How Sammy Davis Jr. Became the Great Jewish Entertainer

Forward ^ | May 16, 2014 | Dan Epstein

[jimfree]

One of my all-time favorite entertainers. Not my favorite dancer, not my favorite singer, not my favorite comedian, not my favorite impressionist, not my favorite actor, but perhaps my favorite combination of those talents.

[GJones2]

> “While I was only a teenager when Sammy was in his prime, i still remember watching him on TV........The guy was a true entertainer, one of the very best ...”<

I recall an old tv show in which Sammy Davis, Jr., played a naive and gullible soldier who was often the butt of jokes. (Looking at Wikipedia, my guess is it was “The Patsy” from 1960, an episode on the General Electric Theater.) The climax of the show occurred when some other soldiers set up a practical joke in which they pretended to pull the pin on a live grenade and then panic.

[Plot spoiler, though I’ve never seen a rerun of the show] The Davis character believed it was a live grenade and was terrified, as expected, but kept trying to get them to run. When he realized it was too late for them to get away, he dove on the grenade and covered it with his body.

The image of him on the ground writhing in terror waiting for the grenade to explode was moving. Of course, the other soldiers were ashamed then of the low opinion they’d had of him. (An officer observed what happened and praised him for his bravery.)

I’m not a big fan of Davis in general, but thought his acting in that scene was excellent. I’ve remembered it for over half a century.

[GJones2]

By the way, I don’t believe that episode was about racism (and don’t recall whether there were other black soldiers in the scene). I think it was just about him being gullible and the butt of jokes (hence the name, “The Patsy”).

[minnesota_bound]

Start this video at any point as they are all great.
Sammy at 43:50 impersonating Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis

Frank Sinatra Spectacular SL 1965
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJpFI46b0xI

[dfwgator]

[Bobalu]

Thanks for the link :-)

[skinkinthegrass]

Joey Bishop, was considered "the real brains" of the bunch, Funniest;
DM, the most charisma & funny; FS, best singer; SDjr, most versatile of all;
PL, a has-been actor.

[POWERSBOOTHEFAN]

Do you take cream and sugar in your eye?

[dfwgator]

Funniest TV moment, ever.

[Liberty Valance]

I always liked that guy. And man - could he sing.

[Admin Moderator]

Updated FR Excerpt and Link Only or Deny Posting List due to Copyright Complaints

Also, do not post images from Corbis or Getty.

Thanks,

Jim

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1111944/posts

[fieldmarshaldj]

Sorry, wasn’t sure about Corbis.