Here Suzanne talks about figure jogging, the upcoming Underdog movie, her hobbies, her Underdog dances, her legacy, and the new documentary "My Life as an Underdog"...

When did you first come up with figure jogging?

I came up with it in 1979. In those days jogging was a big fad in fitness. I saw how other sports like gymnastics, synchronized swimming and roller skating were made into artistic sports. Just about all of those sports were made into entertainment and some of them were made into exhibition pieces.

You want this to some day become an Olympic sport, right?

Id like it to become a sports tradition. Olympics is only part of it. Considering how we can invest time and energy into these other sports that have been made into artistic sports it seems like figure jogging can also be made into an artistic sport.

Have you given many public demonstrations of figure jogging?

I very rarely get to do it in front of people. Most of the time it has been on local TV shows. The only way that I was able to propagate it was I taught it between 84 and 86 to a group of Montessori students in my hometown. Ive never been able to teach it since.

How did you choose the song Funkytown for your demonstration?

Funkytown has excellent rhythm. Its not very fast or very slow.

Can anyone figure jog?

Id say anybody that has a good sense of rhythm and has some flair for the theatrical as well as the sports side of it.

Do you plan all the moves ahead of time?

I figure ahead of time what music I will use. If there were a number of people doing it together, it would have to be choreographed throughout.

What are the 10 basic steps of figure jogging?

Basic forward, basic backward, front kickstand, back kickstand, trot, shuffle, sashay, laurel braid, tire track, midget.

Are any of these steps more difficult to do than others?

Its easy for me to do but it might be difficult for some people to do the trot or the tire track, which is intricate crossing of the feet.

What is the midget step?

Midget is small steps done at double or triple time when the participant tires or the musical tempo cannot be determined. Laurel braid and sashay and tire track are all sideways steps. With the laurel braid, on the first step one foot steps side ways and on the second step the other foot crosses behind it.

What are the benefits of figure jogging?

You get a physical workout. You get to demonstrate showmanship and you make something thats an exercise into an art or entertainment form.

What do you think would be the right public forum for figure jogging?

I imagine it in theaters or perhaps other enclosures. Maybe skating rinks.

How long would a figure jogging exhibition be?

A long figure jogging program would have many musical numbers in it. Id say at the most it would run 2 hours.

What do you think are the odds of getting figure jogging into the next Olympics?

I wouldnt know who to contact at the Olympics. Also, before something can be considered for the Olympics it has to be firmly established in the public mind.

Youve invented some other movement styles, correct?

Yes. I call them Spotlight Spacewalk, Balancercize and Flyleaping.

Besides figure jogging, you also perform dance tributes to the cartoon character Underdog. How long have you been doing that?

Ive been dancing Underdog for 40 years but when I was a youngster I was confined to just doing it in my room. I started doing it publicly about 1980.

Why did you start doing dance tributes to Underdog?

Since I was taught as a child by my family to despise Underdog as a buffoon I was determined to make him a good role model. I was told I had to do that or he was not worth watching. We have to remember the case of the Batman TV series. Despite the shows popularity there were a number of complaints about Batman being made into a slapstick clown.

What do you think about the big new Underdog live action movie in the works with Jason Lee and Peter Dinklage?

I am afraid that the movie could undermine all my efforts that I put into portraying underdog as a meritorious hero. Im concerned the public would get too carried away by the movie and forget all about me. They would laud whoever plays Underdog and identify him with Underdog rather than me and yet Ive been doing it for 40 years.

Is there any positive to come out of the new Underdog movie?

Im not happy about the movie at all. Ive seen how in movies all too often the topics or the casts of movies are made overly important. And then when some other people have been using that topic long before the movie it overshadows them and they become effaced. The makers of this movie have got to realize that I did it first.

Have you tried to be a part of the new Underdog movie?

When I first heard about the movie I wrote a letter to the people who were identified as the films producers. I explained my concerns and they never wrote a response.

Maybe you wrote to the wrong address.

I had the correct addresses.

Did you ever think of doing an Underdog movie of your own?

I did make up a movie script more than 20 years ago and someone who was interested in it submitted it to one of the networks. But the network rejected it.

What other dance tributes do you perform besides Underdog?

Vlad the Impaler. Supergirl -- Im thinking of reviving her in July because Superman Returns debuts June 30, Catwoman, Shelly the South Jersey Shore Mermaid, Irish Cinderella, Sunny Susie the Summer Sunshine Mermaid, Spectrum the Ghost King, The Ghost of Christmas Past, and sometimes Im a yellow angel or a yellow fairy or a Greek goddess.

Didnt you also perform dance tributes to Emperor Nero?

I havent done Emperor Nero in 20 years because there hasnt been an event that he would be appropriate for. I also made a duplicate of the military outfit of Julius Caesar but it doesnt fit me anymore.

Who are some of your newest characters?

One that I invented last year was Snowflake Star Fairy. Theres also Fairy of the Golden Snow who is dressed in yellow and when she conjures up a snowstorm flakes are gold but they turn white when they reach the ground.

Are you concerned that someone might confuse Fairy of the Golden Snow with some kind of reference to snow with pee on it?

No one has made up any snide remarks about it like that! Also, when streets shovel the snow its yellowish because its dirty and not necessarily because it has waste in it.

How long does it take you to make your costumes?

Most times I spend several months. It doesnt take long to stitch the pieces of the costume together but the decorating takes a lot of time because it is done by hand.

Theres a new documentary about your life called My Life As An Underdog. Whats the background on the documentary?

Its supposed to be in film festivals. Were supposed to have a screening in July in Baltimore in one of the museums. We began shooting in 1996 or 97 and stopped about 2000 and then took it up again. The movie deals primarily with my performing and crafting endeavors. There is quite a bit of footage of me in performance as Underdog but some of my other characters are in it as well.

What do you hope people will get from watching this documentary?

People will realize that I was doing Underdog long long before this live action movie was even thought of. I did dance versions of Dracula long before anyone else was doing it. The Houston ballet and the Pennsylvania ballet did dance versions of Dracula after me.

I understand you might be performing at the Atlanta Film Festival?

They want me to perform a live Underdog show at that festival as well as showing the documentary.

Do you have any other upcoming appearances?

I have a Memorial Day parade in Falls Church, Virginia. On June 24 is the Mermaid Parade at Coney Island. There are also Fourth of July parades, July 1 in Cape May, New Jersey and two on July 4 in New Jersey.

I know you had some problems with Howard Stern. You appeared on his show and thought he was obscene. Do you feel victorious now that he is off the air?

Do we really have to bring Howard Stern into the picture at all? I really dont feel a victory as long as witnesses to some of my performances continue to rib me about him.

Has the ribbing declined now that Stern is reaching a smaller audience?

Im afraid not. In March I was in a St. Patricks parade in Wilmington, Delaware and a 10 year old boy yelled out that Howard is your secret passion!

You recently appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Didn't you have some issues with the content of that show?

Sometimes when I watched episodes they had their own newscasts and they were not honestly reporting the news. They were being satirical and some of the jokes they pulled were insulting. One time I saw someone on the show running up and down the sidewalk and taking his clothes off bit by bit. I found that to be inappropriate. Also, I was suspicious when I saw the rating was TV-14.

What TV shows and movies to do you watch?

I really dont watch any contemporary shows. One movie that needs to be shunned is this DaVinci Code because it is blasphemous to many of the basics of Christianity.

What dont you like about contemporary shows?

The language content, the immorality. I havent seen a first run movie in many years and I really dont watch any contemporary TV programs.

What do you do for a living?

Im not working right now.

Dedicating yourself to your art?

Yes.

Do you think youre making any progress in your efforts to improve Underdogs image?

Being on a show like Jimmy Kimmel and the documentary are means of perpetuation that Ive never been able to do in a great many years.

What do you think your legacy will be?

I feel that Ill be remembered for participating in a lot of parades. I also feel that people identify me with Underdog the superhero but Im afraid this movie could ruin everything. The people will laud the cast and contents of the movie as being the first and only thing necessary.

Planning any trips anytime soon?

Im not planning a long vacation. I do have some trips planned but they are only one-day excursions.

What other hobbies do you have besides sewing?

Cake decorating, artificial flower making, choir, sometimes I make angel figurines at Christmas time. Sometimes I make bows. Also, cream filled chocolate candy making. How you make the candy is somewhat like baking a pie. You stuff the shells with different flavors of creamed filling.

You can fill the chocolate with alcohol

What?!

You could fill the chocolate with alcohol.

No! I dont drink!

Do you have any pets?

I have a cat named Ebony.

How did you come up with the name Ebony?

Because shes a black cat and theres a kind of wood that is black which is called ebony.

Are you dating right now?

Im single. I think thats strictly private business.

Youve always lived in New Jersey. What do you like about New Jersey?

The shorelines arent that far away. Also, since New Jersey is much farther north its not as susceptible to hurricanes.

What do you think of the rumors that the voice of Underdog, Wally Cox, was gay? He lived with Marlon Brando and after Brando died their ashes were scattered together.

I never heard anything like that!