Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 â€" May 16, 1990) was an
American singer, dancer, actor, vaudevillian and comedian who has been
called "the greatest entertainer ever to grace a stage in these United
States." At age three, Davis began his career in vaudeville with his
father Sammy Davis Sr. and the Will Mastin Trio, which toured
nationally. After military service, he returned to the trio and became
an overnight sensation following a nightclub performance at Ciro's (in
West Hollywood) after the 1951 Academy Awards. With the trio, he
became a recording artist. In 1954, at the age of 29, he lost his left
eye in a car accident. Several years later, he converted to Judaism,
finding commonalities between the oppression experienced by
African-American and Jewish communities.After a starring role on
Broadway in Mr Wonderful (1956), he returned to the stage in 1964's
Golden Boy. Davis's film career began as a child in 1933. In 1960, he
appeared in the Rat Pack film Ocean's 11. In 1966, he had his own TV
variety show, titled The Sammy Davis Jr. Show. While Davis's career
slowed in the late 1960s, his biggest hit, "The Candy Man", reached
the top of the Billboard Hot 100 in June 1972, and he became a star in
Las Vegas, earning him the nickname "Mister Show Business".Davis had a
complex relationship with the black community and drew criticism after
publicly supporting President Richard Nixon in 1972. 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 who's
Jewish." This was to become a signature comment, recounted in his
autobiography and in many articles.
American singer, dancer, actor, vaudevillian and comedian who has been
called "the greatest entertainer ever to grace a stage in these United
States." At age three, Davis began his career in vaudeville with his
father Sammy Davis Sr. and the Will Mastin Trio, which toured
nationally. After military service, he returned to the trio and became
an overnight sensation following a nightclub performance at Ciro's (in
West Hollywood) after the 1951 Academy Awards. With the trio, he
became a recording artist. In 1954, at the age of 29, he lost his left
eye in a car accident. Several years later, he converted to Judaism,
finding commonalities between the oppression experienced by
African-American and Jewish communities.After a starring role on
Broadway in Mr Wonderful (1956), he returned to the stage in 1964's
Golden Boy. Davis's film career began as a child in 1933. In 1960, he
appeared in the Rat Pack film Ocean's 11. In 1966, he had his own TV
variety show, titled The Sammy Davis Jr. Show. While Davis's career
slowed in the late 1960s, his biggest hit, "The Candy Man", reached
the top of the Billboard Hot 100 in June 1972, and he became a star in
Las Vegas, earning him the nickname "Mister Show Business".Davis had a
complex relationship with the black community and drew criticism after
publicly supporting President Richard Nixon in 1972. 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 who's
Jewish." This was to become a signature comment, recounted in his
autobiography and in many articles.
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