Nathaniel Adams Coles

Nathaniel Adams Coles – better known as Nat "King" Cole born on March 17, 1919, conquered the pop charts in the Fifties and early Sixties as a warm-voiced singer of orchestrated ballads like “Mona Lisa” and “Unforgettable,” and breezy, countrified sing-alongs including “Ramblin’ Rose” and “Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer.” Less well known is the fact that he played a mean piano (in the style of Earl “Fatha” Hines) and led a swinging jazz trio from 1937 to 1955.

Cole continued to score hits with such songs as 1948’s “Nature Boy” and 1950’s “Mona Lisa.” The following year, Cole hit Number One with the song “Too Young.” That same year he had another hit with “Unforgettable.” During this period, Cole also worked as a session musician, recording with such artists as Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald.

In 1956, Cole made television history when he became the first African-American host of a variety television series. The Nat King Cole Show, which remained on the air until December 1957, featured performances by such artists as Count Basie, Tony Bennett, Sammy Davis Jr. and Peggy Lee.

Over the course of his career, Cole appeared on numerous television shows and in several feature films. In 1958, he played the role of W.C. Handy in the film St. Louis Blues, and in 1965, he appeared alongside Jane Fonda and Lee Marvin in Cat Ballou.

In December 1964, Cole was diagnosed with lung cancer. That same month, he released his last album, L-O-V-E, which reached Number Four on the charts. Nat “King” Cole died on February 15, 1965. He was 45 years old.