"Stephanie 'Tanqueray' Johnson passed away last night after suffering a severe stroke. She will be most remembered for holding the world in thrall with her no-holds-barred storytelling about life as a burlesque dancer in the 1970s."
"Stephanie was a complicated person. Her public persona was irresistibly charismatic. Yet behind the scenes I've rarely met somebody who had such difficulty with close relationships. She was internationally adored, yet intensely lonely. She was desirous of companionship, yet quick to cut people out of her life over the smallest slights."
"Back in the seventies I was the only black girl making white girl money. I danced in so many mob clubs that I learned Italian."
Stephanie 'Tanqueray' Johnson died at 81 after suffering a severe stroke. Humans of New York called her a legend and said she will be remembered for her no-holds-barred storytelling about life as a burlesque dancer in the 1960s and 1970s. The tribute described her as irresistibly charismatic yet personally complicated, internationally adored but intensely lonely, and prone to cutting people out over small slights. Johnson gained viral attention after a 2019 Humans of New York feature. She recounted being the only Black dancer making "white girl money" in the seventies and learning Italian from dancing in mob clubs. A memoir followed in 2022.
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