Sammy Davis was born in the Harlem area of New York. He was the son of variety star Sammy Davis Senior. When he was 2 years old his parents divorced and he was brought up by his father. He was the only son of two dancers in a black vaudeville troupe, called Will Mastin's Holiday In Dixieland, Sammy made his professional debut with the group at the age of three, as "Silent Sam, The Dancing Midget".Early in his life he was coached by the legendary tap-dancer Bill "Bojangles" Robinson. Sam left the group in 1943 to serve in the US Army, where he encountered racial prejudice for the first time. After the war he rejoined his father and adopted uncle in the Will Mastin Trio.

By 1950 the Trio were headlining at venues such as the Capitol in New York and Ciro's in Hollywood with stars including Jack Benny, but it was Sammy Davis who was receiving the standing ovations for his singing, dancing, drumming, comedy and apparently inexhaustible energy. In 1954 he signed for Decca Records, and released an album, Starring Sammy Davis Jr. (number 1 in the US chart), featuring his impressions of other stars. He also made the US singles chart with "Hey There" from The Pajama Game. In the same year he lost his left eye in a road accident. In 1956 he made his Broadway debut in the musical Mr Wonderful,.

The show ran for nearly 400 performances and produced two hits, Too Close For Comfort,, and the title song, which was very successful.

Sammy Davis started his film career in 1958 with Anna Lucasta, and was critically acclaimed the following year for his performance as Sporting Life in Porgy And Bess. By this time he was a leading member of Frank Sinatra’s "inner circle", called, variously, the "Clan" or the "Rat Pack". He appeared with Sinatra in three movies, Ocean's Eleven (1960), Sergeants 3 (1962), and Robin And The 7 Hoods (1964), but made, perhaps, a greater impact when he co-starred with another member of the "Clan", Shirley McClane, in the film musical Sweet Charity.
Sammy Davis Jr. was one of the most versatile and talented performers of his generation, a view endorsed by his long-time friend Frank Sinatra, who once said of him 'Sammy Davis can do everything bar cook spaghetti!'
After his death in 1990 it was revealed that his estate was almost worthless. In 1992, an all-star tribute, led by Liza Minnelli, was mounted at the Royal Albert Hall in London, the city that had always welcomed him. Proceeds from the concert went to the Royal Marsden Cancer Appeal. Few all-round entertainers in the history of popular song and show business have retained such a long-standing appeal.

Sammy Davis Recordings