The tradition & historical record
1 min read · 2 sourcesThe bubble dance is an erotic dance made famous by Sally Rand in the 1930s. The dancer, often being fully naked, dances with a huge bubble shaped like a balloon or ball placed between her body and the audience to make poses. 2
In popular culture
In Tex Avery's cartoon Hollywood Steps Out (1941) which depicted various Hollywood celebrities, a rotoscoped Rand performs her famous bubble dance onstage to an appreciative crowd. A grinning Peter Lorre caricature in the front row comments, "I haven't seen such a beautiful bubble since I was a child." The routine continues until the bubble is suddenly popped by Harpo Marx with his slingshot, with a surprised Rand (her nudity covered by a well-placed wooden barrel) reacting with shock. Rand is referred to as "Sally Strand" here. Sally Rand's bubble dance is featured in a short clip in the film Sunset Murder Case (1938). 2
The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Bubble dance”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. 2
Bubble dance is type of erotic dance, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition. 1
The source record links this tradition to 2 external registers, which can be verified through the citation. 1