Hines, Gregory Oliver

▪ 2004

      American dancer and actor (b. Feb. 14, 1946, New York, N.Y.—d. Aug. 9, 2003, Los Angeles, Calif.), was widely acknowledged as the finest tap dancer of his generation, noted for his virtuosity, rhythm, and expressive style, and was credited with having modernized the form and facilitated its return to motion pictures. In addition to dancing, however, he also enjoyed a successful career as a stage, film, and television actor and a choreographer. Hines began his formal dance training when he was three years old; at age five was performing with his older brother, Maurice, as the Hines Kids; and at eight, along with his brother, made his Broadway debut in The Girl in Pink Tights. The boys then returned to touring, as the Hines Brothers, and in 1963 their father joined the act, playing drums. They toured and appeared on such TV showcases as The Ed Sullivan Show and The Tonight Show. In 1973 Gregory left the act, moving to California and forming a rock band, but he returned to New York in 1978 and with his brother was cast in The Last Minstrel Show, which closed on the road, and then in Eubie! Roles in Comin' Uptown, Black Broadway, and Sophisticated Ladies followed in quick succession, as did roles in such films as The Cotton Club (1984), White Nights (1985), Running Scared (1986), and Tap (1989) and television specials such as “Gregory Hines: Tap Dance in America” (1989). Hines won a Tony Award for his return to Broadway in 1992 in Jelly's Last Jam and was also nominated for his choreography in that show.

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