Well, I have it from several sources that not only did Bill not attend
high school, he left the school system at the age of 8, and went on to
be a performer for the rest of his life. At age 9, he ran away from
his grandparents to start a showbiz career in washington D.C, and at
age 12 he joined the vaudville circuit. The vaudville curcuit
replaced high school as his education. So, he did not ever go to high
school. Good quote:
"At the age of six he began dancing for a living, appearing as a
"hoofer," or song-and-dance man, in local beer gardens. Two years
later, in Washington, DC he toured with Mayme Remington's troupe. In
1891 (Ed: another source-1892), at the ripe age of 12, he joined a
traveling company in "The South Before the War", and in 1905 (Ed:
another source 1902) worked with George Cooper as a vaudeville team."
http://www.kathleenacademy.com/funzone/bojangls.html
Also:
"Luther Robinson, a.k.a. Bill "Bojangles" Robinson was born in
Richmond, Virginia in 1878 and was raised by his grandmother after
being orphaned as a baby. As a youngster, he often danced for pennies
on the streets and in saloons, shined shoes and sold newspapers to
earn money. He left school before the age of eight and ran away to
Washington, D.C. where he worked as a stable boy at a racetrack."
http://www.imdiversity.com/article_detail.asp?Article_ID=2478
Also:
"If there was any formal schooling for Robinson, it had little effect.
He was illiterate. His second wife is reputed to have taught him to
read and write his name."
http://www.africanpubs.com/Apps/bios/1080RobinsonBill.asp?pic=none
Additional sources:
http://www.streetswing.com/histmai2/d2bojan1.htm
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/may25.html
http://www.timesdispatch.com/blackhistory/MGB8DXKB6IC.html
Search Strategy: Typed bill bojangles robinson into google search
engine, and anaylzed 20 or so biographies to ensure there was no
evidence he attended high school. |
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