Dora Dean (born Dora Babbige, c.1872 – December 13, 1949) was an African-American

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

dancer and entertainer. She was part of one of the most popular vaudeville acts of the pre-World War I period. She was best known for popularizing the

cakewalk The cakewalk was a dance developed from the "prize walks" (dance contests with a cake awarded as the prize) held in the mid-19th century, generally at get-togethers on Black Slavery in the United States, slave plantations before and after End ...

dance internationally, with her husband and dance partner Charles E. Johnson, as part of the act Dean and Johnson.

Early years

Dean was born in

Cloverport, Kentucky Cloverport is a home rule-class city in Breckinridge County, Kentucky, United States, on the banks of the Ohio River. The population was 1,152 at the 2010 census. History The town was once known as Joesville after its founder, Joe Huston. Es ...

. (Another source gives

Covington, Kentucky Covington is a list of cities in Kentucky, home rule-class city in Kenton County, Kentucky, Kenton County, Kentucky, United States, located at the confluence of the Ohio River, Ohio and Licking River (Kentucky), Licking Rivers. Cincinnati, Ohio, ...

, as her place of birth.) She worked as a nursemaid in Cincinnati, Ohio, before becoming an entertainer.

Career

Dean debuted as a dancer with a Creole traveling show. In vaudeville, she was known as "The Black Venus". Early in their time as a team, Johnson and Dean decided to avoid

Uncle Tom Uncle Tom is the title character of Harriet Beecher Stowe's 1852 novel, ''Uncle Tom's Cabin''. The character was seen by many readers as a ground-breaking humanistic portrayal of a slave, one who uses nonresistance and gives his life to protect ...

-style humor. Instead, they went for a higher level of performances. As they were able, they bought costumes and jewelry to enhance the act's look. They are identified with several firsts. They were the first African American couple to perform on Broadway, the first to use strobe lighting, and the first to use steel taps on their shoes. The couple moved to Europe in 1903 and began performing most of the time there, with occasional trips to Australia and the United States for performances. In 1902, they performed in London's

Palace Theatre Palace Theatre, or Palace Theater, is the name of many theatres in different countries, including: Australia *Palace Theatre, Melbourne, Victoria *Palace Theatre, Sydney, New South Wales Canada *Palace Theatre, housed in the Robillard Block, Mo ...

for

King Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria a ...

. Johnson and Dean ended their act in 1914 to pursue individual careers. She appeared in the film ''Georgia Rose'' (1930). After 20 years, they reunited at a time when vaudeville was dying.

Legacy

Dean's beauty inspired a number of songs, including "Dora Dean The Sweetest Gal You Ever Seen" (1896) by performer and composer

Bert Williams Bert Williams (November 12, 1874 – March 4, 1922) was a Bahamian-born American entertainer, one of the pre-eminent entertainers of the Vaudeville era and one of the most popular comedians for all audiences of his time. He is credited as being ...

and "Dora Dean's Sister" (1902) by Joseph F. Lamb. In 1898, "Dora Dean The Sweetest Gal You Ever Seen" was the subject of a lawsuit in which a San Francisco judge ruled that the song could not be protected by copyright with the original lyrics "... the hottest thing you ever seen ..." because "the word 'hottest' as used in this case has an indelicate and vulgar meaning ..." In 1946, radio game show host

John Reed King John Reed King (October 25, 1914 – July 8, 1979) was an American radio and television game show host who hosted numerous game shows during the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. Career King was one of the announcers for ''The American School of the Air' ...

stumped his studio audience with the question "Who is Dora Dean?". A refrigerator, bedroom suite, silverware set, and $100 went unclaimed as no one provided the correct answer.

Later years and death

Johnson and Dean reunited (professionally and personally) in 1934 and retired by 1942. They lived in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

in their later years. Dean died in Minneapolis in 1949.

References

1870s births 1949 deaths Vaudeville performers American female dancers Dancers from Minnesota People from Minneapolis American burlesque performers African-American dancers 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women People from Breckinridge County, Kentucky {{Dance-bio-stub