Jackson wasn't a bad singer, just a very strange man, and certainly not as versatile as SDJ.
Posted on 07/16/2009 3:52:41 AM PDT by Kaslin
The world's greatest entertainer died -- 19 years ago. His name is Sammy Davis Jr.
At Michael Jackson's memorial, Motown founder Berry Gordy called the late, incredibly talented Jackson "the greatest entertainer that ever lived." Someone once said that Ginger Rogers, Fred Astaire's famous dance partner, did everything he did -- except backward and wearing high heels. Well, Sammy Davis Jr. did everything Michael Jackson did -- and more, much more -- except during Jim Crow and with one eye.
Davis sang. He danced. He acted. He played piano, drums and trumpet. He did impressions of the popular celebrities of his time. Gifted with excellent timing, Davis wove comedy into his act, always writing or improvising his own material.
Davis, like Jackson, became the focal point in a group of entertainers -- except Davis started on the stage when he was 3 and fronted the Will Mastin Trio as a teen. He never attended school -- not even elementary school -- and grew up on the road, without his mother.
Jackson came up hard. Davis came up harder. Try reading Davis' best-selling (15 million copies) autobiography, "Yes I Can," written with his longtime friend and confidant, Burt Boyar. It tells the journey of an astonishingly gifted and successful performer, a highly intelligent, self-educated, voracious reader, a man both confident and insecure -- in an era of segregation, lynchings and civil rights marches.
Davis worked hard. Davis played hard. His personal life and decisions and excesses attracted and repelled both blacks and whites. Yet however Davis' audience may have felt about him, it could never question his unparalleled talent.
"Yes I Can" describes some of the horrific racism endured by the legendary performer. For example, during World War II, Davis served in one of the Army's first integrated units. Once, some white members of his unit surprisingly invited Davis, sitting alone in a bar, to come over and join them for a drink. One of the guys handed him a beer. Suspicious, Davis refused to drink it. Good thing. The liquid in the mug was not beer, but urine.
During the Jackson memorial, we heard how he brought people of different races together. While Davis headlined at The Sands in Las Vegas in the late 1950s, the NAACP threatened a strike against the casinos because they wouldn't hire blacks in more prominent, visible positions. Davis told The Sands' president, Jack Entratter, "You've got to hire more blacks up front, not hidden in the kitchen." Entratter copped out, deferring to racist owners and high rollers. Davis told him, "Then you'll be embarrassed, because I'll be right out front picketing with them." Entratter gave in, and The Sands was not struck. Davis also marched for civil rights in places like Selma and the 1963 March on Washington.
He vigorously campaigned for John F. Kennedy in 1960. At the time, Davis -- despite the danger to his career, if not his life -- was engaged to white rising-star actress May Britt. To avoid alienating voters, Davis postponed their wedding until after the election. His reward? The newly elected President withdrew Davis' invitation to the inaugural to appease those offended by the recently married high-profile interracial couple. And 20th Century Fox, to which Britt was under contract, invoked the morals clause and let her go, effectively ending her career.
A brief word about Jackson's "moonwalk." Davis performed that move -- a derivative of soft shoe -- in front of audiences long before Michael was born. Indeed, young Michael frequently visited the Davis' home to watch tapes of Davis dancing and performing. As Davis told his friend Boyar: "It's such a gas when the kids like what you do enough to copy you. It's so flattering."
Before a show, Davis would pick out his first couple of songs, and then, after getting a feel for the audience, he would ad-lib the rest -- comedic patter, songs, impressions, playing the trumpet -- sensing what the crowd wanted. Boyar once accompanied Davis to a gig where the entertainer's band failed to show. "What are you going to do?" asked Boyar. Davis replied, "If I can't go out there with a comb and tissue paper and entertain those people, then I'm not the entertainer people say I am." Davis literally went onstage with a comb and tissue paper, captivating the audience for more than two hours. He did it, as always, without choreographers, directors, backup dancers or comedy writers.
Severely injured in an automobile accident, Davis lost one eye. He performed for a while with an eye patch and then with a glass eye for the rest of his career. He never missed a beat.
He portrayed a boxer in the Broadway play "Golden Boy," receiving a Tony nomination for Best Actor in a Musical. He also appeared in numerous television shows -- receiving several Emmy nominations and one win -- and movies, including the original "Ocean's Eleven."
A photographer, Davis captured fascinating shots of the famous -- Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra, Jerry Lewis -- and the not-so-famous, of the rich and of the poor. (See Boyar's coffee-table book, "Photo by Sammy Davis, Jr.," a remarkable collection of pictures taken by Davis.)
No disrespect to Michael, but come on, Sammy is in a class by himself.
Also Elvis could really sing. No one in their right mind would ever claim Jackson was more than a mediocre singer.
2 clips from my youtubes.
From the Dean Martin celebrity roast of Sammy.
Frank Gorshin entertains as Sammy, Dean and Rickles have a great time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OrE83eKGtk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEtDidm0pRE
Pretty simply put, there are many stars more talented in more area’s than Michael Jackson, and most of them were decent human beings and not freaks.
Jackson wasn't a bad singer, just a very strange man, and certainly not as versatile as SDJ.
Best of the best.
Imagine the current crop of “stars” such as Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Colin Farrel, etc being as multi- talented as any of of those in that pic!
PS where’s Joey?
I met Sammy once. It was under the grandstand at the Republican National Convention in Miami in 1972. Sammy was there as a Nixon supporter. He seemed very nice and genuine. It was quite a thrill.
I remember a performance in Cleveland in the late '60s, early 70's, Sammy had two shows on a Saturday night, the latter starting at 11. He did the whole thing, talked, danced, sang and chatted ad lib...until 3 AM.
It was the most memorable performance I have ever seen, and while I'm sure some people had to leave, there weren't many who did. He was captivating. My wife and I still talk about it.
You can say that again...
"Living with Michael Jackson" [MJ on sleeping with children: It's very charming. It's very sweet]
MJHouse.com ^
Transcript of Bashir interview. Video of it also.
Excerpt:
Jackson: "When you say bed, you're thinking sexual, they make that sexual, it's not sexual." "We're going to sleep, I tuck them in and I put a little like, er, music on and when it's story time I read a book." "We go to sleep with the fireplace on. I give them hot milk, you know, we have cookies, it's very charming, it's very sweet, it's what the whole world should do."
[snip]
Bashir: "Did you ever sleep in the bed with them?"
Jackson: "No. But I have slept in a bed with many children. "I slept in a bed with all of them when Macauley Culkin was little: Kieran Culkin would sleep on this side, Macauley Culkin was on this side, his sisters in there...we all would just jam in the bed, you know. "We would wake up like dawn and go in the hot air balloon, you know, we had the footage. I have all that footage."
Bashir: "But is that right Michael?"
Jackson: "It's very right. It's very loving, that's what the world needs now, more love more heart."
Bashir: "The world needs a man who's 44 who's sleeping in a bed with children?"
Jackson: "No, you're making it - no, no you're making it all wrong ..."
Bashir: "Well, tell me, help me ..."
Jackson: "Because what's wrong with sharing a love? You don't sleep with your kids? Or some other kid who needs love who didn't have a good childhood?"
Bashir: "No, no I don't. I would never dream ..."
Jackson: "That's because you've never been where I've been mentally ..."
Posted on Friday, June 26, 2009 10:03:14 AM ET by ETL:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2279938/posts
Jackson: "When you say bed, you're thinking sexual, they make that sexual, it's not sexual."
PBS played a concert staring Bobby Darin. He could sing,dance,joke,play the harmonica & piano. I was quite impressed with his talent. Much more so than than the”King of Pop.”
Enough of this lazy, oft-repeated but inaccurate meme.
All good points, but on this one I am going to call you. Although from a pure population viewpoint you are correct, it would be a statistical lie to assume that the correct number to use would be total population divided by number of records sold.
First of all, you need to account for the fact that certain age groups buy music and certain ones do not. There are a lot more 60-80 year-olds now than their were during Elvis/Beatles era as a percentage of the population and they tend to buy less music than 18 - 35 year-olds who were a larger portion of the population (baby boomers) when the other artists were recording. In addition you need to make an allowance for timeframe. My guess is running the numbers would have Jackson closer than you claim.
I don't dispute your overall point, but as a conservative, I think it is important to be honest with numbers and how they are logically derived.
You know, I did too! In fact, this summer when I joined a new softball team where one of the managers is black, we were sitting at a picnic table following our first game and I made a stupid racist remark about a black kid I saw throwing rocks off an I-94 overpass in Detroit.
A teammate next to me kicked me under the table and that's when I realized Don the manager was sitting at the other end of the table when I made the remark. I don't know if he heard me or not but I felt absolutely awful. The point I'm trying to make here is that I never once considered Don as being black.........he's just a guy I'm playing ball for.
Great article, great link, great thread, OUTSTANDING entertainer...
Sammy Davis does Michael Jackson’s “Bad”...here...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agYS1za9TNc&feature=related
R.I.P. Sammy Davis Jr.
That's pop as in soul, rock, R&B, disco, etc. Hardly a single genre. He crossed many musical lines at different ages with different musicians and producers as a solo act and as part of an ensemble.
Second, Michael Jackson’s hits came right as the US was coming out of a deep recession and the Vietnam era. The country was hungry for something entertaining and Michael Jackson was absolutely that....at the time.
Nonsense. "I Want You Back" was release Dec 1969 and went number one in Jan 1970. The Vietnam War was still in full flower including Nixon's bombing campaign.
Did the country want entertainment? Don't they always? But the J5 came in on the tail end of Beatlemania, the British Invasion and an already-solid 5-6 years of nonstop Motown hits. Hardly a musical vacuum despite Colonel Tom Parker's attempts to ruin Elvis' career and musical legacy up until 1968.
Third, Michael Jackson’s hits were the last big hits of the non-download era
Napster was released in June 1999 and brought file-sharing to the masses. Fringe technologies aside, anything release prior to 1999 can be considered pre-download-era. Jackson's last #1 was 1995 and the one prior to that was in 1991 which means a gap of 4 or 8 years. Plenty of time for other #1 hits and artists. Let's pick one - Madonna - at random. It seems she has sold a record or two including 'big hits' well after MJ's last.
As for 'no more hit albums' tell it to AC/DC who have sold shedloads of their Black Ice album release in late 2008...mostly through Wal-Mart! As of May 2009 the album has SOLD 8 million copies worldwide - if that isn't a hit album what is?
Fourth, if you look at the number of albums Michael Jackson sold versus the population and compared this to Elvis or the Beattles, you will see he was not that big of a hit.
Ludicrous on its face.
The top 3 of all time are the Beatles with 1 Billion+, Elvis Presley with 1 Billion+, and in third place - wait for it - Michael Jackson with 750 Million! Definitely not that big of a hit eh? Sold a record or two to his friends and family, right? After all he's only in third place.
Just some ‘facts’.
Thank you for using quotes because those 'facts' are farcical, fanciful flights of your imagination.
I remember thinking the VERY same thing when all the hoopla a about MJ being the “greatest performer, ever” was being bandied about.
I am young enough to remember seeing Sammy Davis, Jr on TV shows and specials, and when I was very young (only 6 or 8 at the time), I was lucky enough to see him live on stage. I don’t remember much about his show, other than the fact that I didn’t want to go (but my father made me), and that I was amazed at how entertaining he was, and how much I enjoyed the show. I was a fan from that point on.
Mark
Great post!
I saw Sammy Davis,Jr. on Broadway in Mr. Wonderful.
And he was!
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