Trivia of Sammy Davis Jr

Trivia of Sammy Davis Jr (8 December 1925 - 16 May 1990)

*At age 3, he began performing with his family, who were also entertainers, and never attended school. He grew up in New York City.

*During his teens, Davis Jr first met Frank Sinatra when he helped open for the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra and Sinatra. The two became lifelong friends, enjoying palpable chemistry both on and off stage. In fact, Sinatra was like a big brother to Sammy. Davis Jr had cemented his close friendship with Frank Sinatra, performing with him on stage in Las Vegas and co-starring with him in the film Ocean's 11. Sinatra was even the best man at Sammy's wedding.

*As an entertainer and a member of the infamous Rat Pack, he had access to some of the most important people in the entertainment business and used his photography skills to capture images of them at work and at play.He published album book called "Photo by Sammy Davis Jr." ,an excellent collection of his photographs including some of his self-portraits.

*He lost his left eye in a car crash when he was on his way to record the theme song for the Tony Curtis film, Six Bridges to Cross (1955). He wore an eyepatch for sometime after that, but Humphrey Bogart ultimately convinced him to unmask when he told him that he didn't want to be known as the kid with the eyepatch.

*He was in a romance with actress Kim Novak, which was scandalous at the time because it was an interracial relationship at a time of extreme racism. They were forced to break up, as Columbia Studios threatened to ruin both their careers if they married.

*John F Kennedy was like a false friend who wouldn’t allow him to attend some function prior to the 1959 election. Nixon, on the other hand, embraced Sammy Davis Junior. He truly liked him and it wasn’t for political reasons. Sammy became a Nixon supporter.

*Shortly after his death on May 16, 1990, the hotels on the Las Vegas Strip turned off their exterior lights for 10 minutes in tribute. There is currently an outdoor theater in Las Vegas named in his honor, the Sammy Davis Jr. Festival Plaza.