They say that age is just a number. But the octogenarian Jean Veloz shows everyone that for her, this really is true. She can move better in her eighties than most people can in their twenties!
Some people are so passionate about their careers that they never stop doing them.
They defy society, their bodies and anything that tries to tell them to stop and slow down. Jean Veloz is one of those people.
She’s an icon of the Hollywood-Style Lindy Hop dance. She first started doing it in 1940, with her brothers Bob and Ray.
She began her dancing career in her native Santa Maria, by entering dance competitions.
In 1942, Jean and her brothers moved to Los Angeles, where they would perform at clubs all night long.
Her big break came in 1944, when she entered a dance contest at American Legion Stadium in Hollywood.
The prize for this competition was an Actor’s Guild membership and a cameo as a dancer in the movie Swing Fever.
She won the competition and ended up dancing in the movie with some of the biggest stars of the day.
For the rest of the 1940s, Jean found herself being cast in many big movies.
In 1948, she met Frank Veloz. The two worked together and fell in love. They eventually married in 1963.
But in 1981, something terrible happened. Frank succumbed to cancer. This had a profound effect upon Jean.
She didn’t dance for the next 10 years. Every time she thought about it, she was reminded of her husband, her greatest dancing partner.
But then in the 1990s, she reemerged, more famous in the dance world than ever before.
And revitalized career gave Jean a new lease on life that has sustained her to this very day.
This performance, from when she was 88, shows this perfectly.
The video opens with a host announcing Jean’s performance. The building is packed with spectators.
Most of them must be fans of Jean’s work. But they may also be worried that Jean has lost the flair of her youth.
Jean walks out with Marcus Koch, a man who is much less than half her age.
He seems confident that Jean will be a fantastic dancing partner.
Even before the dancers have performed their opening bow, the crowd is cheering. They clearly love Jean so much!
Jean and Marcus embrace and start moving to the music.
Then everyone sees that Jean has no problem with keeping up with her much younger partner. If anything, he has to keep up with her!
But they end the song with a special surprise that no one was expecting.
Jean leapfrogs onto Marcus’s back.
They wave and say goodbye to the crowd.
The crowd cheers and stands up. Their reaction now makes their opening applause seem like nothing!
Clearly, everyone is amazed that they’ve seen one of the greatest dancers of all time. She’s still in her prime, over 60 years later!
That video was recorded in 2012. But since that video’s release, Jean has shown no signs of slowing down.
Even at 95, she performs across the world. She makes as many public appearances as possible.
Hopefully, Jean will be able to perform to the songs that she loves for many, many more years in the future!
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