Augustin "Augie" Rodriguez (May 13, 1928 – July 18, 2014) and Margo Bartolomei Rodriguez (April 6, 1929 - January 29, 2019) were American dancers who helped popularize the

Mambo Mambo most often refers to: *Mambo (music), a Cuban musical form *Mambo (dance), a dance corresponding to mambo music Mambo may also refer to: Music *Mambo section, a section in arrangements of some types of Afro-Caribbean music, particular ...

. Both were born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. They married in 1950 and opened shows for

Sammy Davis, Jr. Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American singer, dancer, actor, comedian, film producer and television director. At age three, Davis began his career in vaudeville with his father Sammy Davis Sr. and the ...

and other stars throughout North America, and Europe. Their professional debut was at the

Waldorf Astoria The Waldorf Astoria New York is a luxury hotel and condominium residence in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. The structure, at 301 Park Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets, is a 47-story Art Deco landmark designed by architects Schultz ...

in 1955 with

Harry Belafonte Harry Belafonte (born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927) is an American singer, activist, and actor. As arguably the most successful Jamaican-American pop star, he popularized the Trinbagonian Caribbean musical style with an interna ...

but, prior to this, they were the popular

adagio Adagio (Italian for 'slowly', ) may refer to: Music * Adagio, a Tempo#Basic tempo markings, tempo marking, indicating that music is to be played slowly, or a composition intended to be played in this manner * Adagio (band), a French progressive m ...

dance team at both the

Palladium Ballroom The Palladium Ballroom was a New York City night club. The US mambo craze that started in 1948 began at the Palladium Ballroom. On March 15, 1946, it opened at the northeast corner of Broadway and 53rd Street.''New York Post'', March 14, 1946; p ...

, and Roseland Ballroom where the

craze began. Augie Rodriguez died from cancer at the couple's Deerfield Beach, Florida home on July 18, 2014.

References

* The Opening Act, book about the love story of Augie & Margo Rodriguez, ISBN 1-4196-4275-8 AUTHOR: C. R. HAMER-HODGES

External links

"Chapter 5 -- Mambonicks: The Palladium & its Dancers" ''Latin Music USA''

''The Ed Sullivan Show'' June 14, 1959
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rodriguez, Augie and Margo American dance groups Artists from New York City 2014 deaths 2019 deaths