orig. Luther Robinson known as Bojangles
born May 25, 1878, Richmond, Va., U.S.
died Nov. 25, 1949, New York, N.Y.
U.S. tap dancer.
He developed extraordinary tap-dancing skills as a child, became the first black performer to appear in white vaudeville shows, and was later the first black in Shirley Temple and the all-black musical Stormy Weather (1943). His soft-shoe and tap routines were widely copied by other dancers, but he was unmatched for ingenuity in creating new steps, especially his famous "stair dance." He also was famed for a unique ability to run backward. See also {{link=tap dance">tap dance .