The most eminent Left Bank philosopher was also its best dancer.

Evidence

When, in 1952, Merleau-Ponty was made head of philosophy at the Collège de France, a journalist at L’aurore used the occasion to mock existentialism with an allusion to its popularity with the jazz-club crowd: ‘It is only a cerebral way of dancing the boogie-woogie.’ As it happened, Merleau-Ponty had a flair for the boogie-woogie too. While being the most academically eminent of the Left Bank thinkers, he was also their best dancer: Boris Vian and Juliette Gréco both commented on his talents. — Sarah Bakewell, At the Existentialist Café, 747

Categorization

• CANDY: The eminent philosopher who was also the best boogie-woogie dancer on the Left Bank is a perfect, effortless dinner-party fact.