How the Twist Worked

The stage name, they say, is rooted in a childhood nickname, "Chubby," combined with an observation by Dick Clark's wife that Ernest looked like a chubby Fats Domino (checkers and dominoes -- get it?) [sources: ChubbyChecker, Jourdan].

But the song that made Chubby Checker a star was actually a cover; "The Twist" was first performed by a group called Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, but it didn't really take off. In 1959, Chubby recorded it -- and again, it didn't make much of an impact. His producers slotted it to be a B-side [source: ChubbyChecker].

That changed the following year, when the song was released as a single and Checker performed "The Twist" on Dick Clark's pop-music show "American Bandstand." With that coveted exposure (and all those pretty girls shaking their hips), the song, the dance and Chubby Checker took the world by storm.

Chubby Checker became an overnight sensation, performing his hit song nonstop in the early '60s and going on to record hit song after hit song, often accompanied by signature dances. Many of his follow-up hits also had "Twist" in the title, most notably "Let's Twist Again," which was nearly as big a hit as Checker's original break-out song.

"The Twist" hit No. 1 on the Billboard Charts in September 1960, and stayed there for a week. Still, impressive as a run at No. 1 is, that's not the biggest claim to fame for the song and dance …

No. 1 is a feat. Worldwide phenomenon is a feat. Simply performing on "American Bandstand" is an honor. "The Twist," however, earned a much more significant achievement in 1962, when it accomplished something no other song has, before or since: The exact same version of "The Twist" song landed at No. 1 for a second run in 1962.

The total time Checker's hit spent on the charts came to nine months (with three weeks in the top spot), and its impact ran deep. For one thing, it was the first popular dance in which the dance partners didn't touch, but instead danced separately to the beat.

It fit the '60s -- a decade moving away from the structure of the 1950s, of poodle skirts and cone bras, a perfect accompaniment to the pencil skirts and slacks that suddenly put girls' hips (and rear!) in the public eye. "The Twist" had girls and boys dancing on their own, individuals rather than a single unit, and gave them the freedom to express themselves as such.

Chubby Checker's song and dance became a symbol of the decade, landing at or near the top of the charts in Great Britain, South Africa, Canada, New Zealand and Brazil, for a start, and inspiring countless Twist-related follow-ups, and not only by Chubby Checker, of which Sam Cooke's "Twistin the Night Away" (1962) and The Beatles' "Twist and Shout" (1964) are two of the best-known [source: Tsort].

Even in the 21st century, "The Twist" lives on in movies, TV shows, and its ever-lasting effect on couples'-dancing styles. You'll find people twisting on dance floors today -- although they may not be aware of it.

So, how do you know if you're Twisting? It's easy to tell…

While you don't see masses of people twisting the night away at dance clubs (the dance itself hasn't been a craze in decades), elements of the Twist -- the hips, the dancing-apart-but-together -- have stood the test of time.

Plus, retro is (almost) always groovy.

To properly Twist, then, you'll need at least a modicum of rhythm. And that's about it.

If you've ever stubbed out a cigarette with your foot, or seen someone else do it with style (check out Olivia Newton-John in the final scene of "Grease" for reference), you've seen the Twist without musical accompaniment. It goes pretty much like this:

With the right amount of attitude, rhythm and maybe a little humor, the Twist can still go over big. And beyond the retro appeal, the dance is a requirement at any '60s-themed party -- or any of the "Twisting" conventions that have popped up around the song's 50th anniversary, some of which have featured Chubby Checker himself performing the iconic hit.

Because, ultimately, the Twist never goes out of style. It's kind of like The Beatles that way. Only kitschier.