William Fuse Benbow (October 15, 1881 or 1882 – November 18, 1950) was an American vaudeville entertainer who was the manager of the Alabama Chocolate Drops touring company and "a pioneer of black vaudeville entertainment in the southern states in the early part of the twentieth century".
[1] Benbow was born in Montgomery, Alabama, in either 1881 or 1882,[1] though records show that in later life he claimed dates as late as 1887.
[2] He started performing in touring black vaudeville shows by 1899, and in 1902 joined Allen's Minstrels in Birmingham, Alabama as a singer and dancer.
The company, which also toured as the Alabama Chocolate Drops, included Benbow and his wife Alberta, Morton, and pianist and bandleader Frank Rachel.
Benbow was hired to lead another touring group, "C. W. Park's Colored Aristocrats",[4] initially also featuring May who died later that year.