Helena Justa

Helena Justa
Helena Justa, from a 1930 newspaper
Born
Helena Johnson

December 21, 1901
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Diedafter 1964
Other namesHelena Justa de Armas
OccupationsDancer, singer, vaudeville performer

Helena Justa (December 21, 1901[1] – after 1964[2]), born Helena Johnson, was an American dancer and singer active in the 1920s and 1930s, billed as "the female Bill Robinson".[3]

Early life

Justa was born in Brooklyn, New York, the daughter vaudeville entertainers Duke Johnson and Mae Wells.[4][5] She traveled with her parents in Europe, Australia and New Zealand while they toured in the 1900s and 1910s.[6][7]

Career

Justa performed on vaudeville programs beginning in her teens.[8][9] "Miss Justa is a versatile dancer, the esthetic, clog and toe all being in the range of her accomplishments," noted The Chicago Defender in 1926.[10] However, a Billboard review in 1932 found her singing "decidedly ordinary".[11]

Justa danced in Massachusetts in 1923 and 1924,[12][13] in Pennsylvania in 1925,[14] and in California in 1926 and 1927.[15][16][17] She sang in California and Chicago in 1928,[18][19] and danced with Bill Robinson in Blackbirds of 1929.[20] In 1929 and 1930 she danced and sang with her uncle Charlie Johnson, on the RKO circuit.[21][22][23] In the 1930s she led her own revue, the Harlem Maniacs,[24][25][26] and had a cabaret act.[27] Pianist Gideon Honore worked with her in 1935.[28] In 1936, she and Etta Moten performed in Buenos Aires.[29]

Justa married her manager, Ted Bradley, but left him in 1935.[30] She occasionally performed in clubs in her later years.[2][31]

References

  1. ^ Her birth date and birthplace are from her father's application for a U.S. passport, submitted to the American embassy in Berlin and dated August 9, 1906, via Ancestry.
  2. ^ a b "Brass Rail Music Lounge (advertisement)". The Troy Record. 1965-07-03. p. 5. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "Aldine Stage Show". Press of Atlantic City. 1933-11-05. p. 16. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Helena Justa Signed Over R.K.O. Circuit". The Chicago Defender. 1929-10-05. p. 6. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Helen Justa is Hit in Loop". The Afro-American. 1934-07-07. p. 21. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ Egan, Bill (2019-12-20). African American Entertainers in Australia and New Zealand: A History, 1788-1941. McFarland. pp. 140–142. ISBN 978-1-4766-7795-8.
  7. ^ Long, Richard A. (1995). The Black tradition in American dance. Internet Archive. Prion. p. 120. ISBN 978-0-8317-0763-7.
  8. ^ "Dancer Former Genevan; Mme. Helena Justa Was Helena Johnson Wells of This City". Finger Lakes Times. 1918-02-12. p. 9. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Mlle. Helena Justa". Variety. 51 (10): 7. 1918-08-02 – via Internet Archive.
  10. ^ "Keep Dancing". The Chicago Defender. 1926-09-11. p. 6. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Helen Justa & Comapny". The Billboard. 44 (17): 23. 1932-04-23 – via Internet Archive.
  12. ^ "At the Olympia". The Standard-Times. 1923-03-06. p. 8. Retrieved 2026-02-24 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Helen Justa and Her Boys are Smart Dancers". The Springfield Daily Republican. 1924-08-08. p. 4. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Aerial Stunts by Troupe Leads Vaudeville Bill". The Patriot-News. 1925-12-08. p. 18. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "Negro Dancers to Top Hip Bill; Helena Justa and Her Boys Will Appear in Revue 'Keep Dancing'". The Sacramento Union. 1926-08-18. p. 22. Retrieved 2026-02-24 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "T. V. Dalton to Reopen Follies Theater, Los Angeles". The Billboard: 34. September 17, 1927.
  17. ^ Peterson, Bernard L. Jr. (1993-10-25). A Century of Musicals in Black and White: An Encyclopedia of Musical Stage Works By, About, or Involving African Americans. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. p. 334. ISBN 978-0-313-06454-8.
  18. ^ Flower, Elsie (1928-02-09). "Lucia Sextet by Tuscan Chorus and 'Muddy Water' by Jazz Singer on Program". The Record. p. 15. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ "New Willard Theater (advertisement)". The Chicago Defender. 1928-07-07. p. 8. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ Huston, Perdita (1930-10-01). "Helena Justa, Playing at Keith's, Boasts Magnetic Personality". Evening Express. p. 8. Retrieved 2026-02-22 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ^ "Helena and Charlie Playing Big Time". The Chicago Defender. 1930-03-29. p. 7. Retrieved 2026-02-22 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. ^ "Claiborne Foster Winsome in Playlet; Acts at Palace in "Marriage Recipe"--Richman and Frances Williams in Reunion". The New York Times. 1930-08-04. pp. A19. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-02-22.
  23. ^ Sampson, Henry T. (2013-10-30). Blacks in Blackface: A Sourcebook on Early Black Musical Shows: 2 Volumes. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. pp. 517, 546, 1072, 1073. ISBN 979-8-7651-8512-4.
  24. ^ "'Harlem Maniacs' at the Criterion". The News of Cumberland County. 1932-12-22. p. 10. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ "Aldine Stage Show". Press of Atlantic City. 1933-11-05. p. 16. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ^ "Harlem Show at Dreamland; Helena Justa Featured in All Colored Revue". Evansville Press. 1934-05-13. p. 16. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  27. ^ "Helena Justa Gets New Cabaret Job". The Chicago Defender. 1934-06-30. p. 7. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  28. ^ "Makes Vaude Debut". The Afro-American. 1935-01-19. p. 18. Retrieved 2026-02-23.
  29. ^ "2 U.S. Acts to B.A." Variety: 62. March 1936 – via Internet Archive.
  30. ^ "In Marital Rift". Chicago World. 1935-03-02. p. 7. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
  31. ^ "Hawaiian Lounge (advertisement)". The Gazette. 1948-02-20. p. 10. Retrieved 2026-02-23 – via Newspapers.com.
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