THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

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Dancer Willi Ninja ( real name: William Leake ) , a star of the voguing documentary Paris Is Burning and the inspiration for Madonna's Vogue music video, has died, according to the Associated Press. He was 45.

Ninja succumbed to AIDS-related illnesses on Sept. 2 at New York Hospital Medical Center of Queens.

Madonna herself issued a statement about Ninja, calling him 'a great cultural influence to me and hundreds of thousands of other people.'

Ninja performed with dance companies, worked under famed choreographers and instructed models and socialites how to pose for the paparazzi.

However, 1990's Paris Is Burning really launched Ninja into the mainstream. The movie chronicles the elaborate ball competitions in which participants are judged.

Father Tommy Avant Garde, of Chicago's House of Avant Garde ( a ball culture house ) , told Windy City Times that 'Willi was an extraordinary person who showed [ members of ] the ballroom community that their talent could be showcased outside of the environment they're in—that their work could be validated in the 'real world' as well as the ballroom. He was truly an inspiration and a role model to look up to because he was able to bring his talent into the mainstream.'

Aimee Newman, who was Ninja's manager, stated to Windy City Times that 'Willie was an amazing person. We made sure we spoke to each other every day. He called me his Boo Boo. ... Willie's main concern was his mother and that she would be taken care of. Willie will be missed very much. God now has a new angel in heaven and I am sure he is teaching everyone how to vogue.'

Funeral services were held on Sept. 8 in Roy L. Gilmore's Funeral Home in Queens, N.Y. A cremation was held the following day.