brown sugar, top with pecans and bake uncovered in a 350 degree oven until the brie begins to melt, serve with pita chips, crackers or small slices of crusty bread. Enjoy!

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14 Page 14 Board Meetings are held each month and are open to any and all members in good standing who wish to attend. Unless a certain matter is placed on the meeting agenda, attendance is for observation, not participation. Since board meetings may not take place at the same time and place every month, please alert the Secretary at least one week in advance if you wish to attend (so that we may accommodate you). Copies of Board Meeting Minutes may be available on the website, or you may request copy(s) from the Club Secretary Board President Dave Bushey dbushey99@gmail.com Vice President Ed Hamer ed_hamer@yahoo.com Secretary Bonnie Arms bjrwa@verizon.net Treasurer Mark Hendrickson markandgolf@verizon.net Director-at-large Pamela Alfano palfano1@verizon.net Director-at-large Sue Young suey@theaeap.com Director-at-large Ken Morford kwm1719@yahoo.com Director-at-large Fran Mong franmong@aol.com Director-at-large Jason Potter jasonpotter2@msn.com NVSC COMMITTEES/CHAIRS FOR 2014 * Audit Fern Siegler Capital Classic * Shag-A-Thon Not named * Dance Pamela Alfano Hello Shaggers Historian Pam Hamer, Jeanne Potter and Juanita Freeburger Donna Romito (helloshagger@nvshag.org) Not named * Membership Bonnie Arms * Music Fran Mong Newsletter Editor Newsletter Publisher Photographer Jim Scanlon (jamesscanlon@me.com) Maryann Lesnick (mlesnick@mlesnick.com) John Romito * Public Relations Dale & Huda Woodiel * Social/Hospitality Jeanne Potter "The Internal Revenue Service notified NVSC on April 19, 1999, that we have been accepted as a non-profit social club exempted from paying Federal income taxes. Anyone interested in reviewing NVSC's application and supporting documents provided to IRS, the IRS exemption letter, or the club's annual Form 990 to the IRS, please contact the club Treasurer." Sunshine Maryann Lesnick (mlesnick@mlesnick.com) Web Site Loren Kropat (webmaster@nvshag.org) * Denotes Standing Committee BORROWING SHAG VIDEOS... is easy!!! Whether you have taken all of the shag classes offered at NVSC or are just looking for new steps or tips on technique... our club has a constantly growing library of shag instructional DVD or videos. These DVD s contain more steps and tips than you can shake a stick at and they're FREE to club members! All you have to do is put down a REFUNDABLE$25 deposit. See SUE YOUNG on Wednesday nights to borrow or purchase a DVD or video!!!

15 Page 15 Organization About Our Organization Do we have a logo? Northern Virginia Shag Club (NVSC) was organized to preserve the Carolina Shag dance and its accompanying Beach music. NVSC dances the Carolina Shag every Wednesday night at: Elk s Lodge, 8421 Arlington Blvd, Fairfax, VA Come join us learn the Carolina Shag! Free beginner lessons begin at 7:30 p.m. A Buffet dinner is available for purchase. Social dancing is from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. General Inquiries: shaglist@nvshag.org Membership: membership@nvshag.org Webmaster: webmaster@nvshag.org Hello Shagger: helloshagger@nvshag.org COME JOIN US! Dedicated to the Preservation of Carolina Shag and Beach Music W E RE ON T H E W EB! WWW. N V S H A G. O R G A ND ON F A C E B O O K AT NO R T H E R N V I R G I N I A S H A G C L U B NORTHERN VIRGINIA SHAG CLUB P.O. Box 2298 Merrifield, VA 22116