<P> Howard "Sandman" Sims (January 24, 1917--May 20, 2003) was an African - American tap dancer who began his career in vaudeville . He was skilled in a style of dancing that he performed in a wooden sandbox of his own construction, and acquired his nickname from the sand he sprinkled to alter and amplify the sound of his dance steps . "They called the board my Stradivarius," Sims said of his sandbox . </P> <P> From the 1950s to the year 2000, Sims was a regular attraction--a "fixture"--at Harlem's noted Apollo Theater, comedically ushering failed acts offstage with a hook, broom or other prop . He was also involved in New York City's Hoofers Club, a venue primarily for Black tap dancers . </P> <P> As part of the resurgence of interest in tap dancing in the 1980s, Sandman Sims served as a cultural ambassador, representing the United States with dance performances around the world . He was featured in the 1989 dance film Tap, along with Sammy Davis Jr., Gregory Hines and Savion Glover, demonstrating classic challenge dancing . Sims also appeared in a 1990 episode of The Cosby Show as Rudy's tap dancing teacher, facing off against Cliff (Bill Cosby) in a good - natured tap challenge . </P> <P> In her review of the play based on his life, New York Times critic Anna Kisselgoff wrote, "Sims is a virtuoso among virtuosos--in a class by himself . To say Mr. Sims dances on sand is like saying Philippe Petit is a tightrope walker ." </P>

Who was the tap dancer on the cosby show
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