The Silver Belles were an American female tap dance troupe established in Harlem, New York City.
[1] Group members included Marion Coles, Elaine Ellis, Cleo Hayes, Fay Ray, and Bertye Lou Wood.
Managed by Geri Kennedy, The Silver Belles marked their return to the stage on June 8, 1986, at the Latin Quarter.
Bertye Lou Wood and other dancers chipped in and bought Ella Fitzgerald her first evening gown because she did not have one.
Wood led the Apollo Theater chorus line to strike for higher wages and a week's vacation pay on February 23, 1940.
[5][6][7] Sixteen chorus girls shut down the theater by refusing to go onstage and held a 24-hour picket line.
They won a pay increase from $22.50 to $25 per week, extra time for rehearsals, and reduced working hours.
[5] Elaine Ellis (November 30, 1917 – December 21, 2013) was born in Panama and traveled to New York with her family at a young age.
She moved to Chicago with the hopes of becoming a star and landed her first job at the Grand Terrace with Earl Hines.
After war jobs declined for dancers, she continued to work at Broadway's Café Zanzibar, the 845 Club, toured with Cab Calloway, and starred in the film Stormy Weather.
At age 12, she jumped on a freight train dressed as a boy and left her hard childhood of picking cotton.
At 18, she tried out an act in front of Leonard Reed who called her a bitch for mimicking his moves so well and hired her.
[8] Geraldine "Geri" Rhodes Kennedy (July 12, 1930 – November 16, 2017) was born in Monroe Township, North Carolina.
Working as a barmaid in Harlem, Kennedy became interested in the chorus girls after hearing stories from former dancers such as Edna "Yak" Taylor.
Kennedy wanted to make sure Chorus girls received their due recognition and were able to continue to use their talents until they no longer could.