Florence Mills

Happy Birthday, Florence Mills...January 25, 1896-November 1, 1927...Mills was one of the all-time greatest stars of Black Theater, the first international female superstar of the 20th century and a major figure of the Harlem Renaissance. Born to ex-slaves in Washington, D.C., Mills began her career under her given name, Florence Winfrey, at the age of six singing with her two older sisters. The trio toured up and down the Eastern Seaboard as the "Mills Sisters" until the older sisters married and retired.

In 1916 at the age of 20, Mills joined Brick Top and Cora Green at the infamous black and tan Chicago nightclub Panama Cafe. The three called themselves the Panama Trio and garnered some success along with Alberta Hunter and Mezz Mezzrow. Bill "Bojangles" Robinson became a fan of Mills and taught her how to tap dance. But the club was a rough and tumble joint and was closed down a year later by the police after Alberta Hunter's pianist was shot and killed onstage. The Trio played other local venues for a time before disbanding.

In 1917 Mills joined the Tennessee Ten, a successful black vaudeville troupe whose dance director, Ulysses "Slow Kid" Thompson, would eventually become her husband and business partner. The group had a successful run in a show called "Folly Town" which also starred Bert Lahr and Jack Hailey (Wizard of Oz) in 1919 and Mills went on to star in a solo show at the Lincoln Theater.

The real turning point in her career came when she was cast in the historic Broadway show "Shuffle Along". Originally a regular cast member, Mills stepped into the leading role when Gertrude Saunders left the show and Mills became an even bigger sensation. When the show closed in 1922, promoter Lew Leslie built a show around her and Kid Thompson at the Plantation Restaurant where she introduced her theme song, "I'm A Little Blackbird Looking For A Bluebird", a thinly disguised protest against racial inequality. She made her first tour of Europe in 1923 and despite some racial opposition, she was a smashing success. British theater impresario C.B. Cochran remembered, "That night, and every night she appeared at the London Pavilion, Florence Mills received an ovation each time she came onstage-before every song she sang. This is a tribute which in my experience I have never known to be offered to any other artist. In my humble opinion Florence Mills is one of the greatest artists of our time."

Back in the States, Lew Leslie created his first Blackbirds revue with a cast including Mills and Thompson and in 1926 it was launched to great acclaim. The show traveled to Europe and again Mills dazzled the audiences. Lew Leslie's Blackbirds of 1926 was such a success in London that Blackbird themed parties became all the rage as high society outdid itself in an effort to entertain the performers. The Prince of Wales saw the show so many times he was seen singing along to Mills. Mills used her celebrity status to raise money for children's charities, speak out against racism and urge support for the NAACP.

 In April of 1926, "Blackbirds" reached 250 performances at the London Pavilion. The strain of carrying a show through two shows a day plus matinees and charity benefits began to take a toll on the already fragile Mills. Despite failing health, Mills went on tour throughout England. In Liverpool she was told by a doctor that she needed to get medical treatment for tuberculosis or she would die.She and Thompson travel to Germany to take a cure and then headed back to the States.

Mill's mother was dying and Mills postponed her own medical treatment. As a result she was hospitalized in October of 1926 where she underwent surgery. An infection set in and even though Mills was dying, she sang songs to the nurses and Lew Leslie to cheer them up. Her last words were, "I don't want anyone to cry when I die. I just want to make people happy, always." She died at the age of 32. Her death was a shock to the entertainment world. Over 10,000 people attended the funeral home to pay respect and thousands attended the funeral. It was the biggest funeral that Harlem had ever experienced. Legend has it that a flow of blackbirds flew over the funeral cortege prompting Porter Grainger to remark, "She has gone to join the songbirds in Heaven."

Mills was memorialized in song by several musicians. Ellington wrote "Black Beauty" in her honor. Fat's Waller recorded four songs just days after her death including "Gone But Not Forgotten-Florence Mills. At 3:10 on this video you'll hear Ellington's 'Black Beauty' dubbed over one of only a couple of films shot of Mills dancing.