Dancing has been my only love
Enjoy this clip at the Orpheum Theatre a 1999 Tribute.
* Born in Lightning Creek, Oklahoma January 7, 1907
* His Mother died when he was 2 years old
* Never knew his father
* He was of Black, White & Choctaw descent
* Dance partner Willie Bryant in a vaudeville act called “Brains as Well as Feet”
* Both created the Shim Sham Shimmy dance routine
* The shimmy routine was their flashy finale to their dance act in the late 1920s
* Produced shows at the Cotton Club in Chicago
* Master of ceremonies at the Apollo Theater in Harlem NY for 20 years
* In 2000 he received a lifetime achievement award from the American Music Awards.
* In 2002 he received an honorary doctor of performing arts degree from Oklahoma City University.