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Batusi/bæˈtuːsi/ is a 1960s-stylego-go dance invented for theBatman television series. The name is apun on the then-popular dancethe Watusi.
The Batusi is performed by making a horizontalV-sign with one's index and middle fingers of both hands and drawing them across in front of the eyes, away from the center of the face simultaneously, with the eyes roughly between the fingers. This is performed in time with the music and is improved upon by continuing to dance with the lower half of the body, simultaneously.
The Batusi first appeared in the premiere episode ("Hi Diddle Riddle") of the 1960s Americantelevision series based on thecomic book characterBatman. It appeared again in the episode "The Pharaoh's in a Rut" that aired three months later.
There are conflicting reports as to who invented the dance, which became a nationalcraze on the dance scene. One account is that it was invented by dance instructorArthur Murray forBatman, and was supposedly first performed at a cocktail party at a New York Citydiscothèque, Harlow's.[1] In a 2005Wizard magazine interview,Adam West claims credit for creating the Batusi's unique moves.[2]
Versions of the dance have reappeared in many television shows, including two episodes ofThe Simpsons,[3][4]Xena: Warrior Princess,[5]Pinky and the Brain,[6] andEverybody Loves Raymond,[7] and Shaggy refers to the dance in an episode ofScooby-Doo, Where Are You![8] It has also been in films such asPulp Fiction,Antz, andReturn to the Batcave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt, although John Travolta'sPulp Fiction character dances with palms facing out, while the original Batusi had the palms toward the dancer's face. InThe Lego Batman Movie (2017),Alfred Pennyworth ends his recap of Batman film references by mentioning the Batusi, with footage of the dance from "The Pharaoh's in a Rut" playing. In theTitans episode "Bruce Wayne",Dick Grayson (Brenton Thwaites) hallucinatesBruce Wayne (Iain Glen) as the manifestation of Dick's guilty conscience, dancing the Batusi while mocking him.
