Danny Daniels (October 25, 1924 – July 9, 2017), born Daniel Giagni, Jr., was an USA choreographer, tap dancer, and dance teacher.Danny Daniels biography
Daniels was a featured dancer in several 1940s Broadway musicals, including Billion Dollar Baby, Street Scene, and Kiss Me, Kate. Although he continued performing during the 1950s and after, including a tour with the Agnes de Mille Dance Theatre, Daniels quickly moved into choreography for stage, film, and television. He won a Tony Award and an Astaire Award in 1984 for The Tap Dance Kid and received three more Tony nominations for High Spirits, Walking Happy, and the 1967 revival of Annie Get Your Gun.
Daniels' notable film choreography credits include Pennies from Heaven (1981), Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984), The Night They Raided Minsky's (1968), and Zelig (1983). He also choreographed the dance sequences and dubbed the tap sound effects for the movie musical Stepping Out (1991) starring Liza Minnelli. For television he worked on The Judy Garland Show (1963), as well as specials featuring performers such as Gene Kelly and Danny Kaye. In 1952, he created the Tap Dance Concerto with composer Morton Gould.
Daniels' students included Christopher Walken.
Daniels died on July 9, 2017, at the age of 92.Broadway Dancer Danny Daniels Dies at 92
Filmography as performer Year Title Role Notes1958 Passionate Summer Boatman Uncredited1964 Woman of Straw Fenton 1965 Curse of Simba Simbaza 1967 Prehistoric Women Jakara 1968 Dark of the Sun General Moses 1969 The Oblong Box Witchdoctor 1970 Carry on Up the Jungle Nosha Chief 1986 Thunder Run Bard 1987 Retribution Rasta Doctor 1987 The Outing Dr. Theo Bressling 1994 Naked Gun : The Final Insult Cabbie #3 1995 Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls Wachootoo Witch Doctor (final film role)
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Brief interview