{{short description|American dancer}} {{use mdy dates|date=October 2025}} {{Infobox dancer | name = Maceo Anderson | image = Maceo_Anderson.jpg | image_size = 175px | caption = | birth_date = {{birth date|1910|09|03}}{{efn|Date of birth is per his World War II draft registration card; some sources list his year of birth as 1909.}} | birth_place = Lakeland, Florida, U.S.{{efn|Place of birth is per his World War II draft registration card; some sources list his place of birth as South Carolina.}} | death_date = {{death date and age|2001|07|04|1910|09|03}} | death_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S. | education = | occupation = Dancer, dance teacher | years_active = {{circa|1925–1999}} | spouse = Mary Anderson<ref name=NYT/> | children = | former_groups = The Four Step Brothers | dances = Tap dance, flash dance }} '''Maceo Edward Anderson''' (September 3, 1910 – July 4, 2001) was an American dancer and a founding member of the dance group The Four Step Brothers.
==Biography== Anderson was born in 1910 in Lakeland, Florida.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.fold3.com/image/698651606/anderson-maceo-edward-page-1-us-wwii-draft-registration-cards-1940 |title=Draft Registration Card |agency=Selective Service System |via=fold3.com |url-access=subscription |date=October 1940 |accessdate=October 19, 2025}}</ref> He expressed an interest in dancing at the age of three, when his family was living in Charleston, South Carolina.<ref name=LAT/> Three years later, the family moved to Harlem, where Anderson would sneak into the Lafayette Theatre to watch performances.<ref name=LAT/> In his teen years, he founded a trio of dancers who performed at the Cotton Club in Harlem. They went on to perform with Duke Ellington and his orchestra; Ellington wrote "The Mystery Song" for the group.<ref name=NYT/>
Anderson was the founder of the tap dancing group known as The Four Step Brothers. The group performed successfully from the mid-1920s into the 1960s. They were credited as being the first black act to perform at Radio City Music Hall.<ref name="foot"/> The Four Step Brothers also made television and motion picture appearances. Their dance routines were a unique blend of soft shoe, tap, acrobatic tricks (known as flash dancing), and complicated footwork. Anderson performed with the group throughout their existence.
During World War II, The Four Step Brothers performed in several Hollywood films, such as ''When Johnny Comes Marching Home'' (1942). Anderson joined the United States Army in February 1943.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.fold3.com/record/91106040/maceo-e-anderson-us-wwii-army-enlistment-records-1938-1946 |title=WWII Army Enlistment Record |agency=National Archives and Records Administration |via=fold3.com |url-access=subscription |accessdate=October 19, 2025}}</ref> In 1946, The Four Step Brothers performed with Frank Sinatra and then embarked on a six-month performance at the Parisian Le Lido followed by tours to Italy and Spain. In 1953, they performed with Bob Hope in ''Here Come the Girls''.
After retiring from dance, Anderson became a church minister and actively worked to help the homeless in the Los Angeles area.<ref name=LAT/> The Four Step Brothers were honored in 1988 with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.<ref name="foot">{{cite web |title=The Four Step Brothers |url=http://www.footnotesontap.com/LegendBiosPhotos/FourStepBrothersPage.html |website=Footnotesontap.com |accessdate=September 13, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914022726/http://www.footnotesontap.com/LegendBiosPhotos/FourStepBrothersPage.html |archive-date=September 14, 2018 |via=Wayback Machine}}</ref>
Anderson died in Los Angeles on July 4, 2001.<ref name=LAT>{{cite news |last1=Segal |first1=Lewis |title=Maceo Anderson; Tap Dancer Who Broke Color Line |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2001-jul-17-me-23233-story.html |access-date=September 14, 2018 |newspaper=Los Angeles Times|issue=July 17, 2001}}</ref><ref name=NYT>{{cite news |last1=Dunning |first1=Jennifer |title=Maceo Anderson, 90, Tap Dancer, Is Dead |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/07/14/arts/maceo-anderson-90-tap-dancer-is-dead.html |newspaper=The New York Times |accessdate=September 13, 2018|date=July 14, 2001 }}</ref>
==Notes== {{notelist}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Further reading== *{{IMDb name|0027116}} *{{cite web | title = Maceo Anderson Papers | publisher = Chicago Public Library | access-date = 2025-08-03 | url = https://www.chipublib.org/fa-maceo-anderson-papers}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, Maceo}} Category:1910 births Category:2001 deaths Category:People from Lakeland, Florida Category:People from Harlem Category:African-American male dancers Category:African-American dancers Category:American tap dancers Category:20th-century American dancers Category:Harlem Renaissance Category:United States Army personnel of World War II