Dancer

Dona Drake

Actress, singer, dancer (1914-1989)

Born 1914 · MiamiDied 1989United States
Dona Drake
Image: film screenshot (Edward Small Prod. / United Artists) · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Dona Drake was an American dancer, born in 1914 in Miami, who died in 1989.

Biography

Dona Drake ( DOH-nə; November 15, 1914 – June 20, 1989) was an American singer, dancer, and film actress in the 1930s and 1940s. She was typically cast in ethnic roles including Latin American and Middle Easterners. Drake often presented herself as Mexican and went by the names Una Novella and Rita Novella. As Rita Rio, she led a touring all-girl orchestra in the early 1940s, also known as "Dona Drake and her Girl Band", among other names for her musical and dance acts.

From the Wikipedia article “Dona Drake”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Contemporaries

B

Bonnie Bird

American dancer (1914-1995)

1914–1995
G

Gisella Caccialanza

American ballerina (1914–1998)

1914–1998
Devi Dja

Devi Dja

Indonesian-born American actress and dancer (1914–1989)

1914–1989
Anise Boyer

Anise Boyer

American dancer and actress

1914–2008
Edith Kanakaʻole

Edith Kanakaʻole

dancer 1913-1979

1913–1979
L

Leon James

American dancer of lindy-hop and jazz (1913-1970)

1913–1970
Jules Munshin

Jules Munshin

American actor (1915-1970)

1915–1970
C

Claire Helen Haywood

ballet teacher, artist

1913–1978

Facts from Wikidata (Q3035962), CC0.