Dancer and Promoter Jack Bridges started dancing as a teenager with his father when his father was a band leader who played for dance venues. Jack would hold dances at his High School as well as local Sock Hops in San Diego, Ca. Later he would learn how to Tap dance and dance at certain THEATRES around town.

    Jack competed in many contests over the years as well and won the IMIG Manor Hotel's "Mississippi Room" dance championships, for fourteen weeks in a row with Kay Fox. With growing up in the San Diego area Jack would become very involved with the West Coast Swing community and eventually become President of the San Diego Swing Dance Club in 1977/78. Later he would marry Mary Ann Rogers who would be his right-hand-Man (sort of speak) over the years.

    Founder and Original U.S. Open owner / promoter, the U.S. Open was the biggest organized and longest running all swing dance contest in the history of swing dancing (the Harvest Moon Ball held other non-swing

categories.) This swing dance contest was to set the stage by which all others would be judged. Many people confuse the US Open as a swing dance convention, similar to the others, however, it is a three day contest / Competiton that has simalrities to the other dance events, It is not a convention event.

    The Open was founded by Jack, Mary Ann and Kenny Wetzel in 1979. On Thanksgiving Weekend of that year held its first 'Open' at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, NV. Then in 1983 they moved to the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, California, and many years later moved to the Century Plaza Hotel in Century City, CA. (The U.S. Open was also held in Texas and Chicago, etc as a regional events, but they failed.) Wanting to retire from the promotion business Jack and Mary Ann sold the 'Jack and Jill O' Rama' (another, but way less popular event) and a few years later sold the US Open (Which is still being held today in it new location in CA.)

    The word "Open" in the title meant it was 'Open' to all forms of swing (West Coast, Lindy, Shag, Balboa, Jitterbug, East Coast, Jive, LeRoc, etc.) Each style originally competed against the other for many years. Since WCS was the "reigning swing style champion" at the open, they have added other categories allowing the other styles more of a chance to win against their own respective styles of swing.