New London Tube: New London Does The Harlem Shake

Finally sick of Gangnam Style? Then you've probably moved on to the next fad, The Harlem Shake. And New London has added a few entries into the mix.

The videos in this trend typically run for about 30 seconds, with the first half taken up by a single person (usually masked) dancing amid a few oblivious bystanders. Once the music hits the line "Do the Harlem Shake" and the bass kicks in, a smash cut suddenly brings in a crowd of dancers in various strange outfits to join the original dancer.

According to ABC News, it's unclear exactly how the meme got going. However, the Harlem Shake is an actual dance that started up in 1981 in the New York City neighborhood. The music in the viral videos was put together by Brooklyn producer Baauer, or Harry Rodrigues. According to the Huffington Post, Harlem residents aren't too impressed with what people think the Harlem Shake is.

The Connecticut College men's swimming and diving team recently added their underwater take on the trend. It's tasteful (as long as you don't mind the Speedos), though other videos led to 13 students being suspended from a Pennsylvania high school and the suspension of 11 high school hockey players in New Jersey. The Conn College swimmers are probably fine; they got a mention on the school's Twitter feed, and the official YouTube channel for the school shared the admissions office's version a few days later.

The Coast Guard Academy has also gotten in on the fun, with one user posting a version filmed inside a dorm room and another posting two videos: one on the steps of Chase Hall and one in the snow beneath the flagpole just outside the building. The latter contributor is careful to point out that the videos are "not representative of the Coast Guard or Coast Guard Academy and its views."

Rounding out the New London entries is Special Olympics Connecticut. To kill some time before the now delayed 2013 Penguin Plunge, the organization and the Shoreline Roller Derby girls went to Ocean Beach Park to make this video.

What do you think of the Harlem Shake, and did I miss any New London contributions? Let us know in the comments.

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