A variety of names have been used to describe the endurance dance contests of the 1920s and 1930s. Materials in this collection refer to these events as the dance or walkathon derby, walkathon, or dance marathon. The term walkathon may have been used by promoters, particularly in California, to frame these controversial endurance contests in more respectable terms.

These grueling, theatrical spectacles became popular during the Great Depression. Contestants were drawn to these competitions as a way of winning money and even food; those who competed were promised up to a dozen meals a day. Couples, some of whom were professionals who went from venue to venue competing, walked, moved, or danced for hundreds of hours around the clock, with only limited food and rest breaks. A combination of performance and competition, walkathons often included staged events such as weddings, and featured live music. These events were promoted heavily and many contestants developed a significant fan following, with supporters able to buy autographed photos of popular couples. These elaborate events required dozens or more staff on hand, including musicians, nurses, and other medical staff, such as a dental unit. Serious marathoners danced for months at a time; the all-time endurance record for dance marathons was 3,780 hours, or around 158 days. The average marathoner could dance forty miles a day.

In their heyday, walkathons and dance marathons were among America’s most widely attended and controversial forms of live entertainment. An estimated 20,000 people across the country were employed in the business, either as promoters, floor judges, trainers, nurses, masters of ceremonies, or contestants. The fad also became popular across the Atlantic, and marathons were held in Paris, Edinburgh, Budapest, and Marseille.

Despite strong attendance rates, by the mid 1930s many states led efforts to ban these events, which opponents denounced as morally injurious and physically dangerous. At least three performers died from exhaustion from participating in dance marathons. San Francisco was one of the first cities in the United States to prohibit dance marathons due to their arduous nature, and in 1935 California banned all mental or physical endurance events. By the late 1930s, waning public interest in dance marathons contributed to its demise.

Referred to in some marketing materials as "the world's biggest little showman," Vernon Balfour was an American businessman and producer active in the entertainment industry. Throughout the 1930s, Balfour organized and promoted various dance endurance contests in California and Texas. He also served as manager of the Golden Gate Ballroom in San Francisco, located at 172 23rd Ave in the Richmond District. Material in the collection suggests that at least one walk-a-thon derby was held at the Golden Gate Ballroom in 1932 under Balfour's direction.