Al Jolson

Personal Info

Known For Actor

Gender Male

Birthday 1886-05-26

Deathday 1950-10-23 (64 years old)

Place of Birth Sredniki, Kovno Governorate, Russian Empire [now Seredzius, Lithuania]

Also Known As Asa Yoelson, אַסאַ יואלסאָן

Al Jolson

Biography

​From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Al Jolson (May 26, 1886 – October 23, 1950) was a Lithuanian singer, comedian and actor. In his heyday, he was dubbed "The World's Greatest Entertainer".He was born in the Russian Empire (the part of which is now in Lithuania) and emigrated to America at the age of five with his Jewish parents. His performing style was brash and extroverted, and he popularized a large number of songs that benefited from his "shamelessly sentimental, melodramatic approach". Numerous well-known singers were influenced by his music, including Bing Crosby Judy Garland, rock and country entertainer Jerry Lee Lewis, and Bob Dylan, who once referred to him as "somebody whose life I can feel". Broadway critic Gilbert Seldes compared him to "the Great God Pan," claiming that Jolson represented "the concentration of our national health and gaiety." In the 1930s, he was America's most famous and highest paid entertainer. Between 1911 and 1928, Jolson had nine sell-out Winter Garden shows in a row, more than 80 hit records, and 16 national and international tours. Although he's best remembered today as the star in the first (full length) talking movie, The Jazz Singer in 1927, he later starred in a series of successful musical films throughout the 1930s. After a period of inactivity, his stardom returned with the 1946 Oscar-winning biographical film, The Jolson Story. Larry Parks played Jolson with the songs dubbed in with Jolson’s real voice. A sequel, Jolson Sings Again, was released in 1949, and was nominated for three Oscars. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Jolson became the first star to entertain troops overseas during World War II, and again in 1950 became the first star to perform for G.I.s in Korea, doing 42 shows in 16 days. He died just weeks after returning to the U.S., partly due to the physical exertion of performing. Defense Secretary George Marshall afterward awarded the Medal of Merit to Jolson's family. He enjoyed performing in blackface makeup – a theatrical convention since the mid-19th century. With his unique and dynamic style of singing black music, like jazz and blues, he was later credited with single-handedly introducing African-American music to white audiences. As early as 1911 he became known for fighting against anti-black discrimination on Broadway. Jolson's well-known theatrics and his promotion of equality on Broadway helped pave the way for many black performers, playwrights, and songwriters, including Cab Calloway, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Fats Waller, and Ethel Waters. Description above from the Wikipedia article Al Jolson, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Known For

Actor

2007
1990
1984
Going Hollywood: The '30s

as (archive footage)

1982
Showbiz Goes to War

as (archive footage)

1976
Salsa

as (archive footage)

1975
Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?

as Self (archive footage)

1964
Hollywood and the Stars

as (archive footage)

1961
The Legend of Rudolph Valentino

as Self (archive footage)

1955
Alfred Hitchcock Presents

as Jakie Rabinowitz (archive footage) (uncredited)

1952
Screen Snapshots: Memorial to Al Jolson

as Self (archive footage)

1951
Purple Heart Diary

as Al Jolson (archive footage) (uncredited)

1950
The Golden Twenties

as Self (archive footage)

1949
Jolson Sings Again

as Himself (singing voice) (uncredited)

1946
The Jolson Story

as Singing Voice / Al Jolson (uncredited)

1945
Rhapsody in Blue

as Al Jolson

1944
Take It or Leave It

as (archive footage) (uncredited)

1943
The Voice That Thrilled the World

as Self (segment 'The Jazz Singer') (archive footage)

1939
Swanee River

as Edwin P. Christy

1939
Hollywood Cavalcade

as Al Jolson

1939
1938
1937
1937
A Day at Santa Anita

as Al Jolson (uncredited)

1936
The Singing Kid

as Al Jackson

1935
Go Into Your Dance

as Al Howard

1934
1934
Wonder Bar

as Al Wonder

1933
1930
Big Boy

as Gus

1930
1930
Mammy

as Al Fuller

1929
New York Nights

as Al Jolson

1929
Say It with Songs

as Joe Lane

1928
The Singing Fool

as Al Stone

1927
The Jazz Singer

as Jakie Rabinowitz

1926

Sound

1990