This is True®
by Randy CassinghamRandy Cassingham's Honorary Unsubscribe Recognizes the Unknown, the Forgotten and the Obscure People who Had an Impact on Our Lives
Howard "Sandman" Sims
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A former boxer, Sandman (as everyone called him) taught footwork to such boxing legends as Sugar Ray Robinson and Muhammad Ali. But it was as a dancer that he excelled: he liked to tapdance after sprinkling sand in a box, which reminded him of "dancing" in the rosin box before a bout. He taught footwork to dancers, too: Gregory Hines and Ben Vereen were among his dancing students. Sims was a fixture at the Apollo Theater, where he not only won a record 25 straight amateur night contests, but also where he served more than 30 years as the "executioner" -- escorting unpopular acts off the stage. Sims was a "virtuoso among virtuosos," said dance critic Anna Kisselgoff, "in a class by himself." In 1984, Sims won a National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. "I thought I was making noise all these years," he said at the time. "Now they're calling it culture." The Sandman died in the Bronx May 20. He was 86.
From This is True for 25 May 2003
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