Al Jolson

Al Jolson

​From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Al Jolson (May 26, 1886 – October 23, 1950) was a Lithuanian singer, comedian and actor. In his heyday, he was dubbed "The World's Greatest Entertainer".He was born in the Russian Empire (the part of which is now in Lithuania) and emigrated to America at the age of five with his Jewish parents. His performing style was brash and extroverted, and he popularized a large number of songs that benefited from his "shamelessly sentimental, melodramatic approach". Numerous well-known singers were influenced by his music, including Bing Crosby Judy Garland, rock and country entertainer Jerry Lee Lewis, and Bob Dylan, who once referred to him as "somebody whose life I can feel". Broadway critic Gilbert Seldes compared him to "the Great God Pan," claiming that Jolson represented "the concentration of our national health and gaiety." In the 1930s, he was America's most famous and highest paid entertainer. Between 1911 and 1928, Jolson had nine sell-out Winter Garden shows in a row, more than 80 hit records, and 16 national and international tours. Although he's best remembered today as the star in the first (full length) talking movie, The Jazz Singer in 1927, he later starred in a series of successful musical films throughout the 1930s. After a period of inactivity, his stardom returned with the 1946 Oscar-winning biographical film, The Jolson Story. Larry Parks played Jolson with the songs dubbed in with Jolson’s real voice. A sequel, Jolson Sings Again, was released in 1949, and was nominated for three Oscars. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Jolson became the first star to entertain troops overseas during World War II, and again in 1950 became the first star to perform for G.I.s in Korea, doing 42 shows in 16 days. He died just weeks after returning to the U.S., partly due to the physical exertion of performing. Defense Secretary George Marshall afterward awarded the Medal of Merit to Jolson's family. He enjoyed performing in blackface makeup – a theatrical convention since the mid-19th century. With his unique and dynamic style of singing black music, like jazz and blues, he was later credited with single-handedly introducing African-American music to white audiences. As early as 1911 he became known for fighting against anti-black discrimination on Broadway. Jolson's well-known theatrics and his promotion of equality on Broadway helped pave the way for many black performers, playwrights, and songwriters, including Cab Calloway, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Fats Waller, and Ethel Waters. Description above from the Wikipedia article Al Jolson, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

  • Title : Al Jolson
  • Popularity : 2.287
  • Known For : Acting
  • Birthday : 1886-05-26
  • Place of Birth : Sredniki, Kovno Governorate, Russian Empire [now Seredzius, Lithuania]
  • Homepage :
  • Also Known As : Asa Yoelson, אַסאַ יואלסאָן
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Al Jolson Movies

  • 1927
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    The Jazz Singer

    The Jazz Singer

    6.104 1927 HD

    A young Jewish man is torn between tradition and individuality when his old-fashioned family objects to his career as a jazz singer. This is the...

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  • 1945
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    Rhapsody in Blue

    Rhapsody in Blue

    6.4 1945 HD

    Fictionalized biography of George Gershwin and his fight to bring serious music to Broadway.

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  • 1939
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    Rose of Washington Square

    Rose of Washington Square

    5.7 1939 HD

    Rose Sargent, a Roaring '20s singer, becomes a Ziegfeld Follies star as her criminal husband gets deeper in trouble.

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  • 1964
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    Hollywood and the Stars

    Hollywood and the Stars

    1 1964 HD

    NBC's pioneering documentary series, produced by the David L. Wolper Production Company, in association with United Artists Television. Each...

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  • 1982
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    Showbiz Goes to War

    Showbiz Goes to War

    10 1982 HD

    While a few Hollywood celebrities such as James Stewart and Clark Gable saw combat during World War II, the majority used their talents to rally the...

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  • 1939
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    Hollywood Cavalcade

    Hollywood Cavalcade

    5.1 1939 HD

    Starting in 1913 movie director Connors discovers singer Molly Adair. As she becomes a star she marries an actor, so Connors fires them. She asks for...

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  • 1938
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    Hollywood Handicap

    Hollywood Handicap

    4.5 1938 HD

    A group of stable hands is given a race horse when its owner retires from the business. They raise money to run the horse in the Hollywood Derby at...

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  • 1930
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    Mammy

    Mammy

    4.7 1930 HD

    Mammy features Al Jolson as the star of a travelling minstrel show, appearing in cities and towns across the U.S. Jolson falls in love with an...

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  • 1961
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    The Legend of Rudolph Valentino

    The Legend of Rudolph Valentino

    1 1961 HD

    A documentary of Hollywood's first great Latin Lover, the contradictions in his personal life, and his premature death.

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  • 1933
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    Hallelujah, I'm a Bum

    Hallelujah, I'm a Bum

    7.5 1933 HD

    A New York tramp falls in love with the mayor's amnesiac girlfriend after rescuing her from a suicide attempt.

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  • 1934
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    Wonder Bar

    Wonder Bar

    6.2 1934 HD

    Harry and Inez are a dance team at the Wonder Bar. Inez loves Harry, but he is in love with Liane, the wife of a wealthy business man. Al Wonder and...

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  • 1939
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    Swanee River

    Swanee River

    6.5 1939 HD

    Swanee River is a 1940 American biopic about Stephen Foster, a songwriter from Pittsburgh who falls in love with the South, marries a Southern girl,...

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  • 1936
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    The Singing Kid

    The Singing Kid

    4 1936 HD

    Neurotic Broadway star Al Jackson faces professional ruin when he loses his voice. While recuperating in the country, he falls in love with farm girl...

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  • 1929
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    New York Nights

    New York Nights

    4.8 1929 HD

    Show girl Jill Deverne is married to song writer Fred Deverne, and everyone is involved in the Broadway night life and endless parties. Jill is being...

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  • 1930
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    Big Boy

    Big Boy

    4 1930 HD

    Gus, the trusty family retainer, has hopes of riding his boss' horse, Big Boy, to victory at the Kentucky Derby.

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  • 1928
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    The Singing Fool

    The Singing Fool

    5 1928 HD

    After years of hopeful struggle, waiter and aspiring singer-songwriter Al Stone is on his way. He gets his huge break on a magical night when his...

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  • 1926
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    A Plantation Act

    A Plantation Act

    3.6 1926 HD

    Al Jolson's first sound film. Dressed in overalls and wearing black-face makeup, he sings three of his hit songs: "When the Red, Red, Robin Comes...

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  • 1929
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    Say It with Songs

    Say It with Songs

    5.3 1929 HD

    Joe Lane, radio entertainer and songwriter, learns that the manager of the studio, Arthur Phillips, has made improper advances to his wife,...

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  • 1935
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    Go Into Your Dance

    Go Into Your Dance

    7 1935 HD

    An irresponsible Broadway star gets mixed up with gambling and gangsters.

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  • 1984
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    Going Hollywood: The '30s

    Going Hollywood: The '30s

    10 1984 HD

    Robert Preston hosts this documentary that shows what people of the 1930s were watching as they were battling the Depression as well as eventually...

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  • 1930
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    Show Girl in Hollywood

    Show Girl in Hollywood

    5.6 1930 HD

    Broadway actress leaves New York to become a star in Hollywood, and succeeds despite sleazy directors and her own ego.

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  • 1937
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    Screen Snapshots: Series 16, No. 12

    Screen Snapshots: Series 16, No. 12

    5 1937 HD

    A tour of Hollywood, featuring such star frequented spots as the Vendome, the Lakeside Golf Club, the West Side Tennis Club, the Santa Anita...

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  • 1950
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    The Golden Twenties

    The Golden Twenties

    1 1950 HD

    Feature-length compilation of 1920s newsreel footage, with commentary about news, sports, lifestyles, and historical figures.

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  • 2007
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    The Dawn of Sound: How Movies Learned to Talk

    The Dawn of Sound: How Movies Learned to Talk

    7 2007 HD

    Film historians, and survivors from the nearly 30-year struggle to bring sound to motion pictures take the audience from the early failed attempts by...

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  • 1952
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    Screen Snapshots: Memorial to Al Jolson

    Screen Snapshots: Memorial to Al Jolson

    1 1952 HD

    Jack Benny narrates the Screen Snapshots that, utilizing archive footage, traces the career of Al Jolson, and rare off-stage shots of Jolson with...

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  • 1946
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    The Jolson Story

    The Jolson Story

    6.7 1946 HD

    At the turn of the 20th century, young Asa Yoelson decides to go against the wishes of his cantor father and pursue a career in show business....

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  • 1949
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    Jolson Sings Again

    Jolson Sings Again

    6 1949 HD

    In this sequel to The Jolson Story, we pick up the singer's career just as he has returned to the stage after a premature retirement. But his wife...

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  • 1943
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    Show-Business at War

    Show-Business at War

    7 1943 HD

    A multi-studio effort to show the newsreel audience the progress of the Hollywood war effort.

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  • 1975
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    Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?

    Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?

    5.7 1975 HD

    Period music, film clips and newsreel footage combined into a visual exploration of the American entertainment industry during the Great Depression.

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  • 1990
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    Myrna Loy: So Nice to Come Home To

    Myrna Loy: So Nice to Come Home To

    9 1990 HD

    This tribute to Myrna Loy is organized chronologically with a few photographs, many film clips, a handful of personal appearances, and a detailed...

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  • 1944
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    Take It or Leave It

    Take It or Leave It

    4 1944 HD

    A young husband becomes a game-show participant in the hopes of winning the cash to pay his pregnant wife's doctor.

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  • 1946
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    Okay for Sound

    Okay for Sound

    5 1946 HD

    This short was released in connection with the 20th anniversary of Warner Brothers' first exhibition of the Vitaphone sound-on-film process on 6...

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  • 1976
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    Salsa

    Salsa

    1 1976 HD

    The Fania All Stars perform for 44,000 fans at Yankee stadium in New York. Besides concert footage, there's also included a history of Salsa, and...

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  • 1943
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    The Voice That Thrilled the World

    The Voice That Thrilled the World

    5.3 1943 HD

    This short traces the history of sound in the movies, beginning with French scientist Leon Scott's experiments in 1857. Featured are snippets from...

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  • 1937
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    A Day at Santa Anita

    A Day at Santa Anita

    5 1937 HD

    Orphaned horse-trainer's little daughter has reciprocated bond with horse, which needs her presence to win races.

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  • 1939
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    Screen Snapshots Series 18, No. 8

    Screen Snapshots Series 18, No. 8

    4 1939 HD

    Ice skating is the theme; at the Tropical Ice Garden, in Westwood Hills, are seen a flock of skating stars including Irene Dare and Phyllis Ann...

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  • 1934
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    Studio Highlights

    Studio Highlights

    1 1934 HD

    A short promotional film about Ruby Keeler and her upcoming film "Flirtation Walk." It provides a brief look at her career on Broadway, early films,...

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  • 1951
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    Purple Heart Diary

    Purple Heart Diary

    1 1951 HD

    A trio of singers entertaining hospitalized soldiers during WWII encourage a wounded soldier in his love for a nurse.

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  • 1990
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    Jacob's Ladder

    Jacob's Ladder

    7.353 1990 HD

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  • 1959
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    Startime

    Startime

    6 1959 HD

    Startime is an anthology show of drama, comedy, and variety, and was one of the first American television shows broadcast in color. The program was...

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  • 1955
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    Alfred Hitchcock Presents

    Alfred Hitchcock Presents

    7.7 1955 HD

    A television anthology series hosted by Alfred Hitchcock featuring dramas, thrillers, and mysteries.

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