Danny Daniels, dancer, choreographer, director, and teacher was born Daniel Giagni, Jr., the son of Daniel, Sr. and Mary (Bucci) Giagni. He began dancing at the age of five and-a-half, after seeing the tap dancing of Fred Astaire on film. His father enrolled him as a student of Tommy Sternfeld, his first tap dance teacher in his hometown of Albany, New York. He also studied ballet in Albany and with teachers at the American Ballet School in New York. He went professional at the age of nine, dancing in clubs and private parties in and around the Albany area. At age fourteen he made his film debut dancing with Bing Crosby in The Star Maker (1939), and at age sixteen he made his Broadway debut in the George Abbot musical Best Foot Forward (1941) with choreography by Gene Kelley. He subsequently danced leading roles on Broadway in many shows, receiving Tony nominations for Billion Dollar Baby (1946) and Street Scene (1947). From 1950 to 1954 Daniels taught tap dance at the Jack Stanley Dance School in New York, his teaching serving as his bread and butter while not working on Broadway.
