The Grizzly Bear is an early 20th-century dance style. It started in San Francisco, along with the Bunny Hug and Texas Tommy and was also done on the

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull an ...

ferry boats in the 1900s. It has been said that dancers John Jarrott and Louise Gruenning introduced this dance as well as the Turkey Trot at Ray Jones Café in Chicago, Illinois around 1909. The Grizzly Bear was first introduced to Broadway audiences in the

Ziegfeld Follies The ''Ziegfeld Follies'' was a series of elaborate theatrical revue productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 to 1931, with renewals in 1934 and 1936. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as ''The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air ...

of 1910 by

Fanny Brice Fania Borach (October 29, 1891 – May 29, 1951), known professionally as Fanny Brice or Fannie Brice, was an American comedienne, illustrated song model, singer, and theater and film actress who made many stage, radio, and film appearances. S ...

. The dance was rough and clumsy. During the dance, the dancers would yell out: "It's a Bear!" The genuine Grizzly Bear step was a correct imitation of the movements of a dancing bear, moving or dancing to the side. A very heavy step to the side with a decided bending of the upper part of the body from one side to the other, a decidedly ungraceful and undignified movement when performed as a dance. It was reported that one of the reasons former President

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

inaugural ball United States presidential inaugural balls are large social gatherings, both white tie and black tie, held to celebrate the commencement of a new term of the President of the United States. Planned and sanctioned by the Presidential Inaugural ...

was cancelled was because of his "disapproval of such modern dances as the turkey trot, the grizzly bear and the bunny hug". Not long before this, in 1912, New York placed the dance under a "social ban", along with other "huggly-wiggly dances", like the Turkey Trot and the Boston Dip. It was also condemned in numerous cities across the US during the same time period, with many considering it to be a "degenerate dance". However, a large portion of society accepted the dance, along with other similar dances. The Grizzly Bear dance was featured "on Broadway, in vaudeville, and at cabaret performances". In fact, it is believed that the first introduction to the "general public" of the dance came about in the original "Broadway production of ''Over the River''" in 1912.

In popular culture

*''The Dance of the Grizzly Bear'', published in 1910, was a song composed by

George Botsford George Botsford (February 24, 1874 – February 1, 1949) was an American composer of ragtime and other forms of music. Early life and education Botsford was born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, but grew up mostly in Clermont, Iowa. He married s ...

with lyrics by

Irving Berlin Irving Berlin (born Israel Beilin; yi, ישראל ביילין; May 11, 1888 – September 22, 1989) was a Russian-American composer, songwriter and lyricist. His music forms a large part of the Great American Songbook. Born in Imperial Russi ...

which colloquially describes the origins of the dance along with its movements. *In

's 1911 song ''Everybody's Doin' It'', the grizzly bear is quoted as a very popular dance, with even its characteristic cry "It's a bear!". *In the 1912 song hit ''That Shakespearian Rag'' by

Dave Stamper David Stamper (November 10, 1883September 18, 1963) was an American songwriter of the Tin Pan Alley and vaudeville eras, a contributor to twenty-one editions of the Ziegfeld Follies, writer for the Fox Film Corporation, and composer of more than ...

and

Gene Buck Edward Eugene Buck (August 7, 1885 – February 24, 1957) was an American illustrator of sheet music, musical theater lyricist, and president of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). Early career Buck was born in De ...

, the dance is referenced in the refrain. *In episode 2, season 1, of the British television period drama

Downton Abbey ''Downton Abbey'' is a British historical drama television series set in the early 20th century, created and co-written by Julian Fellowes. The series first aired in the United Kingdom on ITV on 26 September 2010 and in the United States on P ...

, the footman Thomas Barrow teaches the kitchen maid Daisy how to dance the grizzly bear. *In episode 2, in miniseries Indian Summers on PBS, the Grizzle Bear Dance is performed by some of the British expatriate population during an evening soiree. *Folk-rock group The Youngbloods released their song "Grizzly Bear" in 1966, which mentions a woman dancing the Grizzly Bear, possibly in San Francisco. * Folk singer Bill Morrissey's song, "Grizzly Bear", employs the phrase "... to dance the Grizzly Bear."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grizzly Bear (Dance) Social dance Dance terminology