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    National Tap Dance Day falls on May 25th every year, in recognition of Bill “Bojangles” Robinson’s birthday. Celebrations are held in many different ways, but The Shim Sham Shimmy is a popular routine because it’s thought of as the anthem of tap!

    Bill “Bojangles” Robinson

    American Dancer/Actor/Singer
    Born May 25, 1878
    Died November 25, 1949

    Born in Richmond, Virginia, Bill Robinson began dancing in local saloons at the age of six. He became a popular fixture on the vaudeville circuit just two years after that. While still a child, he was given the nickname “Bojangles,” although even Robinson himself was unsure of the origin of that moniker.

    In 1905, Robinson forged a partnership—lifelong, it turned out—with agent Marty Forkins, who gave the dancer a golden opportunity: the chance to develop a solo act. African American dancers of the time appeared exclusively in pairs.

    Robinson made the most of his solo act, touring the United States and Europe until he settled in Harlem in 1928. That was the year he landed a role in the all-Black musical revue Blackbirds of 1928, which was staged by a white producer for white audiences. Robinson’s popularity soared.

    Tap-dancing high on his toes and moving his upper body with understated grace, Robinson displayed a lightness and finesse never seen before. He shunned the frantic style of his predecessors for a more elegant, precise form of tap.

    Robinson’s talent gave him entrée to two worlds—white entertainment and Black entertainment—yet he was never completely accepted in either one. White audiences adored the films in which he co-starred with Shirley Temple or Will Rogers, but his commercially successful roles were modeled on racist stereotypes, such as that of the genial Black servant. Though artistically satisfying, his few forays into Black films—notably Harlem Is Heaven—didn’t make him much money.

    Robinson began performing at Harlem’s Cotton Club in the mid-1930s. In 1939, he joined the Broadway cast of an African American musical called Hot Mikado. The white establishment, meanwhile, cemented his celebrity status by naming him honorary mayor of Harlem—and mascot of the New York Giants baseball team. Many prominent African American individuals, however, found these distinctions to be demeaning and paternalistic.

    Despite the racial tension that dogged his career, Robinson revolutionized his art, conquered both stage and screen, and triumphed as a Harlem legend.

    The Shim Sham Shimmy is often referred to as the tap dancer’s anthem. You can purchase the instructional video from Rusty Frank’s online shop! You can also see another version HERE.
    History of The Shim Sham
    From Wikipedia:
    The Shim Sham Shimmy, or just Shim Sham originally is a particular tap dance routine and is regarded as tap dance’s national anthem.
    At the end of many performances, all of the musicians, singers, and dancers would get together on stage and do one last routine: the Shim Sham Shimmy. Tap dancers would perform technical variations, while singers and musicians would shuffle along as they were able.
    There are several variations of “shim sham” choreography. There is the choreography used by Leonard Reed and Willie Bryant, as well as a number of variations by Leonard Reed and others. Other “shim sham” choreographies include ones by Frankie Manning, Al Minns and Leon James (also called the “Savoy Shim Sham”), and Dean Collins.
    The Leonard Reed Shim Shams
    • The Original Shim Sham, circa 1927 is a 32 bar chorus composed of 4 steps and a break
    • The Freeze Chorus, circa 1930’s is the same as the Original Shim Sham, but without the breaks
    • The Joe Louis Shuffle Shim Sham, circa 1948 is a tap-swing dance 32 bar chorus number that Leonard Reed performed with the World Heavyweight Boxing champ Joe Louis
    • The Shim Sham II, circa 1994 is a 32 bar chorus dance based on the Original Shim Sham
    • The Revenge of the Shim Sham, circa 2002 is a 32 bar chorus dance, and is Leonard Reed’s final Shim Sham, which builds elegantly upon his original four.
    All 5 of the Leonard Reed Shim Shams can be found in a video HERE.
    Shim Sham Music
    The Shim Sham goes best with swing songs whose melody lines start on beat eight, as does the choreography. An obvious choice is The Shim Sham Song (Bill Elliot Swing Orchestra), which was written specifically for this dance and has musical effects (e.g., breaks) in all the right places. However, today the Shim Sham — particularly the Frankie Manning version — is danced more often to “‘Tain’t What You Do (It’s The Way That Cha Do It)” by Jimmie Lunceford and His Orchestra, or “Tuxedo Junction” by Erskine Hawkins. There is also a recording “Stompin’ at the Savoy” with the George Gee band where Manning himself calls out the moves.