Johnny Otis, R.I.P.

The pioneering R&B performer, VALLEJO, CALIF.-born JOHNNY OTIS, has died age 90.
He was the man who launched the HAND JIVE craze.
JILL I saw him perform once at his small night club in SEBASTOPOL, CALIF.
The son of Greek immigrants, Otis chose to live among the black community, which I believe helped remove some of the race barriers in music at the time.
I've got a pair of Otis albums -- one from the 1940s ("BE BOP BABY BLUES") and one from the 1990s ("SPIRIT OF THE BLACK TERRITORY BANDS"). I'll listen to them today in tribute.