Ella+Fitzgerald

"The First Lady of Jazz" Born: April 25th, 1918 in Newport News, VA

Discovered as a teenager at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, Ella Fitzgerald and her swing style of vocal jazz transcend the times. Her trademark scatting captivates audiences, and as a cultural ambassador, her impressive vocal range stretches across oceans and political boundaries __Chi____ldhood__ __Significant Events __ __End of Life __
 * Her parents, William and Temperance (Tempie) divorce
 * Ella and her mom moved to Yonkers, NY and moved in with Tempie's longtime boyfriend, Joseph Da Silva
 * She had to take on small jobs to contribute money to the household
 * Worked as runner for local gamblers (picked up bets, dropped of money)
 * Enjoyed sports, singing, and dancing
 * Would sometimes take the train into Harlem and watch acts at the Apollo Theater
 * Lost both parents in 1932
 * Tempie: Died first from serious injuries received from car accident
 * Joseph: Heart attack
 * Became increasingly unhappy, her grades dropped, and she frequently skipped school
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">She was taken into custody by the police because she skipped school and was taken to reform school
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Suffered beatings from her caretakers
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1934: Ella's name is put into Apollo Theater weekly drawing to compete in Amateur Night
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">She actually planned to dance, but once she saw the Edwards Sisters extraordinary dancing, she quickly changed her talent act to singing Hoagy Carmichael's "Judy"
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Blew the crowd away; their initial boos turned into cheers and demands for an encore, which she obliged
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Jan. 1935: Won chance to perform for a week with the Tiny Bradshaw band at the Harlem Opera House
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Met Chick Webb there
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Impressed him with her voice and he hired her ($12.50 a week)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Mid-1936: Made 1st recording, "Love and Kisses"
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Had moderate success
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1937: Top Female Vocalist, Down Beat magazine
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1938: Recorded "A-Tisket, A-Tasket"
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Sold 1 million copies, hit #1, and stayed on pop charts for 17 weeks
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">This song practically made her famous overnight
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1939: Chick Webb, her mentor, dies
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">She takes over the band
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1941: Married Benny Kornegay, a Harlem hustler
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Divorced him when she found about his criminal record
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 18px;">1942: Pursued solo career
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 18px;">Signed to the Decca label
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Dec. 1947: Married bassist Ray Brown
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">They adopted her nephew, Ray Brown, Jr.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 18px;">1952: Divorced Ray Brown, but they remained good friends for the rest of their lives
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1954: Best Female Vocalist for Metronome magazine and Down Beat magazine (both readers' poll and critics' poll)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Oct. 7, 1955: Arrested in Dallas while touring for the Philiharmonic
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px;">It happened because the police squad was irritated by Norman's (Ella's manager) anti-racism principles
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 18px;">1956-1964: Recorded covers of other musicians' albums, such as Duke Ellington, Johnny Mercer, Cole Porter, and Irving Berlin
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 18px;">Series was wildly popular with Ella's fans and the artists she covered
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 18px;">"I never knew how good our songs were until I heard Ella Fitzgerald sign them" -Ira Gershwin
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1956: All Star Female, Metronome magazine
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1958: First Grammy awards held; won Best Female Vocal Performance for "The Irving Berlin Songbook" (album) and Best Individual Jazz Performance for "The Duke Ellington Songbook" (album)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1959: Grammy awards, Best Female Vocal Performance for "But Not For Me" and Best Individual Jazz Performance for "Ella Swings Lightly"
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Grammy awards, Best Female Vocal Performance (single) for "Mack the Knife" and Best Female Vocal Performance (album) for "Ella in Berlin"
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1960: Honorary membership to Alpha Kappa Alpha, the oldest and largest African-American sorority in the United States
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1962: Grammy award, Best Female Solo Vocal Performance for "Ella Swings Brightly With Nelson Riddle"
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1965: Received first ASCAP award in recognition of an artist
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1967: Grammy award, Bing Crosby Lifetime Achievement award
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Honorary chairmanship of the newly formed Martin Luther King Foundation
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1974: Spent legendary two weeks performing in NY with Frank Sinatra and Count Basie
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">University of Maryland names its new $1.6 million, 1,200-seat theater and concert hall the Ella Fitzgerald Center for the Performing Arts
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1976: (April 11) Ella Fitzgerald Day in Los Angeles
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Grammy award, Best Jazz Vocal Performance for "Fitzgerald and Pass…Again" (album)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1979: Inducted into the Down Beat magazine Hall of Fame and received Kennedy Center Honors for her continuing contributions to the arts
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Grammy award, Best Jazz Vocal Performance for "Fine and Mellow" (album)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1980: Will Rogers award from the Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce and Civic Association
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Honorary Doctor of Music from Howard University
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Lord & Taylor Rose award for her outstanding contribution to music
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Grammy award, Best Female Jazz Vocal Performance for "A Perfect Match; Ella and Basie" (album)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1981: Grammy award, Best Female Jazz Vocal Performance for "Digital III at Montreux" (album)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1983: Peabody Award for Outstanding Contributions to Music in America
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Grammy award, Best Female Jazz Vocal Performance for "The Best Is Yet to Come" (album)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1987: United States President Ronald Reagan awards Ella the National Medal of Arts
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">"A-Tisket, A-Tasket" entered into the Grammy Hall of Fame
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">UCLA Medal for Musical Achievements
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1988: NAACP Image award for Lifetime Achievement
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1990: Grammy award, Best Female Jazz Vocal Performance for All That Jazz (album)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1992: Miss Fitzgerald was awarded America's highest non-military honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">2007: U.S. Postal Service unveils the 2007 Ella Fitzgerald Commemorative Stamp
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">September 1986: Ella underwent quintuple coronary bypass surgery after she had a heart attack
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1990s: Ella had recorded over 200 albums
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1991: Gave final concert at New York's renowned Carnegie Hall
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">It was the 26th time she'd performed there
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">1993: Her two legs got amputated below the knee
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Never fully recovered and she rarely performed after that
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Died on June 15th, 1996 in her Beverly Hills home
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Buried in the "Sanctuary of the Bells" section of the Sunset Mission Mausoleum at the Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, CA



<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%; text-align: center;">__Influenced artists such as:__ <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%; text-align: center;">Natalie Cole <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%; text-align: center;">Quincy Jones <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%; text-align: center;">Stevie Wonder <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%; text-align: center;">Patti Austin <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%; text-align: center;">Wynonna <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%; text-align: center;">Ruben Studdard

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%; text-align: center;">[|Ella scatting in 1969]

__<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Famous Songs __
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">(If You Can't Sing It) You Have to Swing It
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">A-Tisket, A-Tasket
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">You Showed Me the Way
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Spinnin' the Web
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">I Found My Yellow Basket
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Chew, Chew, Chew
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Please Tell The Truth
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Oh! But I Do
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 135%;">Just One of Those Nights