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Jean Veloz
Jean Veloz is a famous swing dancer.

Introduction
Jean Phelps Veloz was born March 1, 1924 in Los Angeles, California. She grew up and lived with her parents Lyndon Veloz and Ada Marie Grinnell, and her brothers Bob and Ray. Growing up, her and her brothers would practice swing dance in her living room with their friends. Jean and Ray had such great chemistry when they danced together that they entered a Jitterbug contest competing against 500 other dancers, and they won first place. Her dance legacy had just begun, and she became a Lindy style icon.

Career
Her career started to take off in the 1940’s. She won a dance contest at the Hollywood Legion Stadium with Gene Halverson, and with it she got a Screen Actor Guild card and her first movie role in Swing Fever in 1943. She also appeared in Where Are Your Children (1943), Jive Junction (1943), Groovie Movie (1944) and The Horn Blows at Midnight (1945). Continuing her career, she had the opportunity to act in the El Rancho Vegas hotel for several months. After this, she started training with a ballroom icon, Frank Veloz. In 1948, they became dance partners after his previous partner Yolanda Veloz retired. Jean and Frank did exhibitions of tango, waltz, rhumba, samba, swing and foxtrot, along with teaching these styles of dance on live TV. She continued to soar and gain popularity, and in the 1950’s Jean started to appear on “The Frank Veloz Show”, regularly performing with Frank. Unfortunately in 1963, Frank passed away and Jean went into retirement. This retirement lasted about a decade, until she was approached with the opportunity to perform and teach at an annual swing event in Munich, Germany and had the chance to make an impression on a new generation of swing dancers that immediately fell in love with her. She has continuously made an influence on dancers across the globe, and was officially recognized for it in 1996, when she was inducted into the California Swing Dance Hall of Fame, as a Golden Star.