Maurice Hines, Tap-Dancing Star With His Brother, Dies at 80

Maurice Hines, a high-wattage song-and-dance man who rose to stardom as a child in a tap-dancing act with his brother, Gregory, then performed on and off Broadway, including in shows he directed and choreographed, died on Friday in Englewood, N.J. He was 80.

His death, at the Actors Fund Home, was confirmed by his cousin Richard Nurse. No specific cause was given.

The Hines brothers inherited a tap-dance tradition on the wane and, decades later, had a lot to do with bringing it back into the public consciousness. They started dance classes in Harlem when Maurice was 5 and Gregory was 3. After two years, they came under the tutelage of the great tap teacher and choreographer Henry LeTang, who made them into an act modeled after the high-flying Nicholas Brothers.