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Sammy Davis Jr.

Recognized throughout much of his career as "the world's greatest living entertainer," Sammy Davis, Jr. was a remarkably popular and versatile performer equally adept at acting, singing, dancing and impersonations — in short, a variety artist in the classic tradition. A member of the famed Rat Pack, he was among the very first African-American talents to find favor with audiences on both sides of the color barrier, and remains a perennial icon of cool. Born in Harlem on December 8, 1925, Davis made his stage debut at the age of three performing with Holiday in Dixieland, a black vaudeville troupe featuring his father and helmed by his de facto uncle, Will Mastin; dubbed "Silent Sam, the Dancing Midget," he proved phenomenally popular with audiences and the act was soon renamed Will Mastin's Gang Featuring Little Sammy. At the age of seven Davis made his film debut in the legendary musical short Rufus Jones for President, and later received tap-dancing lessons courtesy of the great Bill "Bojangles" Robinson. In 1941, the Mastin Gang opened for Tommy Dorsey at Detroit's Michigan Theater; there Davis first met Dorsey vocalist Frank Sinatra — the beginning of a lifelong friendship.

In 1943 Davis joined the U.S. Army, where he endured a constant battle with racism; upon his return from duty, the group was renamed the Will Mastin Trio. Three years later they opened for Mickey Rooney, who encouraged Davis to begin including his many impersonations in the Trio's act; where previously they had exclusively performed music, the addition of comedy brought new life to the group, and by the beginning of the next decade they were headlining venues including New York's Capitol club and Ciro's in Hollywood. In 1952, at the invitation of Sinatra, they also played the newly-integrated Copacabana. In 1954 Davis signed to Decca, topping the charts with his debut LP Starring Sammy Davis, Jr.; that same year he lost his left eye in a much-publicized auto accident, but upon returning to the stage in early 1955 was greeted with even greater enthusiasm than before on the strength of a series of hit singles including "Something's Gotta Give," "Love Me or Leave Me" and "That Old Black Magic." A year later Davis made his Broadway debut in the musical Mr. Wonderful, starring in the show for over 400 performances and launching a hit with the song "Too Close for Comfort."

In 1958 Davis resumed his film career after a quarter-century layoff with Anna Lucasta, followed a year later by his acclaimed turn in Porgy and Bess. Also in 1959 he became a charter member of the Rat Pack, a loose confederation of Sinatra associates (also including Dean Martin, Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop) which began regularly performing together at the Sands casino in Las Vegas. In 1960 they made Ocean's Eleven, the first in a series of hip and highly self-referential Rat Pack films; although Davis' inclusion in the group was perceived in many quarters as an egalitarian move, many black audiences felt he was simply a token — the butt of subtly racist jokes — and declared him a sell-out. His earlier conversion to Judaism had been met with considerable controversy within the African-American community as well; still, nothing compared to the public outcry over his 1960 marriage to Swedish actress May Britt, which even elicited death threats. Still, Davis remained a major star, appearing in the 1962 Rat Pack film Sergeants 3 and scoring a major hit with "What Kind of Fool Am I?" Two years later he returned to Broadway in the long-running Golden Boy, scoring a Tony nomination for his performance.

Sammy Davis Jr./Buddy Rich: The Sounds of '66

Read "The Sounds of '66" reviewed by Andrew Rowan

by Andrew Rowan
March 29, 2005

Sammy Davis Jr. opens these after-hours Las Vegas recording sessions, remarking that even at this hour the town is still swinging. He tells listeners that any noises from the audiences are real, not canned. From this simple setup, this release captures live the excitement these two musical dynamos generated in an era, and in a town, when music was made at all hours, night and day. In fine form, Davis, as talented a performer as he was enigmatic ...

Video / DVD

Backgrounder: Sammy Sings, Laurindo Plays, 1966

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
November 18, 2023

One of Sammy Davis Jr.'s finest albums is Sammy Davis Jr. Sings and Laurindo Almeida Plays, an LP he recorded in June 1966 accompanied only by Brazilian guitarist Laurindo Almeida. Captured at United Recordings in Las Vegas and released on Reprise, the album of ballads allowed listeners to hear Sammy's voice exposed in an intimate, near-a cappella setting. In many respects, the album for Sammy was a return to a format that was successful in 1958, when he recorded Mood ...
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Video / DVD

Five Video Clips of Sammy Davis Jr.

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
November 16, 2023

Sammy Davis Jr. was a tragic figure in many ways. Enormously talented as an actor, singer, dancer, musician, comedian and entertainer, he was born too soon in segregated America to be taken seriously as a powerhouse artist. So he worked doubly hard to stand out and often poked fun at himself to minimize hate as he rose to become a crossover star. As frustrating as it must have been, Sammy spent a great deal of time on TV trying to ...
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Recording

Hal and Sammy: After Dark

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
April 1, 2013

After doing some research last week, I unearthed two more Playboy After Dark episodes. One is from May 1970 and features singer Hal Frazier with Buddy Rich, a pianist and a possibly a soundtrack—since we never see the band. The other is from November 1960 and features Sammy Davis Jr. with some sort of Music Minus One recording. Both clips are dual time capsules, showcasing enormous talent in action—as well as mind-blowing creepiness by today's standards. Hal [pictured above] and ...
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Music Industry

Sammy Davis Jr.: "Hey There"

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
March 8, 2013

The Pajama Game—an improbable musical love story about two pajama-factory employees—opened on Broadway in May 1954. In the play, Sid (the factory manager) is spurned by Babe (the grievance committee head) and moons his feelings into a Dictaphone. There were three hit covers of the song out that year. [Pictured above: Sammy Davis Jr. and Eartha Kitt in 1954] One of the most popular songs from the Richard Adler and Jerry Ross musical was Hey There, and three artists had ...
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Recording

Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr. - The Rat Pack Live at the Sands (2001)

Source: Something Else!
July 27, 2011

By Derrick Lord This is an act the Rat Pack—Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr.—had down to a T and it really shows. A fun slice of musical history. Completely un-PC which is a much welcome change of pace. It was recorded in 1963. Funny how people seemed to have more of a sense of humor about things at that sensitive time than they do now. I won't lie to you. It's probably not a CD you will play ...
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Performance / Tour

'Sammy' at the Old Globe

Source: Michael Ricci
October 6, 2009

His shoulders are slumped from too many gigs, too many drugs and way too many women. The bags around his eyes droop nearly to the bottom of his cocktail glass. His whole body is haloed in the cigarette smoke that would contribute to his death from throat cancer at 64.

As channeled by Obba Babatund, Sammy Davis Jr. finally concedes to the exhaustion that hes been postponing since his days as an adorable child dancer working the vaudeville circuit with ...
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Interview

Photostory8: Sammy Davis Jr.

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
August 30, 2009

Photos of Sammy Davis Jr. in action have always grabbed me. The energy, the enthusiasm and the wham. Always the wham. Davis continues to be highly underrated as a jazz and pop singer, probably because he sadly recorded so much junk. But Davis' gems are priceless. Which is why Herb Snitzer's photo of Davis here knocks me out. When I asked Herb what was going on when he took this image, here's what he told me:

“Back in late 1959 ...
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482

Obituary

Altovise Davis Dies Widow of Sammy Davis Jr.

Source: Michael Ricci
March 15, 2009

Altovise Davis, the widow of Rat Pack singer and dancer Sammy Davis Jr., died Saturday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center of complications from a stroke, her business partner, Barrett LaRoda, said. She was 65.

Davis was surrounded at the Los Angeles hospital by friends and family, including her son, Manny Davis.

Trained as an actor and dancer, Altovise Davis met the legendary showman in the mid-1960s, when they were both appearing in Broadway musicals, he in the lead of “Golden Boy" ...
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Book / Magazine

As Sammy Davis Jr's Star Imploded

Source: Michael Ricci
November 4, 2008

Deconstructing Sammy A fascinating look at the life of Sammy Davis Jr

Sammy Davis Jr. was the epitome of the artist as brilliant naif, blazing as he collapses into a cold, dark star, a posthumous object best described (considering Sammy's diminutive stature and gargantuan talent) as a giant dwarf, a fate understood most clearly by those who came later, the lawyers and accountants who first realized Sammy had bounced his last check, busted, so left his descendants nothing but memories ...
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Event

Armstrong, Sammy Davis Jr and Frank Sinatra

Source: All About Jazz
October 13, 2003

Cooper Owen's forthcoming At the Movies auction on the 30th October features several great items relating to Louis Armstrong, Sammy Davis Jr and Frank Sinatra (see below for further info). Commission/absintee bids can be placed online now and until the 30th October at www.cooperowen.com Email us at [email protected] further information. Lot 3 Louis Armstrong - London circa 1957 Black and white first generation silver gelatin print. Dezo Hoffmann studio stamp to verso. Measures approx. 12 x 16 inch. (30 x ...
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