Le Gon, Jeni, 1916-2002

Jeni LeGon; dancer, actress, and dance instructor; born Jennie Ligon on August 14, 1916, in Chicago, Illinois;. grew up in Chicago's Black Belt; received her first formal training from Mary Bruce's School of Dance; at age thirteen, successfully auditioned for the Count Basie Orchestra's chorus line, 1930; became a member of the Whitman Sisters troupe, which traveled the South, 1931; with her half sister, Willa Mae Lane, formed the LeGon and Lane tap duo; 1933; danced with Bill "Bojangles" Robinson (the only black woman to do so on screen) in Hooray for Love, which also featured Fats Waller; married composer Phil Moore, 1943; founded a school of dance, 1950s; settled in Vancouver, British Columbia teaching tap, point and Dunham technique, 1969; traveled to London with the Pelican Players, 1980s; passed away on December 7, 2012

Jeni LeGon; born Jennie Ligon, August 14, 1916; also credited as Jeni Le Gon; American dancer, dance instructor, and actress; one of the first African-American women to establish a solo career in tap dance; born in Chicago, Illinois; parents were Hector Ligon and Harriet Bell Ligon; grew up in the Black Belt area of Chicago; successfully auditioned for the chorus line of band leader Count Basie;
began performing across the southern United States with the Whitman Sisters company, 1931; with her half-sister, Willa Mae Lane, formed the LeGon and Lane song-and-dance team; signed with RKO Pictures to be the dancing partner of Bill Robinson in the film Hooray for Love, 1935; owned and operated the Jeni LeGon Dance Studio in Los Angeles; In settled in Vancouver, British Columbia, where she taught tap and pointe, 1969; LeGon married composer, conductor and pianist Phil Moore, 1943

Jeni LeGon; born in Chicago, Illinois in 1916; long, successful career as an African American dancer and actress began in musical theatre and vaudeville; traveled across the southern United States performing with the Whitman Sisters company, and half-sister, Willa Mae Lane (as the LeGon and Lane song-and-dance team); was working under contract with Fox Studios, RKO Pictures, and MGM, by 1935; performed with Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, Ethel Waters, Al Jolson, and Fred Astaire; performed on Broadway and in other theaters and clubs including the Apollo, Cafe de Paris, Howard, Paramount, and Lincoln; offered dance instruction in Los Angeles, California at the Jeni LeGon Dance Studio and Drama and Dance Playhouse from 1950s on; later taught tap and pointe in Vancouver, British Columbia; died on December 7, 2012 at the age of ninety-six.