July 7
Born Today:
Dalilah
Middle Eastern dancer Dalilah (1936-2001) studied flamenco, ballet, and Spanish classical dance as a youngster and began dancing professionally, along with a partner, on tour. In 1954 they traveled to Egypt and she was encouraged to take up Middle Eastern dance, aka belly dance. She and Nagwa Fouad (1939-) were invited to perform at the opening of the new Nile Hilton Hotel in 1954 and established dancer Taheyya Carioca (1915-1999) became her mentor. Dalilah toured the Middle East in the 1960s and moved to Las Vegas in 1974 and opened a school, where she taught until her retirement ten years later.
Also Born Today: Kabuki performer Koshiro Matsumoto VIII (1910-1982) specialized in history plays and domestic dramas known as sewamono and in the 1960s, he pursued less classical roles before returning to kabuki in the early 1970s. Dancer Robia La Morte (1970-) performed with Prince (1958-2016) during his 1991 Diamonds and Pearls tour and later starred in the TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer as Jenny Calendar. Ice dancer Chris Reed (1989-2020) relinquished his dual citizenship in order to compete for Japan and he and his sister Cathy Reed (1987-) won multiple national championships before his untimely demise.