Choreographer, Dancer. Born in Chicago, she was a nightclub dancer until she contracted tuberculosis as a young woman. She then turned to choreography and founded the June Taylor Dancers in 1942. Appearing first on television in 1948 on "The Toast of the Town," starring Ed Sullivan, she won an Emmy for her choreography in 1954 for her success with "Cavalcade of the Stars," Jackie Gleason's television variety show. Later known as "The Jackie Gleason Show" she had the foresight to utilize the square format of television by using unusual camera angles, often from overhead, resulting in kaleidoscopic patterns of the dancers limbs. Her husband Sol Lerner, a prominent theatrical lawyer was responsible for her accepting the challenge of aligning herself with Gleason which represented significant risk in the beginning. Gleason took the show from New York to Miami Beach in 1964 where it remained until the end of its run in 1970. In 1975 her sister Marilyn, a dancer in the company since the beginning became Gleason's third wife. Coming out of retirement she began working with cheerleaders of the Miami Dolphins in 1978. She continued to give a Broadway flavor to their routines until he final retirement in 1990. "One of the first things I learned in television was the necessity of varying the style of the dancing each week," she said in an interview in 1953. "People want something new. My girls, I believe, are the best hoofers in the business. They know tap, ballet, classical ballet, toe work, modern and acrobatic dancing." She died in Miami, Florida. "We were on television," her sister said the day she died, "and we had to move fast. The only comparison was the Rockettes, but we danced four times faster than they did."
Choreographer, Dancer. Born in Chicago, she was a nightclub dancer until she contracted tuberculosis as a young woman. She then turned to choreography and founded the June Taylor Dancers in 1942. Appearing first on television in 1948 on "The Toast of the Town," starring Ed Sullivan, she won an Emmy for her choreography in 1954 for her success with "Cavalcade of the Stars," Jackie Gleason's television variety show. Later known as "The Jackie Gleason Show" she had the foresight to utilize the square format of television by using unusual camera angles, often from overhead, resulting in kaleidoscopic patterns of the dancers limbs. Her husband Sol Lerner, a prominent theatrical lawyer was responsible for her accepting the challenge of aligning herself with Gleason which represented significant risk in the beginning. Gleason took the show from New York to Miami Beach in 1964 where it remained until the end of its run in 1970. In 1975 her sister Marilyn, a dancer in the company since the beginning became Gleason's third wife. Coming out of retirement she began working with cheerleaders of the Miami Dolphins in 1978. She continued to give a Broadway flavor to their routines until he final retirement in 1990. "One of the first things I learned in television was the necessity of varying the style of the dancing each week," she said in an interview in 1953. "People want something new. My girls, I believe, are the best hoofers in the business. They know tap, ballet, classical ballet, toe work, modern and acrobatic dancing." She died in Miami, Florida. "We were on television," her sister said the day she died, "and we had to move fast. The only comparison was the Rockettes, but we danced four times faster than they did."
Bio by: D C McJonathan-Swarm
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