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Local World War II veteran once again dances his way through the holidays

Posted at 10:49 AM, Dec 29, 2018
and last updated 2018-12-29 12:49:01-05

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    Waukesha, WI (WDJT) — A World War II veteran from Waukesha is once again dancing his way through the holidays.

Chuck Franzke, 96, danced in his third Christmas Youtube video this month after going viral two years ago.

His first star turn was posted to Twitter and the video landed on Fox News.

This time, he’s doing the popular dance they call flossing. Frank Sinatra sings in the background.

“He always was a pretty good dancer,” Franzke’s wife, Beverly, said.

Franzke was a Navy bomber pilot in World War II. He flew dozens of missions, and his home is filled with artifacts from that time, including his wedding photo.

The Franzkes have been married for nearly 80 years, and they’ve been dancing together the whole time.

“We were big band fans,” he said. “I used to jitterbug when I was young. I can’t jitterbug today. My balance isn’t good. But I just like music and I like her too.”

Nowadays, Franzke stays involved with the Stars and Stripes Honor Flight, an organization that flies veterans to Washington D.C. to visit the war memorials.

He also has to fight off the occasional troll now that he’s Internet famous.

“One day I saw one dislike,” Franzke said. “I wondered ‘What in the heck did I do that somebody didn’t like?’ And I’d like to know who it was.”

As for the couple’s secret to staying together so long, Chuck says love gets you to the altar, then trust and respect get you through the next 70 years.

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