Librarians Doing the "Thriller" Dance

In her new book This Book Is Overdue!: How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All, Marilyn Johnson explores the relevance of librarians in the technological age. She also makes them seem like the coolest people on earth.

In one chapter, she notes that readers wouldn't believe how many videos of librarians dancing to Michael Jackson's "Thriller" are available on YouTube. Everyone's seen the dancing inmates or the hilarious scene from Jennifer Garner's 13 Going On 30, but librarians? We scoped it out and Johnson was right. Here are some of the best.

National Library of Australia

At the National Library of Australia, librarians break it down at their 2008 Christmas party.

Worthington Libraries

In celebration of being named Library of the Year in 2007 by Library Journal and Thomson Gale Publishing, eight librarians at the Ohio library busted some moves. Worthington Libraries was founded in 1803, just weeks after founder James Kilbourne arrived in Worthington, Ohio.

PB Holiday Parade

Though you can't hear the song until about halfway through the video, this clip shows a presentation made by librarians for a holiday parade. It may be quiet. But it's totally worth it to see the book cart drill team dance their bums off in the middle of the street.

Braulio Cesar Linare

In this short film, Braulio Cesar Linare's "Library Thriller," a two teenage boys incur the wrath of an angry librarian by chewing gum in the library's quiet zone. The most plot-focused of tonight's videos, you won't peep any dance moves until the 4:30 mark when the dance is used as means to return books through the library's outdoor slot.

Terrebonne Parish Library

Louisiana's Terrebonne Parish Library gets some late-night visitors. In August of 2005, Terrebonne Parish Library housed Hurricane Katrina survivors until Hurricane Rita damaged the lower portion of the building in September. Since then, the building has undergone massive renovations, including the addition of a mobile library which was presented to the library system by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Santa Monica Public Library

The American Library Association supports book cart drill teams to increase the visibility of libraries in communities and build morale among staffers. Teams perform at community events and festivals, march in parades and travel to schools. They also compete each year at the ALA Library Book Cart Drill Team Championship. Here's the 2008 winners from Santa Monica Public Library performing "Well-Stacked Sci-Brarians."

EBRP Library

The Dewey Decibelles, East Baton Rouge Parish Library's book truck drill team, performs "Zombies vs. Heroes" at the Louisiana Library Association conference. "Thriller" doesn't start until a minute and a half in, but it comes with librarian growling.

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