Sammy Davis, Jr.

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Sammy Davis (1986)

Samuel George "Sammy" Davis, Jr. (born December 8, 1925 in Harlem , New York , † May 16, 1990 in Beverly Hills , California ) was an American entertainer . With his versatile talent of singing, dancing and performing songs with his own ease and elegance, he advanced to become the American all-round entertainer. As an actor and dancer , he has also appeared in musicals and films as well as numerous stage shows.

Career

Sammy Davis, Jr. has been called "The world's greatest living entertainer" many times during his career. He was a very popular and multifaceted artist, actor, singer and dancer at the same time. As a member of the Rat Pack , he was one of the first Afro-American artists to gain attention from both white and black populations.

The son of vaudeville artist Sammy Davis, Sr., took the stage for the first time at the age of three, and at the age of seven he had his first film role in the short film Rufus Jones for President . When he was two years old, his parents separated - his mother was a Puerto Rican dancer - and Davis was raised by his father alone. So he became his father's partner in the “black” show business at the end of the 1920s. He learned tap dancing and singing as a child.

In 1941 he met the then Tommy Dorsey singer Frank Sinatra ; it was the beginning of a lifelong friendship. Sinatra made a significant contribution to Davis' career, for example by ensuring that Davis was allowed to perform in Las Vegas despite the racism prevailing at the time. The black entertainer quickly made a name for himself nationwide as one of the greatest all-rounders in US show business.

Sammy Davis (lower center, arm raised) during the 1963 Civil Rights March

In addition to dancing and singing, he mastered numerous instruments. He was also an excellent voice simulator. A performance in which he played the songs "Rock-A-Bye Your Baby" and "One For My Baby" with the voices and in the style of various artists such as Nat King Cole , Billy Eckstine , Tony Bennett , Humphrey Bogart and James Cagney is legendary , James Stewart , Cary Grant , Jerry Lewis , Frankie Laine , Marlon Brando , Louis Armstrong , Frank Sinatra or his friend Dean Martin .

In 1943 Davis joined the US Army, where he was constantly confronted with racism . Back in civil life, he continued to work in show business. He appeared with the Will Mastin Trio (feat. Sammy Davis, Jr.), which Sinatra hired as opening act for his performances at the Capitol Theater in New York in the late 1940s. Around the same time he made his first studio recordings for the Capitol label . In 1954 he released his first album, Starring Sammy Davis Jr., on Decca Records .

In the same year he lost his left eye in a car accident; In early 1955 he was able to return to the stage. He took the fact that he had survived the car accident - influenced by his friend Eddie Cantor , who had told him at bedside about the similarities between black and Jewish culture - to convert to Reform Judaism . He often used this fact himself for gags at later appearances - he was "the only black one-eyed Jewish entertainer in the world".

In 1958 he continued his film career with Anna Lacusta . However, to assess artistic higher the film adaptation of Gershwin - opera Porgy and Bess in 1959, when he took over the role of Sportin 'Life, and thus had his acting breakthrough.

In the late 1950s, he also became a member of the Rat Pack , a loose group around Frank Sinatra that included Dean Martin, Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop , who performed regularly as The Summit until the mid-1960s, especially at the Sands Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas . 1960 directed the Rat Pack Ocean's Eleven , the first of a series of Rat Pack films. The second Rat Pack film followed in 1962, Sergeants 3 ; In 1964, Sieben was created against Chicago .

In the 1960s and 1970s, his work mainly focused on gala performances in Las Vegas. Outstanding was his appearance in Bob Fosses musical adaptation of Sweet Charity with Shirley MacLaine . In 1972 he had a number 1 hit in the US with the song Candy Man . He had a cameo appearance in the documentation Elvis - That's the Way It Is about Elvis Presley's comeback - shows in Las Vegas .

Sammy Davis (1989)

In March 1988 he tried with his friends Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin to revive the old Rat Pack concerts; However, the joint tour Together Again ended after a week, as Martin retired due to illness. In the same year Davis made his last major film appearance with Gregory Hines for the dance film Tap Dance (1989), in which he was again able to show his talent for dancing.

From September 1988 to May 1989 he went on an eight-month world tour with Sinatra and Liza Minnelli , Frank, Liza & Sammy: The Ultimate Event , which took him to Japan, Australia and Europe as well as the USA, the last time to Germany, where he was in 1985 The Hohensyburg casino opened with a gala concert .

In the summer of 1989, Davis contracted throat cancer ; in September 1989 he had his last vocal appearances and then underwent radiation therapy that cost him his voice. Marked by illness, he was in Los Angeles in November 1989 at a gala to mark his 60th stage anniversary for a short dance performance.

Sammy Davis succumbed to his illness on May 16, 1990 at home in Beverly Hills and was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park at his father's side in Glendale, California .

A production team led by the US singer Lionel Richie and the film producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura came to an agreement with the heirs, reported the cinema portal Deadline.com, to film the life story of the black star. The film is based on the 1965 memoir "Yes, I Can".

Private

Sammy Davis with wife Altovise (1986)

Davis was married three times. In 1958 he married Loray White and divorced the following year. In 1960 he married the Swedish actress May Britt , which caused the wrath of the Ku Klux Klan and problems in the racist US public because mixed marriages were banned in 21 US states . The couple has a daughter (Tracy, * 1961) and two adopted sons. After an affair with singer Lola Falana , the couple divorced in 1968.

From 1970 until his death, Davis was married to the actress and dancer Altovise Davis (1943-2009). The couple also adopted a child.

Political beliefs

Davis was a Democrat and supported John F. Kennedy's campaign in 1960 and Robert F. Kennedy's campaign in 1968 . Nevertheless, he became a close friend of Republican President Richard Nixon and publicly supported him in his 1972 election campaign. Davis later regretted Nixon's support, as Nixon had made commitments to the civil rights movement but later failed to keep.

Davis was a longtime supporter of Jesse Jackson and also performed at his wedding.

Discography (selection)

A selection of successful albums:

  • 1957: Sammy Swings
  • 1962: The Sammy Davis Jr. All-Star Spectacular (with "Falling in Love Again" and " Without a Song ")
  • 1963: As Long as She Needs Me (with "As Long as She Needs Me", "Climb Every Mountain" and "Blackbird")
  • 1963: At the Cocoanut Grove (Live album from the famous Los Angeles nightclub)
  • 1964: Salutes the Stars of the London Palladium (with " Over the Rainbow ")
  • 1965: The Nat King Cole Songbook (a tribute to Nat King Cole )
  • 1965: Our Shining Hour (Davis with the Count Basie Orchestra and arrangements by Quincy Jones )
  • 1966: The Sounds of '66 (live recording of a show from Las Vegas )
  • 1966: Sammy Davis Jr. Sings and Laurindo Almeida Plays (studio recording with Brazilian guitarist Laurindo Almeida )
  • 1972: Sammy Davis Jr. Now (The best-selling album by Sammy Davis; with "The Candy Man", "This Is My Life" and "MacArthur Park")

Filmography (selection)

Broadway shows

  • 1956: Mr. Wonderful , musical by Jerry Bock and Joseph Stein , 383 performances until the end of 1957 (Davis in the role of Charlie Welch, produced by Jule Styne )
  • 1964: Golden Boy , musical by Charles Strouse and Clifford Odets , 568 performances until spring 1966 (Davis in the role of Joe Wellington)
  • 1974: Sammy , Personality Broadway Show, 14 performances
  • 1978: Stop the World , musical by Leslie Bricusse , 30 performances (Davis in the role of Littlechap)

Awards and nominations for awards

Emmy Award

  • 1956: nominated in the "Best Specialty Act" category (for several guest appearances)
  • 1989: Nominated in the category “Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series ” for The Bill Cosby Show , episode No Way, Baby!

Golden Globe Award

  • 1977: Nominated in the category "Best Series Lead Actor - Comedy or Musical" in Sammy & Company

Golden Raspberry

  • 1985: nominated in the category “Worst Supporting Actor” in On the Highway all hell is going on again

Grammy Award

  • 1962: nominated for “Single of the Year” for What Kind of Fool Am I?
  • 1962: nominated in the category “Best Male Vocal Performance” for What Kind of Fool Am I?
  • 1972: Nominated in the category “Best Male Vocal Performance - Pop” for Candy Man
  • 2001: Awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (posthumous)
  • 2002: inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame for What Kind of Fool Am I? (posthumously)

Tony Award

Web links

Commons : Sammy Davis, Jr.  album of pictures, videos, and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. Harenberg Personal Lexicon. Harenberg Lexikon Verlag 2000, ISBN 3-611-00893-1 , p. 236.
  2. For more information on this title, see Fred Bronson: The Billboard Book of Number One Hits. 3rd, revised and expanded edition. Billboard Publications, New York 1992, p. 313.
  3. Hollywood filmed the life of Sammy Davis Jr. , Deutschlandradio Kultur Kulturnachrichten from January 19, 2017
  4. Claire Noland: Altovise Davis at the 65; widow of Sammy Davis Jr. Los Angeles Times , March 15, 2009
  5. ^ A b Sammy Davis Jr. Succumbs To Cancer . In: Philadelphia Inquirer , May 17, 1990. Retrieved October 11, 2015. 
  6. nytimes.com
  7. ^ Davis supports Jackson. In: Minden Press-Herald . February 6, 1984, p. 1.