Frances Taylor Davis

Taylor was born on September 28, 1929, in Chicago, Illinois and grew up in the Rosenwald Courts in Chicago. Her father worked at the post office. She began dancing classical ballet at age 8, and by age 16 was performing Swan Lake.{{cite magazine |last=Mitchell |first=Gail |date=May 26, 2001 |title=Wife and Muse, Frances Davis Recalls Life with Miles |url=https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/00s/2001/BB-2001-05-26.pdf |magazine=Billboard |volume=113 |issue=21 |page=68 |access-date=May 19, 2024 |via=World Radio History}} Her instructor encouraged her to audition for the Edna McRae School of the Dance, where she became the only African American student. While attending the school, Taylor met dancer and choreographer Katherine Dunham who offered her a scholarship to study dance with the Katherine Dunham Company.{{Cite journal|date=April 3, 1952|title=Chicagoan May Dance With Famed Ballet Soon|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J0MDAAAAMBAJ&q=frances+taylor+ballet&pg=PA34|journal=Jet|volume=1|issue=23|pages=34–35}} Taylor finished high school, then briefly attended college but decided to pursue a dancing career instead.

Taylor joined the Katherine Dunham Company, where she was taught by Walter Nicks. She trained and toured extensively with the dance company in Europe and South America.

File:FrancesTaylor-Max-Bozzoni-4dec1951.png

In December 1951, Taylor was recruited for a special presentation with the Paris Opera Ballet, becoming the first African-American to perform with the ballet company.{{Cite web |date=2023-04-21 |title=Frances Taylor was the first Black dancer to perform with the Paris Opera Ballet |url=https://vegebon.wordpress.com/2023/04/22/frances-taylor-first-black-dancer-paris-opera-ballet/ |access-date=2023-04-22 |website=Végébon |language=fr-FR}} She received rave reviews from the press for her performances in Paris and was compared to French ballet dancer Leslie Caron.{{Cite journal|date=November 15, 1951|title=Young Dancer Thrills In Paris|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IkMDAAAAMBAJ&q=frances+Taylor+porgy+and+bess&pg=PA31|journal=Jet|volume=1|issue=3|pages=31}} She performed with Benny Goodman at the London Palladium. While in London, Taylor rehearsed with Sadler's Wells Ballet.

In 1953, Taylor was asked by Sammy Davis Jr. to appear as his girlfriend in the ill-fated ABC TV show Three for the Road – with the Will Mastin Trio.{{Cite journal|date=October 15, 1953|title=New York Beat|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sEIDAAAAMBAJ&q=frances+Taylor+jet&pg=PA65|journal=Jet|volume=4|issue=23|pages=65}} She and Davis had met at Ciro's nightclub where she was performing with the Dunham troupe. Three for the Road was about struggling musicians, and avoided the stereotypical portrayals of African-Americans common during that era. The cast included actresses Ruth Attaway and Jane White, as well as Frederick O'Neal who founded the American Negro Theater. A pilot was filmed in the fall of 1953,{{Cite journal|date=October 29, 1953|title=Sammy Davis To Start On TV Show Nov. 26|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rEIDAAAAMBAJ&q=frances+taylor+jet+1954&pg=PA59|journal=Jet|volume=4|issue=25|pages=59}} but the show was postponed and eventually dropped when ABC was unable to get a sponsor.{{Cite journal|date=February 25, 1954|title=Her TV Debut Delayed Again|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CsADAAAAMBAJ|journal=Jet|volume=5|issue=16|pages=34}}{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/inblackwhitelife00haygo/page/148|title=In Black and White: The Life of Sammy Davis, Jr.|last=Haygood|first=Wil|publisher=New York : A.A. Knopf : Distributed by Random House|year=2003|isbn=9780375403545|pages=[https://archive.org/details/inblackwhitelife00haygo/page/148 148-149, 328]}}

In 1954, Taylor rejoined the Dunham troupe as a lead dancer for engagements in Rome{{Cite journal|date=April 1, 1954|title=Dancer Frances Taylor Rejoins Dance Troupe|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IMADAAAAMBAJ&q=frances+Taylor+jet&pg=PA60|journal=Jet|volume=5|issue=21|pages=60}} but later relocated to New York City so she could act on Broadway. She was credited as Elizabeth Taylor (using her middle name) because there was already an actress named Frances Taylor.

Taylor appeared in Off-Broadway productions of Porgy and Bess and Carmen Jones at New York City Center. She also appeared in three Broadway musicals: Mr. Wonderful, Shinbone Alley, and, notably, West Side Story. On West Side Story's opening night in September 1957, Taylor received the company's "gypsy robe" for being the outstanding dancer in the cast.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qDl3zKlMNbQC&q=carmen+jones|title=So What: The Life of Miles Davis|last=Szwed|first=John F.|publisher=Simon & Schuster|year=2004|isbn=0-684-85982-3|location=New York|pages=147|oclc=50123549}}

Jet magazine reported in April 1958 that Taylor quit the production to pursue a singing-dancing career,{{Cite journal|date=April 17, 1958|title=New York Beat|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ELcDAAAAMBAJ&q=frances+Taylor+jet&pg=PA64|journal=Jet|volume=13|issue=24|pages=64}} but she later revealed that she was dating jazz musician Miles Davis who forced her to quit in March 1958.{{Cite news|last=Broeske|first=Pat H.|date=November 21, 2006|title=Grappling with the cool and rage of Miles Davis - Culture - International Herald Tribune (Published 2006)|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/21/arts/21iht-miles.3611591.html|access-date=2020-12-14|issn=0362-4331}} According to Taylor, Davis said "A woman should be with her man. I want you out of West Side Story."

Davis allowed Taylor to conduct dancing classes for a while in 1959. Her students included Julie Robinson, a Dunham trouper and wife of actor Harry Belafonte, and Edna Mae Robinson, a chorus line dancer and wife of boxer Sugar Ray Robinson.{{Cite journal|date=April 30, 1959|title=Ex-Pros Get A Lesson|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nUEDAAAAMBAJ&q=frances+Taylor+jet+1959&pg=PA31|journal=Jet|volume=16|issue=1|pages=31}}

When Davis married Taylor in December 1959, he not only insisted that she quit West Side Story, but hampered her career in other ways. Choreographer Jerome Robbins, whom Taylor had worked with in West Side Story on Broadway, asked Davis if she could appear in the film West Side Story (1961); Davis refused. Sammy Davis Jr. approached Davis about Taylor appearing in the musical Golden Boy (1964); Davis refused again.

Following her split from Davis in 1965, Taylor taught private dance classes, appeared in television specials with performers such as Elvis Presley, and had a role as the maid in the film The Party (1968).

After Taylor retired, she became a restaurant hostess in Los Angeles. She worked at Hamburger Hamlet, Roy's Restaurant, Le Dome, and Chasen's.{{Cite web|url=https://www.lamag.com/citythinkblog/vintage-los-angeles-the-tragedy-of-hamburger-hamlet/|title=Vintage Los Angeles: The Tragedy of Hamburger Hamlet Los Angeles Magazine|last=Martino|first=Alison|date=January 2, 2014|website=Los Angeles Magazine|language=en-US}}

Taylor first met Davis when she was dancing at Ciro's nightclub in Los Angeles in 1953.{{Cite web|url=https://www.wehoville.com/2018/11/18/frances-taylor-davis-wehos-diva-hostess-hamburger-hamlet-died/|title=Frances Taylor Davis, WeHo's 'Diva' and Hostess of Hamburger Hamlet, Has Died|date=November 18, 2018|website=WEHOville|language=en-US}} When she traveled back to Chicago, Davis was also in town for gigs. Taylor introduced Davis to her family; Miles asked Frances' father for her hand in marriage, to which her father said, "No." Taylor also rejected Miles' proposal.

Taylor married Jean-Marie Durand in Mexico City in 1955 where they were both performing.{{Cite journal|date=August 18, 1955|title=Katherine Dunham Hosts Newlyweds|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vrEDAAAAMBAJ&q=jean+marie+durand+frances+jet&pg=PA14|journal=Jet|volume=8|issue=15|pages=14}}{{Cite journal|date=August 4, 1955|title=Dancer, Haitian Wed|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xbEDAAAAMBAJ&q=jean+marie+durand+frances+taylor&pg=PA18|journal=Jet|volume=3|issue=13|pages=18}} Durand was of Haitian descent and also a member of the Katherine Dunham troupe; he and Frances met in Argentina in 1954. Taylor left the troupe following the marriage and gave birth to a son, Jean-Pierre Durand (who reportedly inspired Miles' tune "Jean-Pierre").

After Taylor separated from Durand, she ran into Davis in New York City in 1957. Davis told her, "Now that I've found you, I'll never let you go."{{Cite journal|date=November 14, 1957|title=New York Beat|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XrcDAAAAMBAJ&q=frances+Taylor+jet+1957&pg=PA64|journal=Jet|volume=13|issue=2|pages=64}}{{Cite web|url=http://thehollywood360.com/an-interview-with-frances-davis-miles-daviss-1st-wife/|title=An Interview with Frances Davis (Miles Davis's 1st Wife)|last=Aronson|first=Sheryl|date=September 25, 2017|website=The Hollywood 360|language=en-US}} Taylor and Davis were married in Toledo, Ohio on December 21, 1959.{{Cite journal|date=January 7, 1960|title=Miles Davis, Frances Taylor Wed In Toledo|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=064DAAAAMBAJ&q=frances+Taylor+jet+1960+miles+davis&pg=PA59|journal=Jet|volume=17|issue=11|pages=59}}

Taylor became Davis' muse, influencing his change in musical direction. Davis wrote "Fran Dance" for Taylor; it appears on his album Jazz Track (1959).{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RRLSAgAAQBAJ&q=porgy+and+bess+City+Center+1958&pg=PA252|title=Reading Jazz: A Gathering of Autobiography, Reportage, and Criticism from 1919 to Now|last=Gottlieb|first=Robert|publisher=Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group|year=2014|isbn=978-0-307-79727-8|pages=252|language=en}} Her role in the musical Porgy and Bess inspired his album Porgy and Bess (1959). His album Sketches of Spain (1960) was inspired by a flamenco performance Taylor insisted they attend.

Davis featured Taylor on the cover of multiple albums, including Someday My Prince Will Come (1961). However, the marriage was marred by domestic violence. Davis became increasingly violent towards Taylor as his cocaine addiction and alcohol abuse worsened. Wrote Davis in his 1990 memoir Miles: The Autobiography: "Every time I hit her, I felt bad because a lot of it really wasn't her fault but had to do with me being temperamental and jealous."

Shortly after Taylor and Davis were photographed together for the cover of E.S.P. (1965), Taylor fled and went to stay with her friend, singer Nancy Wilson in California.{{cite AV media |publication-date=May 25, 2018 |title=Frances Davis: Her Story - Life Before & After Miles |url=https://snapshotsfoundation.com/index.php/articles/129-frances-taylor-davis-interview |access-date=May 19, 2024 |time={{time needed|date=May 2024}} |publisher=Snapshots Music & Arts Foundation |via=Vimeo}}{{Cite book|title=Miles, The Autobiography|last=Davis, Miles|publisher=Simon and Schuster|others=Troupe, Quincy|year=1990|isbn=0-671-63504-2|location=New York|oclc=20015144}} Taylor filed for divorce in 1966 and it was finalized in 1968.{{Cite journal|date=February 15, 1968|title=Miles Davis And Wife Now 'Miles Apart'|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LrgDAAAAMBAJ&q=frances+miles+davis+jet&pg=PA23|journal=Jet|volume=33|issue=19|pages=23}} She was interviewed for the documentary Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool; it was released posthumously in 2019.{{Cite web|url=https://thevinylfactory.com/news/miles-davis-film-documentary-birth-of-cool/|title = Miles Davis' life explored in new doc, Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool|date = 17 March 2020}}

Taylor had a relationship with George Barrie, CEO of Fabergé.

In 1990, Taylor filed a lawsuit charging her long-time friend Eartha Kitt with assault and battery.{{Cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-11-02-ca-3990-story.html|title=Eartha Kitt Assault Alleged|date=November 2, 1990|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US}} Taylor alleged that Kitt attacked her after they had drinks at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.{{Cite journal|date=November 19, 1990|title=Suit Charges Eartha Kitt With Assault, Battery|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p7sDAAAAMBAJ&q=frances+davis+eartha+kitt&pg=PA57|journal=Jet|volume=79|issue=6|pages=57}}

Taylor died at the age of 89 on November 17, 2018. She was survived by her son Jean-Pierre Durand, stepdaughter Cheryl Davis, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

{{Reflist}}

• {{IMDb name|0204606|Frances Taylor}}
• {{IBDB name|81295|Elizabeth Taylor}}
• {{Playbill person|elizabeth-taylor-vault-0000041886|Elizabeth Taylor}}
• [https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Elizabeth-Taylor+%28ii%29/ Elizabeth Taylor] on Broadway World
• [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XhXuFLZkQg Frances Davis: Her Story - Life before & after Miles]

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Category:1929 births

Category:2018 deaths

Category:Actresses from Chicago

Category:American female dancers

Category:Paris Opera Ballet dancers

Category:African-American ballerinas

Category:American musical theatre actresses

Category:African-American choreographers

Category:American women choreographers

Category:American choreographers

Category:Dancers from Illinois

Category:Muses (persons)

Category:African-American women musicians

Category:20th-century American ballet dancers

Category:African-American women choreographers