Words by Roxy Bourdillon

CW: Racism, domestic abuse

In this instalment of Trailblazers Of Tease, we share the extraordinary story of a groundbreaking burlesque goddess who captivated audiences, overcame racial barriers and became “America’s Foremost Sepia Singing Ecdysiast”.

It’s 1962 and Rosita Sims is fed up. She’s been working as an operator at the Michigan Bell Telephone Company for nine years now and in that time she’s repeatedly been overlooked for promotions. She knows all too well it’s because of the colour of her skin. Her friend, stripper Rita Revere, has an idea. Why doesn’t she quit her dead-end day job and become a burlesquer? After all, Rita is earning great money and having fabulous adventures. At first, Rosita’s not so sure.

“I was like a lot of other people,” she tells The Statesman. “I didn’t know anything about it. The more I thought about it I realised I could probably do that. So I went to my younger, wiser brother. He said, ‘You can be yourself and do anything’. So with that encouragement, I did!”

At 32, an age when many of her contemporaries were packing away their pasties for good, Rosita reinvented herself as a burly dancer.

She didn’t know it at the time, but she would go on to become a superstar: “The Elegant Miss Toni Elling, Satin Doll”. You might be wondering how she came up with her charming stage name. Well, that was a nod to her pal, Duke Ellington. Yes, the Duke Ellington, renowned jazz musician, orchestra leader and composer. Their close friendship was the stuff of showbiz legends. Folks nicknamed Toni “the Duke’s Delight” and she was the inspiration behind his divine song, Satin Doll. Sample lyrics: “Cigarette holder - which wigs me / Over her shoulder - she digs me / Out cattin' - that satin doll.”

When Toni embarked on her exciting new career she enlisted the help of a choreographer, who recommended she hone her craft at local dive bars. But Toni set her sights considerably higher. She saw no reason why she shouldn’t start out at Detroit’s Flame Show Bar, a glitzy hotspot that hosted black showbiz royalty including Dinah Washington, Etta James and Billie Holiday. Sure enough, she landed a gig there and, with her dancing prowess and radiant beauty, the Satin Doll was an instant hit.

Her acts were varied and included a number where she stripped out of a wedding dress, as well as a Spanish themed routine complete with a flamenco costume. She often incorporated vocal stylings into her stripteases and was billed as “America’s Foremost Sepia Singing Ecdysiast”.

Known for her unrivalled grace, she had strict rules about never wearing a G-string or removing her panties during performances.

But with Toni’s growing profile came countless copycats. In an interview with the League Of Exotic Dancers she remembers, “I’d see me everywhere I went and I got tired of it. I said, ‘Ok, I’ll fix ‘em. I’ll do something they can’t do. So I decided to do an Afro.” This new act was completely groundbreaking as the Black Is Beautiful movement of the 1970s hadn’t yet happened. “40 bracelets on both arms. Stripes on my face. And I’d paint my toenails orange so that they would show up in black light.” She came onstage to a Miriam Makeba record, dressed in a cape and beating a bongo drum. “When I put the drum down, took off my cape, then I got wild. Then I’d be all over everything. I didn’t even know what I was doing. And they just loved it. Nobody else could do that so I had it all to myself.”

As one of the era’s most successful burlesque performers of colour, Toni provided vital visibility and paved a path for many others, but she also encountered extreme prejudice.

She recalls in the Detroit Metro Times, “I had a harder time than a lot of girls because of my blackness. It was very hard for a black stripper in those days. We weren’t paid what other girls were paid, and we weren’t allowed to work at certain clubs”. However, there were some venues that were so impressed by Toni’s skills they decided to make an exception. “I ended up working at places black girls didn’t work at. They took a chance on me.”

Her rise to stardom was meteoric and she was often propositioned by male admirers, with one offering her $1000 for a night together.

When asked about her romantic life she reflects, “I don’t love easy. I’ve been in love twice. I wasn’t in love with my husband. I thought I was.” Theirs was a brief, painful marriage. He was an abusive man and she left him soon after they were wed.

“People ask me, ‘How long were you married?’ And I say, ‘Too’. They say, ‘Two years?’ I say, ‘No, too long’.”

Toni retired from burlesque in 1974, but has since returned to the artform, attending festivals and regaling fans with her showgirl stories. In 2012, she dazzled the Burlesque Hall Of Fame crowd as part of the Icons And All-stars Showcase. The lady has most definitely still got it. Oozing poise from every pore, she paraded onstage looking phenomenal in her chic ensemble, before stripping down to a bejewelled basque and high heels. Her music of choice? Duke Ellington’s Satin Doll, naturally.