Married to Oscar Academy Award winning dress designer Travilla for 45 years, until her death.
Per Laura Wagner's article in "Films of the Golden Age" (Spring 2015), she once was associated with notorious gangster Louis "Pretty" Amberg and was questioned by police when he was murdered gangland-style.
She gave a spellbinding snake-like dancing performance during "The Lady
Dances" number in Strike Me Pink (1936) with Eddie Cantor.
The dance reached its climax with her being thrown extremely high into
the air by Cantor and is then caught by him on the palm of one
hand in another position some distance away.
In early 1940 she toured--as Rita Rio--with her "All Girl Orchestra" with Marie Wilson and Toby Wing (who was essentially retired) and Faith Bacon (from the Earl Carroll Vanities) across the US. They made numerous appearances for the Infantile Paralysis Fund and Tuberculosis Campaign during the tour.
Both parents were African-American.
Early in her career she worked under the names Una Velon and Rita Shaw.