Object Details
- Artist
- George Hurrell, 1 Jun 1904 - 17 May 1992
- Sitter
- Luther Robinson, 26 May 1878 - 25 Nov 1949
- Exhibition Label
- Combining superb showmanship with a winning personality, tap dancing virtuoso Bill “Bojangles” Robinson was a hit with audiences for more than half a century. It was on the vaudeville circuit and as a popular nightclub performer that Robinson earned his reputation as “King of the Tap Dancers.” After performing on Broadway in the all-Black revue Blackbirds of 1928, he made his way to Hollywood, where he appeared in fourteen films between 1930 and 1943.
- Due to entrenched racism in Hollywood and American society at large, Robinson’s only starring roles were in Harlem is Heaven (1932) and Stormy Weather (1943), which featured all-Black casts. In other films, Robinson portrayed stereotypical characters, such as the faithful servant in the Little Colonel (1935), starring Shirley Temple. Robinson’s signature “stair dance” tap routine with Temple provided the movie’s most memorable moment. Yet when screened in the South, that interracial sequence was cut from the film.
- Con gran maestría escénica y encanto personal, el virtuoso bailarín de tap Bill “Bojangles” Robinson cosechó éxitos por más de medio siglo. Fue en el circuito de vodevil y clubes nocturnos que consolidó su reputación como “el rey de los bailarines de tap”. Tras su actuación en Broadway en la revista de elenco afroamericano Blackbirds (1928), llegó a Hollywood, donde participó en 14 filmes entre 1930 y 1943.
- Debido al arraigado racismo de Hollywood y la sociedad estadounidense en general, Robinson solo llegó a protagonizar Harlem es el cielo (1932) y Stormy Weather (1943), ambas con elenco afroamericano. En otras películas interpretó estereotipos, tales como el fiel sirviente en La pequeña coronela (1935), encabezada por Shirley Temple. La icónica rutina del “baile en las escaleras” que interpretó Robinson junto a Temple fue el momento más memorable del filme. No obstante, cuando este se proyectó en el sur del país, dicha secuencia interracial fue eliminada.
- Credit Line
- National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
- 1935
- Object number
- NPG.89.193
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Type
- Photograph
- Medium
- Gelatin silver print on paper
- Dimensions
- Image/Sheet: 22.8 × 16 cm (9 × 6 5/16")
- Mat: 45.7 × 35.6 cm (18 × 14")
- Frame: 46.5 × 36.4 × 3.2 cm (18 5/16 × 14 5/16 × 1 1/4")
- See more items in
- National Portrait Gallery Collection
- Exhibition
- Star Power: Photographs from Hollywood’s Golden Age by George Hurrell
- On View
- NPG, South Gallery 120
- National Portrait Gallery
- Topic
- Interior
- Costume\Jewelry\Ring
- Costume\Dress Accessory\Handkerchief
- Costume\Headgear\Hat\Fedora
- Architecture\Stairs\Staircase
- Personal Attribute\Teeth
- Costume\Jewelry\Pin
- Costume\Dress Accessory\Neckwear\Tie\Necktie
- Luther Robinson: Male
- Luther Robinson: Arts and Culture\Performing Arts\Film\Movie actor
- Luther Robinson: Arts and Culture\Performing Arts\Dance\Dancer
- Luther Robinson: Arts and Culture\Performing Arts\Dance\Dancer\Tap dancer
- Portrait
- Record ID
- npg_NPG.89.193
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm470557b2e-27b1-42bb-824c-b6fc5b882282
