Estrellita

Born in Venezuela to a French father and a Venezuelan mother, Estrellita moved to Harlem with her family when she was two years old and was educated in New York City schools. She started her dancing career in the chorus lines of the Cotton Club and the Apollo Theater. It was at the latter that she met Montrose Morse, better known as comedian Apus Brooks; they soon developed a comedic dance routine and went out on the vaudeville circuit. For thirty-two years, Apus and Estrellita were standards on the TOBA circuit (Theatre Owners Booking Association), and during World War II, the duo performed in USO shows. After the end of the war, Estrellita retired from performing; having earned a college degree in biology, she embarked on a career in hospital administration at Lincoln and Harlem Hospitals in New York City.