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Comment by Dr. Nelson Harrison on September 26, 2009 at 4:59am

Henry Louis Belcher, 1915 - 2009

Henry Belcher was very proud to receive the 2000 Manchester Craftsmen's Guild Tribute Honoring the Dancin' Demons. The evening was produced by his nephew, Evan Frazier, Executive Director of The Hill House Association. The Demons also received a Pennsylvania Folk Arts Fellowship Award, in recognition of their talents and contributions as traditional artists. They also received the first Living Legend Award at Pittsburgh's 12th Annual Black Extravaganza and Trailblazer Awards given by Renaissance Publications.
On June 10, 2006, Major A. Mason III, Ph.D., Henry’s good friend, interviewed Henry for Story Corps, the national NPR project keeping alive family stories. That interview led to a special on “The Art of Living” cable television network from Baltimore. They sent a crew of four to tape the interview at Henry’s home and it was aired over Comcast cable in March 2007. In addition, Mr. Belcher was the oldest member of Pittsburgh’s Black & White Reunion and tapped at their 10th Annual Summit against Racism on January 21, 2008, at the age of 93.
Mr. Belcher in his 94 years was a hoofer, choreographer, advocate, Pittsburgh NAACP organizer, mentor, role model, Mother Nature enthusiast and an Honorable and wise Spiritual Elder. We leave you with his favorite words of wisdom:
“You Can Say That” and ”Ain't Nothing To It But To Do It!”

Besides being a great professional hoofer (tap dancer), Mr. Belcher was most proud of the fact that, and I quote,
“These hands that literally picked cotton, picked the first African American, the 44th President of the United States, Barack Obama.”
Henry (Bel) Belcher Memorial October 1, 2009, 11:00 am, Vintage, 401 N. Highland Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15206

Comment by Dr. Nelson Harrison on September 26, 2009 at 4:58am

Henry Louis Belcher, 1915 - 2009

Henry Louis Belcher, a “Dancin’ Demon,” was born January 15, 1915 in Pendleton, SC to Ethel and Louis Belcher, who were sharecroppers. He was most proud that his birth date, January 15th, was the same as the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and he told everyone he came in contact with. Mr. Belcher died in his sleep on April 1, 2009 at UPMC Presbyterian Hospital in Pittsburgh, PA.
Belcher was always stronger and smarter than other kids his age. In fact, those close to “Bel” (his nickname) called him “cotton picker” because at ten years of age, he was known as a chief cotton picker, outpicking kids even 15 and 16 years old on the Old Man Williams Plantation in Pendleton, SC.
Henry never “took any stuff” from anybody and he developed a habit of defending the weak at an early age. His family was part of the great African American Migration when they moved to the Hill District in Pittsburgh (2235 1/2 Webster Avenue) in 1925.
Always good with his hands, he learned carpentry, plumbing, machine and shoe repair. Those skills eventually allowed him to build most of his own home in Indianola, PA in his later years.
At 15 years of age, he started tap dancing on Wylie Avenue and Fulton Street on the Hill, as a way to keep money in his pockets. He learned from people on the street, but was influenced by Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, Fred Astaire, the Berry Brothers, the Miller Brothers and their sister, Lois. Another influence was the group, “Tip, Tap and Toe” who danced on a large drum.
Belcher was a tap dancer in the original production of "Fantastic Rhythm" by Billy Strayhorn at Westinghouse High School in 1938. Then he formed a tap group called “Ham Kel and Bel, The Hot Shots—The Six Sensational Sizzling Shoes.” The members of the group were: James Hambrick, Henry Kelly, and Henry Belcher. At that time, the Hill District was known as the crossroads of the world and they performed at the Ritz located at Fulton and Wylie in the Hill District. Ham Kel and Bel, The Three Hot Shots joined “The Brown Skin Model Road Show” touring in Ohio, Virginia and Pennsylvania.
They made it to the" Big Time" in 1940 when the trio appeared at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York City as “The Mad Magandis.” They were on the same bill as the Four Step Brothers and Lucky Millinder’s Big Band backed them up.
When Gregory Hines appeared at the Three Rivers Arts Festival in 1981, he asked if there were any old hoofers in the crowd and Henry Belcher and Irvin Taylor (later he became a Muslim and changed his name to Nazeeh Hameed) went up on stage and tap danced with him. Gregory Hines was duly impressed.
He worked for many years at Don Allen Chevrolet in East Liberty and joined the Centre Avenue YMCA on the Hill where he swam regularly and used the facilities to practice tap dancing. Once he retired from Don Allen, he built an 8' by 16' tap dance floor in the basement of his home in Indianola and proceeded to offer tap dancing classes for youth. Many asked him how he built the floor and he said, “Piece by piece; it was a lot of hard work.”
Henry Belcher and Nazeeh Hameed formed “The Dancin' Demons,” dedicated to preserving and promoting Tap, one of the United States' oldest art forms. The Dancin' Demon’s were managed by his brother “Andy” Frazier. They received many awards for their performances and danced many a gig that brought joy and happiness to all who saw them. When they performed for senior citizens in Western Pennsylvania, the seniors were always excited to see two of their own still dancin’ up a storm.
Henry Belcher was very proud to receive the 2000 Manchester Craftsmen's Guild Tribute Honoring the Dancin' Demons. The evening was produced by his nephew, Evan Frazier, Executive Director of The Hill House Association. The Demons also received a Pennsylvania Folk Arts Fellowship Award, in recognition of their talents and contributions as traditional artists. They also received the firs