Bill bojangles robinson

Bill Robinson

  • Birth

    Birth
    Bill Bojangles Robin was born Luther Robinson in Richmond, Virginia.
  • The birth of his Dance!

    The birth of his Dance!
    Bill would dance at local saloons when he had the chance at the age of 6. The following year when he was 7 he would drop out of school to go after his dance career.
  • Vaudeville

    Vaudeville
    He became known within the vaudeville circuit about two years after he had dropped out of school.
  • Employed

    Employed
    Robinson had gotten his first professional job performing as a member of the pickaninny chorus for Mayme Remington with The South Before War.
  • The Stair Dance

    The Stair Dance
    Robinson had introduced what had become his signature, "the Stair Dance" which incorporated him tapping up and down the steps.
  • First Movie

    First Movie
    Bill performs in his first movie; Dixiana which featured a dominantly white cast.
  • The Team

    The Team
    Bill teams up with Shirley Temple and produces four movies with her in which he is teaching her how to tap dance. (1935 & 1938)
  • Baseball

    Baseball
    Bill cofounded the New York Black Yankees team, based in Harlem, with financier James Semler. The team was a part of the Negro National League until 1948, when Major League Baseball first integrated racially.
  • Passing

    Passing
    Bill had passed on in 1949 in New York. Many people had turned out for his service because it's said that he had touched the heart of many people.