Maceo Anderson (September 3, 1910 – July 4, 2001 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

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) was an American dancer. He expressed an interest in

dancing Dance is an art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire of movements or ...

at the age of three. As a child, he used to sneak into the Lafayette Theatre to watch performances with his young friends. He and his friends would practice dance routines. As a young man in his teens, he founded a trio of dancers who performed at

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...

Cotton Club The Cotton Club was a 20th-century nightclub in New York City. It was located on 142nd Street and Lenox Avenue from 1923 to 1936, then briefly in the midtown Theater District until 1940. The club operated during the United States' era of P ...

. Anderson was the founder of the

tap dancing Tap dance (or tap) is a form of dance that uses the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion; it is often accompanied by music. Tap dancing can also be performed with no musical accompaniment; the sound of the taps is its ow ...

group known as "

The Four Step Brothers The Four Step Brothers were an African-American dance group. The group started out as a trio in 1925, with the original members, Maceo Anderson, Al Williams and Red Walker. Although their original name was the ''Step Brothers,'' because that ...

". The group performed successfully for over thirty years. They were credited as being the first black act to perform at

Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall (also known as Radio City) is an entertainment venue and Theater (structure), theater at 1260 Sixth Avenue (Manhattan), Avenue of the Americas, within Rockefeller Center, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York C ...

. The Four Step Brothers also made

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and

motion picture A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, since ...

appearances. Their dance routines were a unique blend of soft shoe, tap,

acrobatic Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most often performed in acro ...

tricks, and complicated footwork. Anderson performed with the group throughout their existence. They performed abroad and with the

Duke Ellington Orchestra Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1924 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was ba ...

. Ellington wrote "Mystery Song" for Anderson and his performing friends, Al Williams and Walker. The three performed together as "The Three Step Brothers" until the 1930s when they added a fourth performer to the group and at that time, they became known again as "The Four Step Brothers". For a short period of time, the foursome did not perform together. Anderson was drafted into the

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in 1941. In 1943, The Four Step Brothers were asked to perform in a variety of short Hollywood films. In 1946, they performed with

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

and then embarked on a six-month performance at the

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

ian

Le Lido Le Lido is a musical theatre venue located on the Champs-Élysées in Paris, France. It opened in 1946 at 78 Avenue des Champs-Élysées and moved to its current location in 1977. Until its purchase by Accor in 2021, it was known for its exoti ...

followed by tours to

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and

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. In 1953, they performed with

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was an American comedian, actor, entertainer and producer with a career that spanned nearly 80 years and achievements in vaudeville, network radio, television, and USO Tours. He appeared ...

in ''Here Come the Girls''. After retiring from dance, Anderson became a

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minister and actively worked to help the

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in the

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. The Four Step Brothers were honored in 1988 with a star on the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...

. Anderson died in Los Angeles, California on July 4, 2001. His grandson, Robert L. Reed and Reed's children, have followed "in the steps" of Anderson and are tap dancing performers.

Sources

Encyclopædia Britannica online
*http://www.guardian.co/uk/print/04224184-103684,00.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, Maceo American tap dancers 1910 births 2001 deaths 20th-century American dancers