Alice Barker, now age 102, was a chorus-line dancer during the Harlem Renaissance of the 1930s and ’40s and danced with legends including Frank Sinatra, Gene Kelly and Bill “Bojangles” Robinson.
She danced in many movies, commercials and TV shows but had never seen herself on film.
With the help of Mark Cantor of Jazz Film and David Shuff, researchers managed to dig up three “soundies” — the music videos of the day — that Barker appeared in and were able to go to her nursing home and show her the incredible footage for the very first time.
“It makes me wish I could get out of this bed and do it all over again,” she says.
Read next: Queen Elizabeth Turns 89 As She Awaits Fifth Great-Grandchild
Listen to the most important stories of the day.
More Must-Read Stories From TIME
- The Fall of Roe and the Failure of the Feminist Industrial Complex
- What Trump Knew About January 6
- The Ocean Is Climate Change’s First Victim and Last Resort
- Column: 6 Proven Ways to Reduce Gun Violence
- Ads Are Officially Coming to Netflix. Here's What That Means for You
- Jenny Slate on the Unifying Power of a Well-Heeled Shell Named Marcel
- Column: The FDA's Juul Ban May Not be a Pure Public Health Triumph
- What the Supreme Court’s Abortion Decision Means for Your State
Read More From TIME