NEW YORK (AP) — Elvera Sanchez Davis, a tap dancer and the mother of Sammy Davis Jr., died Saturday. She was 95.
Known as Baby Sanchez, Davis began performing at 16 in the chorus line at the Lafayette Theater in Harlem. She continued her career into the early 1940s, dancing for six years in the chorus line at the Apollo Theatre.
In 1923, performing in a touring show called "Holiday in Dixie," she met and married Sammy Davis Sr., also a dancer in the show.
Their son was born in 1925. He became a tap-dance prodigy by age 10, trained and brought up by his father after his parents separated.
Mrs. Davis retired when the Apollo disbanded its dance chorus, though she danced informally into her 90s. She also performed in touring revues and in films including Carl Micheaux's 1936 "Swing."
Davis continued to be involved with tap dance until her death.
Sammy Davis Jr. died in 1990 at the age of 64.