Research Catalog

Title

Hillman family papers, 1905-1995.

Author

Hillman family.

Supplementary Content

Finding aid

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

.4 linear ft.

Summary

The Hillman Family papers provide documentation on the performance careers of four members of this family. Included is a notebook containing George A. Hillman's monologues and news clippings discussing the vaudeville performances of George and his wife, Ethel Riddick Hillman; and scrapbooks of news clippings and programs illustrating the tap dancing careers of their sons, George I. and Christopher Hillman, known as the Hillman Brothers, (1930's-1940's). Another scrapbook provides information about George I. Hillman's performance in "Curley McDimple" (1968).

Subjects

• African American dancers
• African Americans in the performing arts
• Tap dancers
• Hillman, George, 1906-1995
• African American entertainers
• Hillman, Ethel Reddick
• African Americans > Dancing
• Scrapbooks
• Hillman Brothers (Dance team)
• Hillman, George Abraham
• African Americans in popular culture
• Hillman, Christopher, 1909-1994
• African American families
• Vaudeville > United States
• Black entertainers

Genre/Form

Scrapbooks.

Note

• Photographs transferred to Photographs and Prints Division.

Source (note)

• George Hillman, Jr.

Biography (note)

• The Hillman family consisted of two generations of performers; George Abraham Hillman and his wife Ethel Riddick Hillman, a song and dance team, that performed around the turn of the century and later, and their sons, George Ira and Christopher, the Hillman Brothers.

Call Number

Sc MG 588

OCLC

NYPG05-A10174

Author

Hillman family.

Title

Hillman family papers, 1905-1995.

Biography

The Hillman family consisted of two generations of performers; George Abraham Hillman and his wife Ethel Riddick Hillman, a song and dance team, that performed around the turn of the century and later, and their sons, George Ira and Christopher, the Hillman Brothers.

Known as the "Creators of Suave Syncopation" and the "Aristocrats of Modern Dance," the Hillman Brothers had numerous engagements in vaudeville, theaters, and nightclubs in the United States and abroad. They toured with the USO, Bob Hope, Sophie Tucker, Tony Bennett, Nat King Cole, and Ben Vareen, performing for over thirty years.

In 1968, George made his Off-Broadway debut in the starring role of Bill Bojangles in "Curley McDimple," which ran for two years. He later appeared in the Off-Broadway play "On Toby Time" (1977) as well as in "Suddenly the Music Starts" (1979), "Stompin' at the Savoy" (1980) and "1000 Years of Jazz" (1981), where he starred as one of the "Original Hoofers." He was also a principal dancer in "Black and Blue" (1991). George died in 1995, following Christopher, who had died one year earlier.

Connect to:

Finding aid

Research Call Number

Sc MG 588