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Chocolateers [biography]
The Chocolateers, the comedy and acrobatic tap dance team of the 1930s and 40s whose dancing was flavored by endless clowning and running up walls and across the stage, were regarded as three of the best comedy dancers of their time. Originally from the West Coast, the original dancers included the highly-regarded tap dancer Al Bert "Gip" Gipson, Paul Black, known for his Chinese splits (straddling the floor as he walked), and Eddie West, with James Buster Brown replacing West for a short period of time. The Chocolateers played the Cotton Club (Third Edition of the Cotton Club Parade in 1937 and the Fourth Edition of The Cotton Club Parade in 1938); headlined at the Apollo Theatre; performed with Duke Ellington at the Paramount Theatre; appeared in the films New Faces of 1937 and the Moonlight Masquerade (1942); and the 1942 soundies Harlem Rhumba, Peckin', and Tweed Me. In 1949 they were amongst the first African American tap dancers to appear on television, performing with Dottie Saulters in Uptown Jubilee (later Sugar Hill Times) and Willie Bryant's TV show Harlem House.
[Sources: Tap Dancing America Database; program, Tappin' Uptown: A New Tap Musical (February 19-21, 1982, Brooklyn Academy of Music Opera House)]