Willie Covan

William McKinley Covan was born on March 4, 1898, in Atlanta, Georgia, though his family relocated to Chicago shortly after his birth. By 1903 he was already dancing, and at age six he began a six-year stint as a pickaninny in Chicago vaudeville productions, where he developed his technique by closely observing other performers. Around age 12, having grown dissatisfied with that work, Covan set out to establish himself independently on the vaudeville circuit.

His first significant opportunity came around 1910, when he won an amateur tap contest. That victory brought him to the attention of tap dancers known as "Slow Kid" Thompson and Leonard Ruffin, who took him under their guidance. Covan went on to appear on Broadway during the 1924–1925 season, with credits that included the musical Tell Me More and the revue Dixie to Broadway.

In 1927, Covan formed the tap quartet The Four Covans, which achieved wide popularity both in the United States and in Europe. By the early 1930s he had moved to Hollywood, where he worked as a choreographer for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, coaching screen performers including Shirley Temple, Jeanette MacDonald, Mae West, Mickey Rooney, Gregory Peck, Kirk Douglas, and Ann Miller. It was at Eleanor Powell's insistence that Covan was given his own bungalow on the MGM lot. Among the films in which he appeared as a performer, The Duke Is Tops offered the most prominent showcase of his abilities. He was also seen later in The Big Fix and Finian's Rainbow.

Alongside his studio work, Covan opened the Willie Covan Dance Studio in Los Angeles, where he and his wife Florence taught for 35 years. He is credited with creating several tap dance steps, among them the Rhythm Waltz Clog and Around the World. Covan died on May 7, 1989, at his home in Los Angeles and is interred at Inglewood Park Cemetery.