Sammy Davis Jr.
Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Known Credits
174
Gender
Male
Birthday
1925-12-08
Day of death
1990-05-16 (64 years old)
Place of Birth
Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
Sammy Davis Jr.
Biography
Samuel George "Sammy" Davis, Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American entertainer. Primarily a dancer and singer, Davis was a childhood vaudevillian who became known for his performances on Broadway and in Las Vegas, as a recording artist, television and film star, and as a member of Frank Sinatra's "Rat Pack". At the age of three Davis began his career in vaudeville with his father and "uncle" as the Will Mastin Trio, toured nationally, and after military service, returned to the trio. Davis became an overnight sensation following a nightclub performance at Ciro's after the 1951 Academy Awards, with the trio, became a recording artist, and made his first film performances as an adult later that decade. In 1954, he lost his left eye in an automobile accident. Later the same year, he converted to Judaism. In 1960, he appeared in the first Rat Pack movie, Ocean's 11. After a starring role on Broadway in 1956's Mr Wonderful, Davis returned to the stage in 1964's Golden Boy, and in 1966 had his own TV variety show, The Sammy Davis Jr. Show. Davis's career slowed in the late sixties, but he had a hit record with "The Candy Man", in 1972, and became a star in Las Vegas. As an African American, Davis was the victim of racism throughout his life, and was a large financial supporter of civil rights causes. Davis had a complex relationship with the African American community, and attracted criticism after physically embracing Richard Nixon in 1970. One day on a golf course with Jack Benny, he was asked what his handicap was. "Handicap?" he asked. "Talk about handicap — I'm a one-eyed Negro Jew." This was to become a signature comment, recounted in his autobiography, and in countless articles. After reuniting with Sinatra and Dean Martin in 1987, Davis toured with them and Liza Minnelli internationally, before dying of throat cancer in 1990. He died in debt to the Internal Revenue Service, and his estate was the subject of legal battles. Davis was awarded the Spingarn Medal by the NAACP, and was nominated for a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award for his television performances. He was the recipient of the Kennedy Center Honors in 1987, and in 2001, he was posthumously awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Description above from the Wikipedia article Sammy Davis, Jr., licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia
Known For
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
The Mike Douglas Show
The Mike Douglas Show
The Carol Burnett Show
Batman
Wogan
The Merv Griffin Show
Champs-Elysées
The Jack Benny Program
The Colgate Comedy Hour
The Rifleman
The Cosby Show
I Dream of Jeannie
Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre
The Dick Cavett Show
Ben Casey
What's My Line?
Here's Lucy
Dinah!
Burke's Law
Hunter
4-3-2-1 Hot and Sweet
All in the Family
The Ed Sullivan Show
Fantasy Island
Fantasy Island
The Steve Allen Show
77 Sunset Strip
The Flip Wilson Show
Tonight Starring Jack Paar
The Oscars
Please Turn the Page
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
The Mod Squad
The Kennedy Center Honors
The Hollywood Palace
The Courtship of Eddie's Father
The Patty Duke Show
V.I.P. Schaukel
Robin and the 7 Hoods
Cain's Hundred
Chico and the Man
Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story
Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues
Cannonball Run II
The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts
Bomb Disposal
CBS Salutes Lucy: The First 25 Years
Sammy Davis, Jr. 60th Anniversary Celebration
Six Bridges to Cross
Chita Rivera: A Lot Of Livin' To Do
Hollywood's Funniest All-Star Bloopers
All Star Party for Clint Eastwood
Ocean's Eleven
The Pigeon
The Cannonball Run
Alice in Wonderland
Moon Over Parador
Seasoned Greetings
Soul of a Nation Presents: Black in Vegas
Save the Children
King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis
One More Time
The Sixties
Rufus Jones for President
The Julie Andrews Hour
The Emmy Awards
Sanford
The Trackers
Happy Birthday, Bob: 50 Stars Salute Your 50 Years with NBC
Bio’s Bahnhof
Sergeants 3
Kim Novak: Hollywood's Golden Age Rebel
Gone Before His Time: Freddie Prinze Sr.
Frank Sinatra's Welcome Home Party for Elvis Presley
Sweet Charity
The Billy Martin Celebrity Roast
Jazz Ball
Salt & Pepper
A Man Called Adam
Old Faithful
…Sings Musicals
This Is Bob Hope...
This Is Elvis
Convicts 4
Sweet and Low
Smorgasbord
Porgy and Bess
Hanna-Barbera's 50th
Meet Me in Las Vegas
Frank Sinatra Spectacular
Sammy Stops the World
Fight of the Century
The Big Party
Rat Pack
Nightmare in the Sun
Pepe
Bob Hope's Bicentennial Star Spangled Spectacular
Night of 100 Stars
TV in Black: The First Fifty Years
BRATS
The Day of the Fox
John Travolta, le miraculé d'Hollywood
That's Dancing!
General Electric Theater
General Electric Theater
General Electric Theater
Johnny Cool
Dean Martin: King of Cool
The Wrecking Crew
Michael Jackson: The Legend Continues
Today: While You Were Away (1964-1973 Retrospective)
The Threepenny Opera
The Kid Who Loved Christmas
Happy 100th Birthday, Hollywood
Gone with the West
Poor Devil
The Best of Bob Hope: 50 Years of Laughter — Volume 1
Playboy's Penthouse
The Best of Bob Hope: 50 Years of Laughter — Volume 2
Frank Sinatra: The First 40 Years
This Is Joan Collins
Elvis: That's the Way It Is
Nat King Cole & Friends Unforgettable Hits
The Rat Pack
The Movie Orgy
Oops, Those Hollywood Bloopers!
Heidi's Song
Kennedy, Sinatra and the Mafia
Tap
Anna Lucasta
Television: The First Fifty Years
Doris Day Today
Steve & Eydie Celebrate Irving Berlin
All Star Party for Lucille Ball
James Dean Remembered
It's Black Entertainment
Movin' with Nancy
Sammy and Company
Christmas with The Martins and The Sinatras
Magic Night
Pioneers of Primetime
The Strolling '20s
The Rat Pack
The Sammy Davis Jr. Show
The Music According to Tom Jobim
The Ultimate Event
Let's Play, Boy
The Ratpack
Alice in Wonderland or What's a Nice Kid Like You Doing in a Place Like This?
The Legendary Nat King Cole
Hugh Hefner: Once Upon a Time
The 1974 Annual Las Vegas Entertainment Awards
Sammy Davis, Jr.: I've Gotta Be Me
Jingle Bells: RFK - 1964
The Perils of P.K
Elvis Through the Years
James Dean: The First American Teenager
Uptown Comedy Express
An Evening with Sammy Davis, Jr. & Jerry Lewis
Happy Birthday, Las Vegas
Jackpot at Tahoe
The Ocean's 11 Story
The Fall
Cinderella at the Palace
The Definitive Elvis: The Television Years
Sammy Davis Jr.: Live In Germany
Live and Swingin': The Ultimate Rat Pack Collection
Sammy Davis, Jr.: One Cool Cat
The Rat Pack - The Greatest Hits
The Enemy
The Best Of Sammy David Jr. Live
Sammy and Bruce
