Sammy Davis Jr.
Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Gender
Male
Birthday
1925-12-08
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
Also Known For
Ocean's Eleven
Aug 10, 1960
Hollywood's Funniest All-Star Bloopers
Jan 01, 1985
Porgy and Bess
Jun 24, 1959
The Movie Orgy
Jan 01, 1968
Soul of a Nation Presents: Black in Vegas
Jan 13, 2023
The Best Of Sammy David Jr. Live
The Cannonball Run
Jun 19, 1981
Cannonball Run II
Jun 29, 1984
One More Time
May 01, 1970
Salt & Pepper
Jul 03, 1968
Kim Novak: Hollywood's Golden Age Rebel
Mar 05, 2023
Dean Martin: King of Cool
Nov 14, 2021
Christmas with The Martins and The Sinatras
Dec 21, 1967
That's Dancing!
Jan 18, 1985
Sweet Charity
Feb 25, 1969
Tap
Feb 12, 1989
Elvis: That's the Way It Is
Nov 11, 1970
Sergeants 3
Feb 10, 1962
Robin and the 7 Hoods
Jun 24, 1964
Pepe
Dec 21, 1960
Johnny Cool
Oct 02, 1963
Convicts 4
Sep 15, 1962
Heidi's Song
Nov 19, 1982
All Star Party for Lucille Ball
Dec 09, 1984
Frank, Liza & Sammy: The Ultimate Event
May 20, 1989
The Legendary Nat King Cole
Oct 05, 2004
The Wrecking Crew
Mar 11, 2008
Nightmare in the Sun
Mar 06, 1965
Happy Birthday, Bob: 50 Stars Salute Your 50 Years with NBC
May 16, 1988
Rufus Jones for President
Sep 09, 1933
Seasoned Greetings
Sep 23, 1933
Oops, Those Hollywood Bloopers!
Jan 01, 1982
Anna Lucasta
Nov 01, 1958
Save the Children
May 13, 1973
The Trackers
Dec 15, 1971
The Pigeon
Nov 04, 1969
The Ocean's 11 Story
Nov 22, 2001
Michael Jackson: The Legend Continues
Jan 02, 1988
An Evening with Sammy Davis, Jr. & Jerry Lewis
Nov 05, 1988
Live and Swingin': The Ultimate Rat Pack Collection
Dec 30, 2003
A Man Called Adam
Mar 16, 1966
The Threepenny Opera
Feb 28, 1963
Happy Birthday, Las Vegas
Oct 23, 1977
This Is Elvis
Apr 03, 1981
The Rat Pack
Jan 01, 2004
Smorgasbord
Apr 13, 1983
The Definitive Elvis: The Television Years
Mar 31, 2002
King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis
Mar 24, 1970
Gone with the West
Sep 01, 1975
Rat Pack
Jan 11, 2022
Nat King Cole & Friends Unforgettable Hits
Steve & Eydie Celebrate Irving Berlin
Aug 22, 1978
This Is Joan Collins
Jan 01, 2022
CBS Salutes Lucy: The First 25 Years
Nov 28, 1976
Uptown Comedy Express
May 09, 1987
The Kid Who Loved Christmas
Dec 14, 1990
Sweet and Low
Mar 28, 1947
Sammy and Bruce
Sep 21, 1980
The Billy Martin Celebrity Roast
Jan 01, 1989
Sammy Davis, Jr. 60th Anniversary Celebration
Feb 04, 1990
Let's Play, Boy
May 25, 2008
Moon Over Parador
Sep 09, 1988
Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues
Sep 08, 2022
…Sings Musicals
Jan 15, 2012
Gone Before His Time: Freddie Prinze Sr.
Dec 20, 2023
Hanna-Barbera's 50th
Jul 17, 1989
Kennedy, Sinatra and the Mafia
Nov 04, 2023
Television: The First Fifty Years
Jan 01, 1999
Alice in Wonderland or What's a Nice Kid Like You Doing in a Place Like This?
Mar 30, 1966
BRATS
Jun 07, 2024
Meet Me in Las Vegas
Mar 09, 1956
Poor Devil
Feb 14, 1973
The Fall
Jan 15, 1969
Fight of the Century
Mar 08, 1971
Jingle Bells: RFK - 1964
Jan 01, 1977
The Music According to Tom Jobim
May 20, 2012
The Strolling '20s
Feb 04, 1966
Sammy Stops the World
Jan 01, 1978
Sammy Davis, Jr.: I've Gotta Be Me
Sep 11, 2017
Movin' with Nancy
Dec 11, 1967
TV in Black: The First Fifty Years
Jan 01, 2004
James Dean: The First American Teenager
Sep 30, 1975
This Is Bob Hope...
Dec 29, 2017
Jazz Ball
Jan 01, 1956
Doris Day Today
Jan 01, 1975
James Dean Remembered
Jan 01, 1974
The Ratpack
Jan 01, 2006
Frank Sinatra's Welcome Home Party for Elvis Presley
May 12, 1960
The Day of the Fox
Sep 06, 1961
The Rat Pack - The Greatest Hits
Nov 26, 2012
The Enemy
Nov 20, 1967
It's Black Entertainment
Feb 08, 2002
Chita Rivera: A Lot Of Livin' To Do
Nov 06, 2015
The Perils of P.K
Jun 06, 1986
Old Faithful
Mar 12, 1973
Sammy Davis Jr.: Live In Germany
Jun 28, 1985
Today: While You Were Away (1964-1973 Retrospective)
Feb 22, 1973
The Best of Bob Hope: 50 Years of Laughter — Volume 1
Feb 22, 2001
The Best of Bob Hope: 50 Years of Laughter — Volume 2
Feb 22, 2001
Frank Sinatra: The First 40 Years
Dec 13, 1979
Frank Sinatra Spectacular
Jun 12, 1965
John Travolta, le miraculé d'Hollywood
Mar 19, 2017
Night of 100 Stars
Mar 08, 1982
Bob Hope's Bicentennial Star Spangled Spectacular
Jul 04, 1976
The 1974 Annual Las Vegas Entertainment Awards
Nov 20, 1974
Jackpot at Tahoe
Sep 16, 1963
Elvis Through the Years
Aug 14, 2007
Six Bridges to Cross
Jan 21, 1955
Happy 100th Birthday, Hollywood
May 18, 1987
Bomb Disposal
Aug 14, 1963
Pioneers of Primetime
Nov 09, 2005
Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story
Jan 24, 2025
Magic Night
May 01, 1980
Hugh Hefner: Once Upon a Time
Jan 01, 1992
Cinderella at the Palace
Nov 02, 1978
All Star Party for Clint Eastwood
Nov 30, 1986
Sammy Davis, Jr.: One Cool Cat
Jan 01, 2004
Dean Martin: The One and Only
Jan 01, 2004
Sammy Davis Jr. in Europa
Feb 06, 1968
The Very Best of The Ed Sullivan Show (Vol. 1)
Feb 17, 1991
77 Sunset Strip
Oct 10, 1958
Burke's Law
Sep 20, 1963
Cain's Hundred
Sep 19, 1961
Here's Lucy
Sep 23, 1968
I Dream of Jeannie
Sep 18, 1965
Sanford
Mar 15, 1980
All in the Family
Jan 12, 1971
Chico and the Man
Sep 13, 1974
Playboy's Penthouse
Oct 24, 1959
The Merv Griffin Show
Oct 01, 1962
4-3-2-1 Hot and Sweet
Jun 11, 1966
The Mod Squad
Sep 24, 1968
General Electric Theater
Feb 01, 1953
Hunter
Sep 18, 1984
The Hollywood Palace
Jan 04, 1964
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Jan 22, 1968
The Patty Duke Show
Sep 18, 1963
The Flip Wilson Show
Sep 17, 1970
The Rifleman
Sep 30, 1958
Ben Casey
Oct 02, 1961
Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre
Oct 05, 1956
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Oct 01, 1962
The Oscars
Mar 19, 1953
The Sammy Davis Jr. Show
Jan 07, 1966
The Kennedy Center Honors
Dec 28, 1978
The Emmy Awards
Jan 25, 1949
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Oct 01, 1962
The Mike Douglas Show
Dec 11, 1961
Dinah!
Oct 21, 1974
General Electric Theater
Feb 01, 1953
General Electric Theater
Feb 01, 1953
Sammy and Company
Apr 06, 1975
The Courtship of Eddie's Father
Sep 17, 1969
The Ed Sullivan Show
Jun 20, 1948
The Jack Benny Program
Oct 28, 1950
Wogan
May 04, 1982
V.I.P. Schaukel
May 09, 1971
Bio’s Bahnhof
Feb 09, 1978
Tonight Starring Jack Paar
Jul 29, 1957
The Julie Andrews Hour
Sep 13, 1972
The Mike Douglas Show
Dec 11, 1961
The Big Party
Oct 08, 1959
The Steve Allen Show
Jun 24, 1956
The Carol Burnett Show
Sep 11, 1967
Champs-Elysées
Jan 16, 1982
The Dick Cavett Show
Jun 06, 1968
What's My Line?
Feb 02, 1950
The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts
Sep 14, 1973
Please Turn the Page
Apr 20, 1977
The Cosby Show
Sep 20, 1984
Alice in Wonderland
Dec 09, 1985
The Sixties
May 29, 2014
The Rat Pack
Feb 19, 1999
Batman
Jan 12, 1966
Fantasy Island
Jan 28, 1978
Fantasy Island
Jan 28, 1978
The Colgate Comedy Hour
Sep 10, 1950
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
Nov 25, 1948
Great Performances
Jan 28, 1971
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Jan 22, 1968
Drama 61-67
Mar 19, 1961
