''Dancing Man'' is the name given to a photograph of a man who was filmed dancing on the street in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, after the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. On 15 August 1945, a cameraman took note of a man's joyful expression and dance and asked him to do it once again. The man consented and was caught on

motion picture film Film stock is an analog device, analog medium that is used for recording film, motion pictures or animation. It is recorded on by a movie camera, film developing, developed, film editing, edited, and projected onto a screen using a movie proj ...

in an Australian edition of the newsreel

Movietone News Movietone News was a newsreel that ran from December 1927 to 1963 in the United States. Under the name British Movietone News, it also ran in the United Kingdom from 1929 to 1986, in France also produced by Fox-Europa, in Spain in the early 1930s a ...

. The film and stills from it have taken on iconic status in Australian history and culture, and symbolise joyous elation to the war's end.

Identity

There has been much debate as to the identity of the dancing man. Frank McAlary, a retired

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

, claims that he was the man photographed pirouetting in

Elizabeth Street, Sydney Elizabeth Street is a major street in the central business district of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. The street continues south of the central business district (CBD), through the inner city suburbs of Surry Hills, Redfern and Waterlo ...

, on 15 August 1945. A

Queen's Counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...

, Chester Porter, and a former Compensation Court judge, Barry Egan, both claim to have seen McAlary being filmed dancing."Who is the dancing man?."
Macy, Richard. ''

Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper in ...

'' 8 December 2004 The television programme '' Where Are They Now?'', produced by Australia's

Seven Network Seven Network (stylised 7Network, and commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is an Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, ...

, attempted to solve the mystery of the dancing man's identity. The network hired a

forensic Forensic science combines principles of law and science to investigate criminal activity. Through crime scene investigations and laboratory analysis, forensic scientists are able to link suspects to evidence. An example is determining the time and ...

scientist who examined the film reel and picture and came to the conclusion that it was indeed McAlary. The Royal Australian Mint, however, chose to portray Ern Hill as the dancing man on a 2005 issue $1 coin commemorating 60 years since the World War II armistice. Hill has made a statement: "The camera came along and I did a bit of a jump around." The coin, sculpted by Wojciech Pietranik, does not bear any name. Rebecca Keenan of Film World Pty. Ltd., says the dancer may be Patrick Blackall. Mr. Blackall has claimed, "I'm the genuine dancing man," and has signed

statutory declaration A statutory declaration is a legal document defined under the law of certain Commonwealth nations and in the United States. It is similar to a statement made under oath, but it is not sworn. Statutory declarations are commonly used to allow a per ...

s that he is the man in the film. These remain not alone as many others maintain a claim to the moment, it is not conclusive and may never be. Frank A. Epton, a retired Chartered Accountant living in Alstonville, New South Wales before he died in February 2013, claimed that he was one of the soldiers in the background of the still image of the dancing man (the soldier without a hat). Papers and photos found in his possession during the administration of his estate support his assertion.

References

{{reflist

External links

"Dancing man still got the moves." St George Leagues Club, ''Leagues Club Journal.'' 25 July 2005
* Movietone clip with teacher's notes on ttp://australianscreen.com.au/titles/movietone-special-peace/clip2/ australianscreen online Aftermath of World War II History of Sydney People from Sydney Newsreels 1945 photographs 1945 in art Black-and-white photographs World War II photographs Australian photographs People notable for being the subject of a specific photograph Unidentified people Year of birth unknown Australian folklore Dance in Australia

Identity

See also

References

External links