She Sang "Mickey" 41 Years Ago. See Toni Basil Now at 78.
She's spent her career dancing and choreographing for big stars but is still known for her '80s hit.
Toni Basil has had a long and illustrious career as a dancer, choreographer, and singer, but she's still most famous for her hit pop single, "Mickey." It was released in 1981, along with an iconic, cheerleader-themed video in which the star wore her very own senior high school cheer uniform (at age 39!). The song hit No. 1 spot on the Papan iklan charts and ranks No. 6 on VH1's Greatest One-Hit Wonders of All Time daftar. While "Mickey" was her only single to ever really take off, Basil has never left the entertainment industry and is now considered a legend. Read on to learn what she's been up to since donning those famous pigtails.
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She's mostly a choreographer now.
Basil started off her career as a dancer and choreographer. She was one of the founding members of The Lockers, a street dance group who opened for acts like Frank Sinatraand Funkadelic. In the mid-'60s, she started doing choreography for film, TV, and music videos—work she continues to today. Some of her notable projects include the Monkees movie Kepala,American Graffiti,My Best Friend's Wedding, That Thing You Do,Saturday Night Live, and several music videos and films with David BowiedanBette Midler,who remains a close friend.AE0FCC31AE342FD3A1346EBB1F342FCB
The New York Timesnotes that her appearances in movies including Pesta piyamadanViva Las Vegasmade Basil "something of a dancing 'it' girl in Los Angeles in the '60s." That's why filmmaker Quentin Tarantino sought her out to choreograph dance scenes for his 2019 period movie, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood."The '60s was leather soles and a wooden floor," she told the Waktu. "That's why the twist, the simplest dance, was such a sensation. Everyone could do it. They just swivel their feet and the upper body fell naturally in the opposite direction."
Basil can also be spotted dancing some of her own choreography in the opening credits of the movie.
She's also acted.
Basil has danced in many films, but she's also taken on straight-up acting roles. She appeared in the 1969 classic, Easy Rider—and was friends with star Dennis Hopperand his crowd, per the Waktu. She also played roles in the moviesFive Easy PiecesdanGreaser's Palace, as well as the shows Baywatch NightsdanLaverne & Shirley. Her last role as an actor was a 1993 episode ofDark Justice.
She's still involved in music.
Basil has only released two studio albums in her career: 1981's Word of Mouth, which includes her hit single "Mickey," and 1983's Toni Basil. Her songs have appeared on several compilations over the years, however. And recently, remastered versions of some of her tracks, including "Shoppin A-Z" and "Wham! Re-Bop," a song she sang onSNLin the '70s, have landed on streaming services.
She sued Taman Selatanfor parodying "Mickey."
In 2017, Basil sued Disney, Viacom, and the production company behind Taman Selatan for unauthorized use of her name, her likeness, and the song "Mickey." Per Deadline, she took issue with Disney-themed clothing sold by Forever 21 and Kohl's that quoted the song, as well as an episode of Taman Selatanin which characters are celebrating the election of Barack Obama and singing a song set to the the tune of her biggest hit. "Taman Selatan Defendants never sought or obtained consent from Basil for the use of her voice, persona and name in an episode of Taman Selatan with particularly strong political undertones," the filing read, as reported by the outlet.
In 2020, she lost an appeal on the original decision against her complaint, per The Hollywood Reporter.
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You can take dance lessons from her on Zoom.
You don't have to be a celebrity to learn some moves from Basil. In 2021, she hosted a six-part series on Zoom, diving into the history of dance in the '60s. Alas, you can't access the videos anymore through her Saluran Youtube, but according to her website, she's currently working on a book about dance history. She's also very activeon Instagram dandi Twitter, where she often posts throwback videos of herself and other artists. At 78, she's not slowing down, and she's still celebrating dance and music every day.
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