Walt Disney World Chronicles: The Dapper Dans

by Jim Korkis
Disney Historian

Feature Article

This article appeared in the February 2, 2016 Issue #854 of ALL EARS® (ISSN: 1533-0753)

The Dapper Dans are a beloved Disney theme park tradition that bring a greater sense of authenticity to Main Street U.S.A.

In 1957, Disneyland entertainment director Tommy Walker arranged for a barbershop quartet to perform on Main Street to add a little more atmosphere to the 1890-1910 time frame of the location. Chuck Corson, a former stage manager for the Fred Waring Chorale who was talent booker for the park, gathered four singers from that group to form Disneyland's first Main Street Quartet. Corson also handled talent booking at Walt Disney World.

Corson, who primarily handled the bigger entertainment "names" in talent booking, worked with Sonny Anderson, who handled the musical "atmosphere" entertainment for the park (and later Walt Disney World). In 1959, Anderson wanted more than just a singing group on Main Street U.S.A. He wanted one that could do some vaudevillian-style comedy interaction with the guests and maybe a little tap dancing.

The bass singer T.J. Marker, who was the leader of the quartet, came up with the new name, The Dapper Dans, for the re-imagined group in 1959. ("Dapper Dan" was a turn-of-the-last-century phrase referring to a well-dressed and groomed gentleman who was "dapper" or stylish.)

"We had a quartet but all they did was stand up there and sing," Anderson told Charles "Bub" Thomas who joined the Dapper Dan group in Disneyland in 1969. "I wanted some entertainers. We have plenty of entertainment for the kids. But we need a quartet that could entertain their parents… the older people."

The superb four-part harmony sung a cappella by this quartet became an institution on Main Street U.S.A., with a song list of more than 100 songs in the repertoire. The jokes always brought laughter from the audience, especially when they announced the songs they would sing: "She Was Kind to the Regiment but Rotten to the Corps" or "Let Me Call You Sweetheart… because I've forgotten your name."

For a brief period, there was a Dapper Dan quartet at Hong Kong Disneyland and a UK quartet performed at Disneyland Paris from 1992 to 1995 as the Mainstreet Quartet. But the Dapper Dans at Disneyland and Walt Disney World are the groups that have endured.

The first Dapper Dans of the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World started in October 1971. They were Dick Kneeland (lead), "Bub" Thomas (bass), who came from Disneyland and performed as a "Dan" for more than two decades, Jerry Siggins (baritone), and Bob Mathis (tenor).

They were only given a three-month contract, something not unusual at Disney, where an entertainer was never fired — just didn't have their contract renewed because of "ever-changing entertainment needs in the park." Many entertainers, however, kept getting their three-month contracts renewed over and over again for decades as if it was a permanent job.

The first set for the WDW Dapper Dans was at the GAF Photo Shop, performing for the cast members and their families a week before the grand opening of Walt Disney World. However, their home base was considered the Harmony Barbershop, named after the harmony in their songs, and they sometimes serenaded vacationers getting a haircut. A caricature of the original group drawn by Thomas, an accomplished caricaturist, hangs in the shop.

For the official dedication of Walt Disney World on October 25, 1971, the Dapper Dans sang "Lida Rose" from the popular musical "Music Man" for its composer Meredith Willson, who was backstage waiting to direct the marching band that was to come down Main Street. The Dans were actually chastised by the event managers because their harmony could be heard on stage. It didn't stop them from singing a song or two WITH Willson backstage, including one of his favorite songs, "Dear Old Girl."

Both Thomas and Kneeland were former members of the Dapper Dans at Disneyland. When they relocated to Florida at then end of the 1971 summer season, they brought with them the Disneyland Dapper Dan traditions.

It was "Bub" Thomas who had introduced the iconic Deagan Organ Chimes into the act back at Disneyland. Comedienne Billie Bird, a friend and vaudeville performer, had taught Thomas to play the chimes and it was her instrument that the Dans first used.

Each of the eight (shaker) chimes has three octaves of a single note, comprising a C scale. The Organ Chimes were made by the J.C. Deagan Company in Chicago, Illinois around 1901, the year of Walt Disney's birth.

While the group performs as a quartet, there are actually at least 12 singers assigned to the role, plus occasional substitutes. Many of them are official members of the Barbershop Harmony Society (formerly the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America, Inc. or SPEBSQA). Membership has changed over the decades as various singers have left or passed away and new ones have been brought in to replace them.

Walt Disney loved the sound of a barbershop quartet and even asked the musical group The Mellomen to record an album of barbershop songs, Meet Me Down on Main Street, which was sold at Disneyland for many years beginning in 1957.

The original Schwinn custom four-seater bicycle ridden in the early years down Disneyland's Main Street by the Dans was specially commissioned by Walt Disney himself. Both Walt and Lillian were huge fans of the group at Disneyland and would call them out to perform while they enjoyed breakfast in the back room of the Hills Brothers Cafe on Main Street.

Walt considered the Dapper Dans the ambassadors of Main Street because they actually talked with the guests and sometimes involved them directly in the performance. In fact, the WDW Dans gave out a card or a certificate in the 1970s for guests who participated and were called up to sing a song with them. The card was signed by "Joe Schmegeggie," the name of one of the ventriloquist dummies that Thomas had used in some of his earlier performances before joining Disney. In the 1980s, the card was signed by "Mickey Mouse," but Mickey's now famous official signature did not appear until the 1990s.

The first Dapper Dan postcard from Florida appeared in 1971 with a caption on the back that read: "Even the music along Main Street, U.S.A. is right out of The Gay Nineties. One of the most popular groups is the 'Dapper Dans' barber shop quartet."

There has been a four-pin Disneyland set with Mickey, Donald, Goofy and Pluto attired as the Dapper Dans. Walt Disney World released a Dapper Dan pin featuring caricatures of the performers. The group has even made an appearance in Vinylmation form. While the Red Dapper Dan is the common figure, there are three variants, each consisting of a different color to represent the quartet: Orange, Purple and Yellow.

Over the decades, there have been several WDW Dapper Dan members who were personal favorites of Disney guests. One of them was Joe Hudgins, who first joined the group in March 1973. Hudgins is one of those forgotten Walt Disney World pioneers. He originated the comedic role of "Six Bits" for the Hoop de Doo Musical Revue. He also was costumed as the first live-action Dreamfinder character for the groundbreaking ceremony for the Imagination Pavilion at Epcot.

Originally from North Carolina, when tenor Hudgins began singing with the Dapper Dans at Walt Disney World in March 1973, he was taking Bob Mathis' place. Hudgins was singing with a madrigal group at the park when he was recruited to be a Dapper Dan, making him the very first Dan who was hired from within the park, another of his Disney career milestones.

An accomplished clogger and tap-dancer, Joe had a baptism of fire, performing on the Orlando Chapter barbershop quartet show only a week after joining the group. Joe was also noted for his tenor obligato soaring high above the quartet as they sang "Lida Rose." He left for a year to pursue some opportunities in California but returned to the group.

"He's a funny little guy and a great clog dancer. In fact, we've run across groups of cloggers in our travels and Joe can teach them steps they never dreamed of," commented Bub Thomas.

What does it take to be a Dapper Dan at Walt Disney World? Well, for one thing, it is one of the few roles at a Disney theme park that still requires the performer to be male. The role is not just about singing ability, but having an "entertainer" personality. Here is a recent "casting call":

Seeking Male vocalists: 20s-30s. All ethnicities for The Dapper Dans, a traditional male barbershop quartet performed at The Magic Kingdom Park at the Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, FL. Tap experience a plus.

Preparation: Please provide a current headshot and resume. Please prepare 16 bars of a musical selection and provide sheet music, in the correct key, for the accompanist. Prerecorded tracks or a cappella auditions are not allowed.

The Dapper Dans continue to delight visitors, young and old, at Walt Disney World, and sometimes even beyond. On October 13, 2014, passengers on a Southwest Airlines flight celebrating the opening of a new nonstop air route between Dallas Love Field to Orlando International Airport got a musical surprise. The Walt Disney World Dapper Dans sang tunes like "Let It Go" and "A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes" to the passengers aboard the flight.

It has been estimated that the Walt Disney World Dapper Dans have sung "Goodbye, My Coney Island Baby" at least 50,000 times since the park first opened. Here's hoping they sing it at least 50,000 more.

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Other features from the Walt Disney World Chronicles series by Jim Korkis can be found in the AllEars® Archives.

Jim also writes occasionally for the AllEars® Guest Blog, contributing entries under the heading of "Jim's Attic."

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Disney Historian and regular AllEars® Columnist Jim Korkis has written hundreds of articles about all things Disney for more than three decades. As a former Walt Disney World cast member, Korkis has used his skills and historical knowledge with Disney Entertainment, Imagineering, Disney Design Group, Yellow Shoes Marketing, Disney Cruise Line, Disney Feature Animation Florida, Disney Institute, WDW Travel Company, Disney Vacation Club and many other departments.

He is the author of several books, available in both paperback and Kindle versions. You can purchase them via our AllEars.Net Amazon.com store HERE.

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Editor's Note: This story/information was accurate when it was published. Please be sure to confirm all current rates, information and other details before planning your trip.