HOME

TheInfoList



Click Here for Items Related To - John Bubbles
OR:
John Bubbles on:   [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Amazon]

John William Sublett (February 19, 1902 – May 18, 1986), known by his stage name John W. Bubbles, was an American
tap dance Tap dance is a form of dance characterized by using the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion. Two major variations on tap dance exist: rhythm (jazz) tap and Broadway tap. Broadway tap focuses on dance; it is widely perf ...
r,
vaudevillian 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 ...
, movie actor, and television performer. He performed in the duo "Buck and Bubbles", who were the first black artists to appear on television. He is known as the father of "rhythm tap."


Life and career

Sublett was born in
Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
, on February 19, 1902, but soon moved with his family to Indianapolis. There, he formed a partnership with Ford L. "Buck" Washington in 1919. Their duo was known as "Buck and Bubbles." Buck played
stride piano Stride jazz piano, often shortened to stride, is a jazz piano style that arose from ragtime players. Prominent stride pianists include James P. Johnson, Willie "the Lion" Smith, Fats Waller, Luckey Roberts, Mrs Mills and Mary Lou Williams. ...
and sang, and Bubbles tapped along. They were so popular that the duo moved to Manhattan, New York City in September of that year. They played together in the Columbia Theater, the Palace and later played with artists
Al Jolson Al Jolson (born Eizer Yoelson; June 9, 1886 – October 23, 1950) was a Lithuanian-American Jewish singer, comedian, actor, and vaudevillian. He was one of the United States' most famous and highest-paid stars of the 1920s, and was self-billed ...
, Eddie Cantor and Danny Kaye. They appeared in Lew Leslie's Blackbirds in 1930 at the
Royale Theatre The Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre (formerly the Royale Theatre and the John Golden Theatre) is a Broadway theater at 242 West 45th Street ( George Abbott Way) in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1927, the thea ...
. This was followed by performances in the '' Ziegfeld Follies of 1931'' at the Ziegfeld Theatre. They also became the first black artists to perform at the Radio City Music Hall. "Buck and Bubbles" performed live in the first scheduled 'high definition' (240-line) television program on November 2, 1936, at Alexandra Palace, London, for the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
, becoming the first black artists on television anywhere in the world. Other work on Broadway included the roles of Scipio in
Arthur Schwartz Arthur Schwartz (November 25, 1900 – September 3, 1984) was an American composer and film producer, widely noted for his songwriting collaborations with Howard Dietz. Biography Early life Schwartz was born in Brooklyn, New York City, on Nov ...
's ''
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
'' (1937) and Rum in Oscar Hammerstein II's ''
Carmen Jones ''Carmen Jones'' is a 1943 Broadway musical with music by Georges Bizet (orchestrated for Broadway by Robert Russell Bennett) and lyrics and book by Oscar Hammerstein II which was performed at The Broadway Theatre. Conceptually, it is Bizet's o ...
'' (1946). Though unable to read music, Bubbles was chosen by
George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned popular, jazz and classical genres. Among his best-known works are the orchestral compositions ' ...
to create the role of Sportin' Life in his opera ''
Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' () is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play '' Porgy'', it ...
'' in 1935. Since he didn't understand the music score, Gershwin spent the time to teach it to him as a tap rhythm. Sublett caused some problems because he often made up rhythms which caused confusion with other members of the cast. Sublett performed the role occasionally for the next two decades. In 1963, in a
studio recording The term studio recording means any recording made in a studio, as opposed to a live recording, which is usually made in a concert venue or a theatre, with an audience attending the performance. Studio cast recordings In the case of Broadway mu ...
of ''Porgy and Bess'' featuring
Leontyne Price Mary Violet Leontyne Price (born February 10, 1927) is an American soprano who was the first African American soprano to receive international acclaim. From 1961 she began a long association with the Metropolitan Opera, where she was the first Af ...
and
William Warfield William Caesar Warfield (January 22, 1920 – August 25, 2002) was an American concert bass-baritone singer and actor, known for his appearances in stage productions, Hollywood films, and television programs. A prominent African American artist ...
, he performed Sportin' Life's two main arias from the opera, "
It Ain't Necessarily So "It Ain't Necessarily So" is a popular song with music by George Gershwin and lyrics by his brother Ira Gershwin. The song comes from the Gershwins' opera ''Porgy and Bess'' ( 1935) where it is sung by the character Sportin' Life, a drug dealer, ...
" and "There's A Boat Dat's Leavin' Soon For New York". In 1920, he gave tap dance lessons to
Fred Astaire Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz; May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, choreographer, actor, and singer. He is often called the greatest dancer in Hollywood film history. Astaire's career in stage, film, and tele ...
, who considered Sublett the finest tap dancer of his generation. In the number "Bojangles of Harlem" from ''
Swing Time In music, the term ''swing'' has two main uses. Colloquially, it is used to describe the propulsive quality or "feel" of a rhythm, especially when the music prompts a visceral response such as foot-tapping or head-nodding (see pulse). This sens ...
'' (1936), Astaire dresses in blackface as the Sportin' Life character and dances in the style of Sublett while ostensibly paying tribute to
Bill Robinson Bill Robinson, nicknamed Bojangles (born Luther Robinson; May 25, 1878 – November 25, 1949), was an American tap dancer, actor, and singer, the best known and the most highly paid African-American entertainer in the United States during the f ...
. There has long been a widespread misapprehension that Sublett was
Ethel Waters Ethel Waters (October 31, 1896 – September 1, 1977) was an American singer and actress. Waters frequently performed jazz, swing, and pop music on the Broadway stage and in concerts. She began her career in the 1920s singing blues. Her no ...
' uncredited dancing partner in the historic film ''
On with the Show! ''On with the Show!'' is a 1929 American pre-Code musical film produced by Warner Bros. Filmed in two-color Technicolor, the film is noted as the first all-talking, all-color feature length film, and the second color film released by Warner B ...
'' (1929). However, the pressbook for the film makes it clear that the dancer was Angelus Babe, providing a bio and two photographs. In 2011, Ryan Friedman, supplying no support for his belief that Sublett was the dancer, surmised that "Angelus Babe" was a pseudonym, and published this in a book. The misinformation has multiplied. That Angelus Babe was a real person is shown by a search on the on-line archive of the Los Angeles Times, where he is mentioned seven times. There is also confirmation in the catalog of the American Film Institute. Sublett appeared in Hollywood films of the late 1930s and 1940s, including ''
Varsity Show The Varsity Show is one of the oldest traditions at Columbia University and its oldest performing arts presentation. Founded in 1894 as a fundraiser for the university's fledgling athletic teams, the Varsity Show now draws together the entire Col ...
'' in 1937, '' Cabin in the Sky'' in 1943 and ''
A Song Is Born ''A Song Is Born'' (also known as ''That's Life''), starring Danny Kaye and Virginia Mayo, is a 1948 Technicolor musical film remake of Howard Hawks' 1941 movie ''Ball of Fire'' with Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck. This version was also d ...
'' in 1948. In later life, he also made television appearances, one of his last being on a musical episode of ''
The Lucy Show ''The Lucy Show'' is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from 1962 to 1968. It was Lucille Ball's follow-up to '' I Love Lucy''. A significant change in cast and premise for the fourth season (1965–1966) divides the program into two distin ...
'', which also guest-starred Mel Tormé and a featured performance on
Barbra Streisand Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand (; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success in multiple fields of entertainment, and is among the few performers awar ...
's 1967 TV special, ''The Belle of 14th Street'', a tribute to the bygone era of
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 ...
. During the Vietnam War, John Bubbles toured the war zone with the
USO The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is an American nonprofit-charitable corporation that provides live entertainment, such as comedians, actors and musicians, social facilities, and other programs to members of the United States Armed F ...
. In 1965, he appeared with Eddie Fisher on a USO tour, visiting many outposts and camps in the early war years. He appeared with
Judy Garland Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. While critically acclaimed for many different roles throughout her career, she is widely known for playing the part of Dorothy Gale in '' The ...
in her 1967 concerts at the Palace Theatre in New York City, singing "Me And My Shadow." That same year, he became partially paralyzed due to a stroke. In 1978, John Bubbles spoke at the Variety Arts Theatre in Los Angeles as a participant in a seminar on vaudeville. Someone asked him who the best tap dancer was. Bubbles answered, "You're looking at him." Then he added, "Honestly, if I had to name the best dancer, it would be Fred Astaire. He could tap. He had a good teacher. But he could ballroom, dance with a partner. All in all, he's the best." That same night, Bubbles mentioned that Astaire had brought him into the rehearsal hall to work on "Bojangles of Harlem" and John's chops are right there in the number. He performed at the Newport Jazz Festival in New York in 1979, which was one of his last public appearances. Sublett died on May 18, 1986, at his home in Baldwin Hills, California.


Legacy

Sublett is known as the father of "rhythm tap," a form of
tap dance Tap dance is a form of dance characterized by using the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion. Two major variations on tap dance exist: rhythm (jazz) tap and Broadway tap. Broadway tap focuses on dance; it is widely perf ...
. Sublett included percussive heel drops in his tap style, as opposed to the tap dancing of
Bill Robinson Bill Robinson, nicknamed Bojangles (born Luther Robinson; May 25, 1878 – November 25, 1949), was an American tap dancer, actor, and singer, the best known and the most highly paid African-American entertainer in the United States during the f ...
(Bojangles) who emphasized clean phrases and toe taps. Sublett's taps were made to the traditional eight-bar phrase, but allowed for more rhythmic freedom. He blended the improvisational style of jazz music with the traditional techniques of tap to create a unique style and sound. According to Thomas Brothers, Bubbles invented new steps and altered his routines to prevent others from stealing his routine and to please his audience by including their favorite steps. Sublett received the 1980 Life Achievement Award from the American Guild of Variety Artists. He was inducted into the Tap Hall of Fame in 2002. Sublett was remembered by many celebrities; his catchphrase, "Shoot the liquor to me, John Boy," has been quoted in songs by several artists, including The Manhattan Transfer,
The Ink Spots The Ink Spots were an American pop vocal group who gained international fame in the 1930s and 1940s. Their unique musical style presaged the rhythm and blues and rock and roll musical genres, and the subgenre doo-wop. The Ink Spots were widely ac ...
, and Louis Armstrong.
Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...
admired Bubbles' dancing and studied his steps for inspiration. In the mid-1980s, Jackson named his beloved pet chimpanzee "Bubbles" in memory of John Sublett.


References


Further reading

* Brian Harker: ''Sportin' life : John W. Bubbles, an American classic'', New York : Oxford University Press, 2022,


External links

* * * *
John W. Bubbles papers, MSS 8026
at
Tom Perry Special Collections
Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bubbles, John W. 1902 births 1986 deaths 20th-century African-American male singers 20th-century American male actors 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers African-American male actors African-American male dancers African-American male singers American male dancers American male film actors American male musical theatre actors American male singers American male stage actors American tap dancers Male actors from Louisville, Kentucky Musicians from Louisville, Kentucky People from Baldwin Hills, Los Angeles Singers from Kentucky Uptown Records (jazz) artists Vaudeville performers