ESTHER WASHINGTON & Billy Ricker in the 1940 Harvest Moon Ball

Originally this post was titled "Found Norma?" and it turns out, we didn't --- but we uncovered an interesting fact in doing so.

Recently uncovered footage from the 1940 Harvest Moon Ball (the stacked year that the Hellzapoppin peeps were in.) It features ESTHER WASHINGTON & partner Billy Ricker heavily. (NOT Norma, as stated in the clip)

Previous versions of the 1940 HMB newreels did not show them clearly enough for us to recognize them. Luckily, the HMB had lots of different camera crews covering it, and one of the camera crews liked to watch the couple that was the one they were dancing next to. They also clearly catch Billy's face and distinguished hair cut, show-stopping signature step, the "Shake around" (coincidentally the day's Research Air Step.)

An added bonus is that this newsreel seems to have the original sound, so you can hear what the contest music was like.

***If you were wondering how I came to decide it was most likely Norma, AND HOW IT WAS WRONG, here is how I based the decision on the following factors: (1) 1940 HMB (Which this is, based on film information and furthermore involves the same moments as other HMB clips marked 1940) and which Norma was in with Billy Ricker according to her and Frankie's books, (2) facial recognition (Recognizing Billy Ricker is very easy in the clarity of this clip --- it is helpful his face and haircut are very distinguishable (see: Hot Chocolates).) Norma is less recognizable, to me at least, perhaps because her hair is down verses pulled back from her face as it usually was in her early clips. I do NOT notice anything obvious about her dancing, but then again they are doing things we have never seen them do before. And nothing about the way she looks or dances tells me it's NOT Norma. (3) The couple clearly does Norma & Billy's signature step --- the shake around (done in the same hand holds, and, er, neck holds, as Hellzapoppin). And finally, there was also a little bit of (4) elimination of other couples in HMB 1940 newsreels. Granted, the newsreels usually don't capture all dancers involved, so that's by no means definitive. Anyways, all of these factors put together made me think it was reasonably her.***

WHAT WENT WRONG: I was sure it was 1940 newsreel, and I was sure it was Billy, the weak point was that the dancer did not stick out as obviously Norma --- some others pointed out that it didn't look like Norma to them, and that made me rethink my doubt. I did some deep digging and low and behold, according to the New York Daily News newspaper of 1940 (which ran the contest, btw) Billy Ricker danced and won second with...Esther Washington. Norma and Frankie had been mistaken in their books, both of which clearly said Norma and Billy had danced in the 1940 HMB. Can't balme Norma and Frankie --- they danced a crap load of gigs and contests and were trying to remember them many decades later. I was in only a few contests in my early years not even two decades ago, and couldn't tell you much about them, let alone who placed.

The link to the newsreel is below, but I've put together an edited version that just has the Esther/Billy stuff (and the one shot of the other Whitey's Lindy Hoppers.)


https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/video/the-women-in-gowns-and-men-in-white-tie-and-tails-perform-news-footage/1128033840?adppopup=true&fbclid=IwAR3qmw9ogmVvNKytEjkT6iYxZKasYZ1Qg_wv8uAGgB2S3oJZzUW4XPTuyv8

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