Midway through the 2017 season, the Houston Astros mascot Orbit started dancing to “Moves Like Jagger,” but no one could have foreseen the unexpected spectacular that was about to unfold. Just when Orbit was about to confront a security guard as resolute as the Queen’s Guard, the man in black uniform suddenly launched into his own spectacular, explosive dance.
As if they were watching The Beatles, the security guard shocked the Jumbotron crowd with his unpredictable, star-power-fueled, crazy, and absurd gestures, which caused them to yell in delight. A full-body fall into the most incredible worm dance you’ve ever seen—his ending move—crowned his impromptu set and became one of the most viral moments of the 2017 ALCS. More than 17 million people have watched it on YouTube since then.
However, a mysterious performance like this wasn’t the first time a lone flash mob has shocked security at a Houston, Texas sports stadium. The initial concert that started this strange phenomenon in the US was documented in a virtually identical viral video from 2014 that included the famed dancing security guard, Willis Harris.
As a freelance security guard, Willis Clinton Harris is known for his incredible ability to pull off wild and outrageous dance routines, such as campy splits and cartwheels. In little over a decade since its release, his groundbreaking breakdancing security guard video, “Work It Willis,” has become a meme king with 99 million views on YouTube.
Willis Harris has made it a practice to go viral during sporting events, most notably the Tampa Bay Rays game, with his dance moves. It was widely believed that these now-iconic viral videos had been faked from the start after another unidentified security officer danced almost spontaneously with the Houston Astros’ mascot Orbit in 2017, three years after Harris’ initial Orbit dance-off. By calling Orbit a “good friend” and saying, “I’m not going to give away the secret sauce completely,” Harris stoked even more intrigue when he spoke to Fox about the two of them. We were aware that we would be in close proximity to one another, even though it wasn’t entirely prearranged.
No matter how spontaneous Harris’ performance was, his interview with Fox shows that he did it with good intentions: I have always loved the entertainment industry. Number one is, of course, the job stability; number two is, without a doubt, entertaining the crowd. Because of this, we should seize any opportunity to make others laugh and act less serious than we really are.
Regardless of the actual cause of the strange phenomena of dancing security officers in Houston, these videos have gone viral and are sure to put a smile on anyone’s face.
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