TWISTIN' U.S.A. with Chubby

The Twist was THE iconic dance of the early '60s. It was still being done regularly in the days of disco in the '60s. And yes, there were discotheque's in the 60s. Fortunately the fashions were "fab" and "gear" at discotheque's and not the dreadful polyester stuff of the 1970s. You were more likely to see a woman in a Mary Quant dress in a photo than some guy dressed like a Travolta character.

My mother bought this Chubby Checker record for a party she and my father were having at our home in Hawaii. A bunch of guys from the office (naval aviators and staff) with wives were all going to be doing the Twist in our living room. I was allowed to come out and watch early in the evening, get some pupu's, and then was told to stay out. I did sneak out late at night to watch a bunch of drunks trying to do the limbo. They drank Fish House Punch, which is supposed to be pretty lethal (I don't know because I don't drink). The day after the parties (which only occasionally occurred) I was told to walk softly and whisper because "daddy has a headache."

Chubby Checker made a living for quite awhile with The Twist. Hank Ballard, who wrote the song and created the dance, did not have the same success with it having originally released it as a B-side.

Ballard died in 2003. Chubby (Ernest Evans) is still twistin' the night away.

And by the way, I did a pretty wicked twist.