June Havoc

More than any other commodity, people during the Depression had a lot of idle time. Jobs were scarce and waiting for something to happen could be disheartening, so people participated in a multitude of silly activities in an attempt to get rich or famous or simply pass the time. Flagpole and tree sitting, sixday bicycle races, and marathon dancing were just a few of the many preoccupations that possessed the idle in the thirties. The following excerpt is from actress June Havoc's biography and describes her early years on the marathon dance circuit. Marathon dances were contests of stamina that required a couple to be the last dancers on their feet at the end of the time allotted. To make things interesting, marathon promoters would throw in a "sprint" every few hours in which the exhausted couples were...