Dora "Dean" Baddige was born in Covington Ky in 1874. She began her career dancing at the Creole Company where she started off as a statue with the stage name "Black Venus". While working there she met and married her Charles Johnson who eventually became the leading man of the company. In 1893 they left the company and put together an act described as "Eccentric Dancing" for the Chicago world fair. After that they joined the Vaudeville circuit where they were a huge success. Their act consisted of an sophisticated look unlike many other people, she would wear an elegant evening dress, while he wore a nice suit and even a molecule. They got famous for bringing elegance to "The Cake Walk Dance" which is a dance that can be dated back to slavery. With this dance they headed to Broadway as the first black act. The two traveled all over Europe where they were even more famous.. They ended up divorcing in 1910 and returned to America in 1913. While split Dora Dean acted in a movie "Georgia Rose", and continued to preform. Over the years her and her ex husband reunited for some shows. They then retired together in 1942 in Minneapolis, Mn and she died in 1949.