RIP Hinton Battle

[abatt]

Three-Time Tony Award Winner Hinton Battle Passes Away at 67 (broadwayworld.com)

[On Pointe]

Hinton had had some years of ill health prior to his passing.  Hinton was a Broadway star,  the recipient of three Tony Awards.  He also appeared on television on occasion.  But I will always remember him as a dazzling ballet dancer,  with impeccable technique,  extraordinary musicality and ease of movement.  I am not exaggerating when I say that he could have held his own with any of the great male stars of the recent past.  But as a darkskinned,  unambiguously Black American,  Hinton was born too soon.  We'd already had Arthur Mitchell,  and then as well as now to some extent,  there was only room for one at the top at a time.

Hinton was an Army Brat,   born in Germany,  but growing up in DC.  Like Chita Rivera,  he was trained at the Jones-Haywood school and received a scholarship to SAB.  (Not many ballet schools can boast of alumni like that.). I first met him when I was in a pre-Broadway run of a show with his sister.  He was around fifteen,  goofing around in his street clothes,  and tossing off turns,  leaps and sky high extensions that left me open-mouthed in wonder.  Who was this kid!

I later did two shows with Hinton,  and "this kid" was such a gentleman,  unfailingly polite and considerate,  an absolute pleasure to work with and be around.

I can't claim to have been a close friend of his,  but I'd like to recognize someone who was - Leah Bass,  who cared for Hinton through years of illness,  including the cruel loss of both legs to diabetes.  Leah is what we call "a real one".

Apparently the New York Times has not published an obituary for Hinton,  which is an outrage.  Hopefully they will do so in the near future.

[dirac]

The NYT must have read your post, On Pointe:

Quote

Hinton Battle, a dazzling dancer who won the first of his three Tony Awards in 1981 for his performance in the Duke Ellington musical revue “Sophisticated Ladies” after learning how to tap dance in the weeks leading up to opening night, died on Tuesday in Los Angeles. He was 67.

It may be that the NYT didn't have a draft obit on file for him.

[On Pointe]

9 hours ago, dirac said:

The NYT must have read your post, On Pointe:

I can't take credit for it.  The lack of recognition for a three time Tony winner from the NYTimes was a hot topic of discussion on Broadway boards,  especially because there were three articles on the great Chita Rivera.  The two had careers that followed the same trajectory - the Jones-Haywood ballet school,  SAB,  unexpected big break on Broadway.  

[dirac]

 Rivera was in her nineties, a very advanced age, and she was in the public eye almost to the end. In such cases of long life the NYT has draft obits and possibly appreciations already prepared. That said, writers can write fast when they have to, and an article of appreciation for both certainly suggests itself (and may appear eventually).