I was working at the Everglades Night Club on Broadway when Earl Dancer maneuvered me onto an all-star bill for some big Catholic charity that was being staged at the Palace Theatre. The backstage was jumping with big names, and I had to go on following Will Rogers. Rogers was No. 23 act on that bill, I was No. 24, and Singer's Midgets were coming on after me. That big crowd had sat there for hours listening to the biggest and best entertainers in the whole world--and Will Rogers. Yet they waited to hear this little brown-skinned girl sing. Following the unmatchable Rogers was like going on during an earthquake. I got a big hand, and that was one of the most heart-warming compliments I've ever had. Another was the review one of those tough Chicago newspaper critics wrote: "When Ethel Waters sings ‘Dinah’ she is beautiful. When she sings ‘Eïli, Eïli' she achieves greatness. But when she sings ‘Shake That Thing’ she is incredible." << less