Maceo Anderson: From Cotton Boat to Cotton Club
Beginning his travels on a cotton boat from South Carolina, and ending at the Cotton Club in Harlem, Maceo Anderson changed the world of tap. Of course, a few years passed before he actually danced at the Cotton Club.
As a very young child of six years, Maceo delivered clothes that his mother had washed and ironed in their home in South Carolina. Because black people were not permitted on the streets after 6 p.m., he would often deliver the clothes in the early hours of the morning, so he wouldn't be picked up. He became street smart at an early age. When his sister, who lived in Harlem, sent for the family, Maceo, his mother and sister took a cotton boat from South Carolina to Harlem.
As a youngster in Manhattan, he stole newspapers for extra needed money, slipped under the turnstile, and rode to 52nd Street and Broadway. He soon learned that he could make more money dancing on the streets than from selling papers.
His mother converted the basement in their apartment building on 126th Street to a junior Hoofer's Club. She would cook large pots of rice and beans and feed the children while they practiced their steps.
When he was only seven years old, Maceo auditioned for Ida Mae Chadwick's show. She was a well-known song and dance artist and selected Maceo because he could do some Russian dance steps. Because the touring group was integrated, they could not work below the Mason Dixon line.
In order to learn new steps, Maceo would sneak into the movie theatres. On weekends, the Lafayette Theatre had amateur nights and he soon discovered the Hoofers Club, which was located under the Lafayette Theatre. There was a restaurant and pool hall in the front and a dance floor for the tap dancers in the back. The owner loved tap dancing and tap dancers were always welcome. "Bill Robinson would come in, shoot pool, then go to the back, take off his coat and tap," Maceo explained.
"Bill Robinson was a stand up dancer. He danced straight up. He didn't go down and bend down and do a step like 'over the top.' He did imitations, like 'going to see his girl'. Bill Robinson had a talking story with his dancing and is one of the greatest names in the business, the grand-daddy of tap
dancers."
Maceo observed and danced with many famous dancers at the Hoofer Club, including Eddie Rector, Ralph Cooper, "Snake Hips" Tucker, Chuck Wiggins, Steve Condos, and Buck and Bubbles. Bubbles inspired Maceo with new rhythm patterns while Buck did comedy and played piano. (Henry LeTang said that Buck was an excellent piano player).
"Bubbles often danced with Maceo and became his mentor. "Bubbles started dropping heels and did a rhythm turn around," Maceo stated. " He also did trick turns and then turned back to the other way. That was his style, rhythm dancing with heels and toes, the 'dig in' stuff. He is known as one of the great rhythm dancers."
In 1925 Maceo, Al Williams and Red Walker formed a trio. After dancing in a show called Moon Over Alabama, they wanted to dance at the Cotton Club. In order to avoid the doorman, former heavyweight champion Jack Johnson, they entered through the kitchen. During the breaks, Duke Ellington would walk past the kitchen to the water fountain. The tap trio showed him some of their steps and pleaded with him for an audition. Finally, he agreed, and they auditioned with a military tap routine and were hired as the only regular tap act at the Cotton Club for the next four years.
In 1927 the trio added a fourth member, Sherman Robinson, and adopted the name, Step Brothers. When they weren't working at the Cotton Club, they performed on the Keith-Orpheum and the Chittlin' Circuits. When the Ellington band went on the road, they toured with them.
"Duke Ellington was a wonderful man, such a gracious man," said Maceo. "He wrote a tune called The Mystery Song for the Step Brothers that was a tap dance number. Lots of people don't know that. I'm so proud of that because, for a man like Duke to write a song for us, that's one of the best highlights."
They used the Ellington jazz rhythms in their act and the 'challenge' dance became their trademark.
Each member danced their own specialty while the other dancers clapped their hands; similar to the way Maceo had danced as a newsboy on the streets. They introduced acrobatics into their act and were one of the most copied acts in show business.
The Step Brothers used many jazz rhythms of Ellington, the elegance of Bill Robinson, the new technique of Bubbles, the hoofing from many others, and some acrobatics. " We picked up jazz-tap and put together a clap-hand beat that would give us style, plus precision," Maceo explained.
"We were the first black group to play the Radio City Music Hall in New York, the Copa City in Miami Beach, and the Chez Paree in Chicago. We danced for the opening night of Dave Garroway's live TV show from Chicago and for Milton Berle on the Texaco Star Theatre."
During this time they were breaking down racial barriers for performers. When they were not permitted in hotels, they slept on cots in the theatre basements. Black families cooked their favorite foods in homes when they were not permitted in restaurants. "I didn't think about racial issues," said Maceo, "I was more concerned with the performances."
After Prince Spencer and Rufus "Flash" McDonald joined the group, they became the first black act to play the Cafe De Paree in London and the Lido in Paris. Booked in Paris for six months, they stayed for two years.
They toured twelve European countries and received standing ovations from kings and queens. In the United States Presidents, Truman and Eisenhower received them. In 1960 the four Step Brothers were honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Dance Masters of America. In 1988, they were awarded a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame.
The Step Brothers appeared in 40 movies and danced with the films greatest stars including Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor. Honi Coles said, " When other tap dancers couldn't get work, the Step Brothers were working."
Maceo credits Jerry Lewis for opening doors for them. Dean Martin and Lewis would not sign a contract to perform at Copa City in Miami Beach unless the Step Brothers were signed. No black artist had ever performed there before. This opened the door for many others like Sammy Davis, Jr. and Lena Horne.
"Jerry treated us like family," Maceo said. "We stayed at his home and hung out with him. I remember when Jerry picked up Al Williams' handicapped child and went out and bought a wheelchair for him." Maceo believes this might have been the beginning of Jerry's activism on behalf of handicapped children.
Maceo has always been excited about the future of tap. Three of his former students are Robert Reed, Van Porter, and Michael Allen, who are all carrying on his legacy. " I would not be dancing if it were not for Maceo," Robert Reed stated. Van Porter and Michael Allen share his sentiments.
In recent years, Maceo has been honored at the St. Louis Tap Festival and was reunited with Prince Spencer, a Step Brother, who took Maceo's place when Maceo went into the army during World War II. He received the Flo-Bert Award in New York in 1994, and was honored at a Colorado Film Festival, conducted by Michael Allen, last year.
In past years, Maceo ministered to the homeless in Las Vegas, but recently moved to California to live with his daughter, Marzetta. Last October, he celebrated his 90th birthday.
Maceo's love of tap and his unique stage presence, which often included a little clowning, set him apart from many traditional dancers. He was a great entertainer and will always be remembered and loved by the tap world.
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