Beloved artist, entertainer, and humanitarian Bill "Bojangles" Robinson (1878–1949) was born Luther Robinson on this day in Richmond, Virginia.

The grandson of a slave, he left school at seven to dance for a living. His infectious joy and brilliant footwork earned him the nickname Mr. Bojangles.

“Everything is copacetic,” he liked to say—a personal anthem for the rightness of life.

With groundbreaking vaudeville and musical routines, Robinson transformed tap forever. He danced on his toes with wooden taps, bringing elegance, speed, and innovation to the stage. He starred in fourteen films, and four with Shirley Temple—a rare partnership at the time that broke racial barriers in Hollywood.

In Stormy Weather, he led a dynamic super-tap troupe. He also portrayed Will Rogers's servant in In Old Kentucky (1935). A passionate perfectionist, his most famous routine? Tap dancing up and down a staircase—a feat of both grace and grit.

Robinson never forgot his roots. With fame came generosity: thousands of benefit performances, funding for Harlem's first traffic light, and the honorary title “Mayor of Harlem.”

On his 61st birthday, he tap-danced down Broadway from Columbus Circle to 44th Street. In 1989, the U.S. Congress designated May 25 as National Tap Dance Day in his honor—a day to celebrate rhythm, artistry, and soul.

Mr. Bojangles danced not just with his feet, but with his heart. His legacy lives in every tap, every beat, every joyful step forward.