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128-477: No longer a hotel, the building was renovated in the 2010s and is now part of a larger residential community named Dunbar Village. The hotel was built in 1928 by John and Vada Somerville , socially and politically prominent black Angelenos. Vada Somerville was the first African-American woman in California to receive a Doctor of Dental Surgery degree at University of Southern California . John Alexander Somerville

256-485: A mob enforcer. McKay, like most of the men in her life, was abusive. They were separated at the time of her death, but McKay had plans to start a chain of Billie Holiday vocal studios, on the model of the Arthur Murray dance schools. Holiday was childless, but she had two godchildren: singer Billie Lorraine Feather (the daughter of Leonard Feather) and Bevan Dufty (the son of William Dufty). By early 1959, Holiday

384-467: A viola . In 1946, Holiday recorded " Good Morning Heartache ". Although the song failed to chart, she sang it in live performances; three live recordings are known. In September 1946, Holiday began her only major film, New Orleans , in which she starred opposite Louis Armstrong and Woody Herman . Plagued by racism and McCarthyism , producer Jules Levey and script writer Herbert Biberman were pressed to lessen Holiday's and Armstrong's roles to avoid

512-536: A "remarkable ear" and a "remarkable sense of time", her tenure with the band was nearing an end. In November 1938, Holiday was asked to use the service elevator at the Lincoln Hotel in New York City, instead of the one used by hotel guests, because white patrons of the hotels complained. This may have been the last straw for her. She left the band shortly after. Holiday spoke about the incident weeks later, saying, "I

640-530: A Jewish schoolteacher from the Bronx , used the pseudonym "Lewis Allan" for the poem, which was set to music and performed at teachers' union meetings. It was eventually heard by Barney Josephson, the proprietor of Café Society , an integrated nightclub in Greenwich Village , who introduced it to Holiday. She performed it at the club in 1939, with some trepidation, fearing possible retaliation. She later said that

768-508: A club on West 132nd Street. Producer John Hammond , who loved Moore's singing and had come to hear her, first heard Holiday there in early 1933. Hammond arranged for Holiday to make her recording debut at age 18, in November 1933, with Benny Goodman. She recorded two songs: " Your Mother's Son-In-Law " and "Riffin' the Scotch", the latter being her first hit. "Son-in-Law" sold 300 copies, and "Riffin'

896-403: A comeback concert at Carnegie Hall. Holiday hesitated, unsure audiences would accept her after the arrest. She gave in and agreed to appear. On March 27, 1948, Holiday played Carnegie Hall to a sold-out crowd. Two thousand seven hundred tickets were sold in advance, a record at the time for the venue. Her popularity was unusual because she did not have a current hit record. Her last record to reach

1024-504: A concert in 1946 that her performance had little variation in melody and no change in tempo. By 1947, Holiday was at her commercial peak, having made $ 250,000 in the three previous years. She was ranked second in the DownBeat poll for 1946 and 1947, her highest ranking in that poll. She was ranked fifth in Billboard ' s annual college poll of "girl singers" on July 6, 1947 ( Jo Stafford

1152-485: A dead girl overnight as punishment for misbehavior. The experience traumatized her, and for years she would "dream about it and wake up hollering and screaming". After nine months, she was released on October 3, 1925, to her mother. Sadie had opened a restaurant, the East Side Grill, and mother and daughter worked long hours there. She dropped out of school at age 11. On December 24, 1926, Harris came home to discover

1280-434: A flat fee rather than royalties , which saved the company money. " I Cried for You " sold 15,000 copies, which Hammond called "a giant hit for Brunswick.... Most records that made money sold around three to four thousand." Another frequent accompanist was tenor saxophonist Lester Young , who had been a boarder at her mother's house in 1934 and with whom Holiday had a rapport. Young said, "I think you can hear that on some of

1408-630: A headliner with Dinah Washington and others in Jazz Under the Stars , a summer concert series that took place at the Wollman Memorial Theater in New York City's Central Park . When Holiday returned to Europe almost five years later, in 1959, she made one of her last television appearances for Granada television's British Cabaret show, Chelsea at Nine, in London. The show taped what is believed to be

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1536-401: A jazz show in 1991, attended by noted music journalist Leonard Feather . Feather wrote that the event was like "a visit to a haunted house." When one of the musicians played a Duke Ellington theme, Feather said "you could look up at the balcony and see, in your mind's eye, Duke himself at a piano on the mezzanine, working out an arrangement for tomorrow's show." By 1997, the neighborhood around

1664-598: A level of achievement among the black community. Historian Lonnie G. Bunch III said, "On the one hand, blacks were not allowed to stay at major hotels. But with enough financial wherewithal and a strong sense of community a black man could build a large hotel." Unlike earlier segregated hotels and boarding houses, the Somerville (and later the Dunbar) offered luxury amenities – a restaurant, cocktail lounge and barbershop. One person noted, "The Dunbar symbolizes luxury and respect even in

1792-607: A neighbor attempting to rape Holiday. She successfully fought back, and he was arrested. Officials sent Holiday to the House of the Good Shepherd under protective custody as a state witness in the rape case. Holiday was released in February 1927, when she was nearly 12. She found a job running errands in a brothel , and she scrubbed marble steps as well as kitchen and bathroom floors of neighborhood homes. Around this time, she first heard

1920-633: A number one hit for Bing Crosby . She also recorded her version of " Embraceable You ", which was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2005. Holiday's mother Sadie, nicknamed "The Duchess", opened a restaurant called Mom Holiday's. She used money from her daughter while playing dice with members of the Count Basie band, with whom she toured in the late 1930s. "It kept Mom busy and happy and stopped her from worrying and watching over me", Holiday said. Fagan began borrowing large amounts from Holiday to support

2048-623: A scholarship through the Los Angeles Times to the University of Southern California (USC) . After graduating from USC, Somerville worked as a book keeper and a telephone operator . In 1912, she married John Alexander Somerville , a Doctor of Dental Surgery who she met while in college. A graduate of the USC School of Dentistry , John Somerville originally planned to return to his native Jamaica to practice dentistry. After their marriage,

2176-419: A second time, changing the lyrics "I know you raise Cain" to "Just say you'll remain" and changing "You mixed with some dame" to "What is there to gain?" Other songs recorded were "Big Stuff", " What Is This Thing Called Love? ", and "You Better Go Now". Ella Fitzgerald named "You Better Go Now" her favorite recording of Holiday's. "Big Stuff" and "Don't Explain" were recorded again but with additional strings and

2304-585: A short prison sentence, she performed a sold-out concert at Carnegie Hall . She was a successful concert performer throughout the 1950s, with two further sold-out shows at Carnegie Hall. Because of personal struggles and an altered voice, her final recordings were met with mixed reaction, but were mild commercial successes. Her final album, Lady in Satin , was released in 1958. Holiday died of heart failure on July 17, 1959, at age 44. Holiday won four Grammy Awards , all of them posthumously, for Best Historical Album. She

2432-528: A small role as a woman abused by her lover in Duke Ellington 's musical short film Symphony in Black: A Rhapsody of Negro Life . She sang "Saddest Tale" in her scene. In 1935, Holiday was signed to Brunswick by John Hammond to record pop tunes with pianist Teddy Wilson in the swing style for the growing jukebox trade. They were allowed to improvise on the material. Holiday's improvisation of melody to fit

2560-582: A song based on the lyric, " God Bless the Child ", and added music. "God Bless the Child" became Holiday's most popular and most covered record. It reached number 25 on the charts in 1941 and was third in Billboard 's songs of the year, selling over a million records. In 1976, the song was added to the Grammy Hall of Fame. Herzog claimed Holiday contributed only a few lines to the lyrics. He said she came up with

2688-478: A staple in the pop community, leading to solo concerts, rare for jazz singers in the late 1940s. Gabler said, "I made Billie a real pop singer. That was right in her. Billie loved those songs." Jimmy Davis and Roger "Ram" Ramirez , the song's writers, had tried to interest Holiday in the song. In 1943, a flamboyant male torch singer , Willie Dukes, began singing "Lover Man" on 52nd Street . Because of his success, Holiday added it to her shows. The record's flip side

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2816-529: A star. I needed the prestige and publicity all right, but you can't pay rent with it." She soon demanded a raise from her manager, Joe Glaser . Holiday returned to Commodore in 1944, recording songs she made with Teddy Wilson in the 1930s, including " I Cover the Waterfront ", " I'll Get By ", and " He's Funny That Way ". She also recorded new songs that were popular at the time, including, " My Old Flame ", "How Am I to Know?", "I'm Yours", and " I'll Be Seeing You ",

2944-458: A year later for Vocalion in sessions produced by Hammond and Bernie Hanighen . Hammond said the Wilson-Holiday records from 1935 to 1938 were a great asset to Brunswick. According to Hammond, Brunswick was broke and unable to record many jazz tunes. Wilson, Holiday, Young, and other musicians came into the studio without written arrangements, reducing the recording cost. Brunswick paid Holiday

3072-457: The Brown v. Board of Education decision and Rosa Parks 's legacy, became a reality in large part due to the efforts of Vada Somerville and other women like her across the country. By the time Vada died, she had turned her own personal accomplishment into a social revolution for women across the country. Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan ; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959)

3200-648: The Chateau Marmont in Hollywood , and others followed. As one writer put it: "When the barriers against integration began to crumble in the late 1950s, so did the Dunbar Hotel." Bernard Johnson bought the Dunbar in 1968, but the hotel continued to lose money, and Johnson closed the hotel's doors in 1974. While closed in 1974, comedian Rudy Ray Moore used the hotel extensively in his low-budget film Dolemite , and in 1976,

3328-589: The Great Depression , the Dunbar was converted into a hostel for members of the Peace Mission Movement of Father Divine . In 1934, Lucius Lomax sold the hotel to the Peace Mission. The hotel staff was discharged, and the building was renovated as lodging for the mission's members. The Peace Mission Movement, run by Father Divine, operated a multi-racial religious colony at the Dunbar, with members using

3456-568: The National Register of Historic Places in 1976. The Dunbar was also listed in the Green Book , a guide to African American travelers, from 1940-1956. This map pin shows the location. The Dunbar was in such disrepair pigeons and rats were living in the vacated apartments and drug dealing was prevalent in the area some time after that. After the city foreclosed on the property, in partnership with Coalition for Responsible Community Development

3584-508: The "top brackets". Holiday could not sing as often during Shaw's shows as she could in Basie's; the repertoire was more instrumental, with fewer vocals. Shaw was also pressured to hire a white singer, Nita Bradley, with whom Holiday did not get along but had to share a bandstand. In May 1938, Shaw won band battles against Tommy Dorsey and Red Norvo , with the audience favoring Holiday. Although Shaw admired Holiday's singing in his band, saying she had

3712-733: The 1950s, Holiday's drug use, drinking, and relationships with abusive men caused her health to deteriorate. She appeared on the ABC reality series The Comeback Story to discuss attempts to overcome her poor choices. Holiday first toured Europe in 1954 as part of a Leonard Feather package. The Swedish impresario Nils Hellstrom initiated the "Jazz Club U.S.A." (after the Leonard Feather radio show) tour starting in Stockholm in January 1954 and then Germany, Netherlands, Paris and Switzerland. The tour party

3840-510: The Art Deco style), Spanish arcade-like windows, tiled walls and a flagstone floor. The lobby was said to look like "a regal Spanish arcade , with open balconies and steel grillwork, as opulent as the Granada Building at Lafayette Park." One person who was present at the hotel's groundbreaking ceremony recalled it was "a palace compared to what we had been used to." The hotel came to represent

3968-624: The Avenue come alive again and know that this historic landmark will be restored for people to enjoy for generations to come," said Councilwoman Perry, who led efforts to ensure that the Dunbar Hotel was redeveloped as part of an overall plan to revitalize the Central Avenue community. "Dunbar Village will preserve our shared history, create quality jobs for local youth, and offer much-needed affordable housing for families and seniors." Together, Dunbar Village will have 83 units, including 41 senior units in

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4096-454: The Blues , published in 1956, is inconsistent regarding details of her early life, but much was confirmed by Stuart Nicholson in his 1995 biography of the singer. Holiday frequently skipped school which resulted in her being brought before the juvenile court at age nine. She was sent to the House of the Good Shepherd, a Catholic reform school for girls, where the nuns locked her in a room with

4224-533: The Blues" (her lyrics accompanied a tune by pianist Herbie Nichols ). The liner notes for this album were written partly by Gilbert Millstein of the New York Times , who, according to these notes, served as narrator of the Carnegie Hall concerts. Interspersed among Holiday's songs, Millstein read aloud four lengthy passages from her autobiography, Lady Sings the Blues . He later wrote: The narration began with

4352-617: The Bright Spot. As her reputation grew, she played in many clubs, including the Mexico's and the Alhambra Bar and Grill, where she met Charles Linton, a vocalist who later worked with Chick Webb . It was also during this period that she connected with her father, who was playing in Fletcher Henderson 's band. Late in 1932, 17-year-old Holiday replaced the singer Monette Moore at Covan's,

4480-523: The Child" and "Now, Baby or Never". The loss of her cabaret card reduced Holiday's earnings. She had not received proper record royalties until she joined Decca, so her main revenue was club concerts. The problem worsened when Holiday's records went out of print in the 1950s. She seldom received royalties in her later years. In 1958, she received a royalty of only $ 11. Her lawyer in the late 1950s, Earle Warren Zaidins, registered with BMI only two songs she had written or co-written, costing her revenue. By

4608-448: The Child". A review of the album was published by Billboard magazine on December 22, 1956, calling it a worthy musical complement to her autobiography. "Holiday is in good voice now", wrote the reviewer, "and these new readings will be much appreciated by her following". "Strange Fruit" and "God Bless the Child" were called classics, and "Good Morning Heartache", another reissued track on the LP,

4736-418: The Dunbar ... Between the club and the hotel you'd see movie stars and all the big show business names of the day." Musician Jack Kelson recalled the sidewalk in front of the Dunbar as the most desirable place to hang out on the city's coolest street. He said, "That's my favorite spot on Central Avenue, that spot in the front of the Dunbar Hotel, because that to me was the hippest, most intimate, key spot of all

4864-498: The Dunbar Hotel and 42 affordable family units. Vada Somerville Vada Watson Somerville, D.D.S. (November 1, 1885 – October 28, 1972) was a civil rights activist and the second African-American woman in California to receive a Doctor of Dental Surgery degree. Vada Somerville was born on November 1, 1885, in Pomona, California . Her mother was Dorothy Watson McDonald, a migrant from Arkansas. In 1903, Somerville received

4992-445: The Dunbar in the 1930s. "Jack Johnson ... ran his Showboat nightclub in one corner, and black bands practiced on the mezzanine for acts across town later that night." The hotel was also popular with the white community, and many from Hollywood spent their Saturday nights at the Dunbar and surrounding clubs. Celes King recalled once when Bing Crosby bounced a check at the hotel, and her father (the hotel's owner) kept Crosby's check. "It

5120-459: The Dunbar was 75% Latino, and by 2006 the neighborhood was predominantly Latino and poor, with most of the nearby storefronts having their signs written in Spanish. In 1974, the Dunbar was designated as an Historic-Cultural Landmark (no. 131) by the city's Cultural Heritage Commission. The plaque called the hotel "an edifice dedicated to the memory and dignity of black achievement." It was also added to

5248-424: The Dunbar was marred by graffiti and generally tarnished by neglect. That year, a plan was announced to convert the Dunbar into low-income housing units with a museum of black culture on the ground floor. The 115 hotel rooms on the top three floors were gutted and replaced with 72 apartments. The mezzanine, lobby and basement retained their original décor and were converted into a museum and cultural center. The project

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5376-459: The Dunbar was the home-away-from-home for, and the stage for performances by, artists including Duke Ellington , Louis Armstrong , Louis Jordan , Count Basie , Lionel Hampton , Lena Horne , Ella Fitzgerald , Billie Holiday , Cab Calloway , and Nat King Cole . Even Ray Charles stayed at the Dunbar when he first moved to Los Angeles. In addition to the main nightclub, former heavyweight champion Jack Johnson opened his Showboat nightclub at

5504-461: The Dunbar's mezzanine. Hampton recalled, "Everybody that was anybody showed up at the Dunbar. I remember a chauffeur would drive Stepin Fetchit , the movie star, up to the curb in a big Packard, and he'd look out the window at all the folks." In his autobiography, Buck Clayton shared some of his memories of the Dunbar. He recalled the Dunbar as "jumping" with loads of people trying to get a glimpse of

5632-602: The Ebony Club, which was against the law. Her manager, John Levy, was convinced he could get her card back and allowed her to open without one. "I opened scared", Holiday said, "[I was] expecting the cops to come in any chorus and carry me off. But nothing happened. I was a huge success." Holiday recorded Gershwin's " I Loves You, Porgy " in 1948. In 1950, Holiday appeared in the Universal short film Sugar Chile Robinson, Billie Holiday, Count Basie and His Sextet , singing "God Bless

5760-850: The Links and the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority. One of her final accomplishments was her creation of The Stevens House, a multiracial dormitory at UCLA made to foster better interracial relations between students. UCLA sold and closed The Stevens House in 1992. Profits were donated to the UCLA Foundation to establish The Stevens House Scholarship , to be awarded annually in the form of scholarships with priority given to undergraduate underrepresented students with financial need and academic potential. Vada Somerville died on October 28, 1972, in Los Angeles, California. Both John and Vada Somerville are revered at

5888-890: The Los Angeles League of Women Voters, the Council on Public Affairs, UCLA 's YWCA and the USC Half Century Club. In 1927, the Somervilles broke ground for the Hotel Somerville in Los Angeles. It was described in Black Women in America as "an elegant, all-Black hostelry that symbolized both the possibilities of racial advancement and the realities of racial segregation." This hotel became a gathering place for those African Americans who wanted social change as well as an example of how

6016-429: The Scotch", released on November 11, sold 5,000 copies. Hammond was impressed by Holiday's singing style and said of her, "Her singing almost changed my music tastes and my musical life, because she was the first girl singer I'd come across who actually sang like an improvising jazz genius." Hammond compared Holiday favorably to Armstrong and said she had a good sense of lyric content at a young age. In 1935, Holiday had

6144-593: The USC Dental School, where their portraits are hanging as symbols of ambition and perseverance. Additionally, USC's African-American residential theme floor has been named Somerville Place , after John and Vada Somerville. It has gained national recognition by being featured in the Los Angeles newspaper in 2000. The goal of Somerville Place is to foster a respect for black culture and create a sense of community on campus. However, Vada's legacy extended beyond her accomplishments at USC. The civil rights movement, including

6272-408: The activity. That's where all the night people hung out: the sportsmen, the businessmen, the dancers, everybody in show business, people who were somebody stayed at the hotel. ... [B]y far that block, that Dunbar Hotel, for me was it. And it was it for, it seemed to me, everybody else. Sooner or later you walked in front of that hotel, and that's where everybody congregated." Another writer recalled

6400-424: The area around the Dunbar as "a place where people love to congregate and have a good time, check out the new models and pick up on the latest lingo." The Dunbar built a reputation in the 1930s as "the symbol of L.A.'s black nightlife," as "regular jamming sessions and meetings in the hotel lobby elevated the structure to a practically mythical status." Lionel Hampton had fond memories of jam sessions and practices on

6528-402: The art that was hers. I was very much moved. In the darkness, my face burned and my eyes. I recall only one thing. I smiled." The critic Nat Hentoff of DownBeat magazine, who attended the Carnegie Hall concert, wrote the remainder of the sleeve notes on the 1961 album. He wrote of Holiday's performance: Throughout the night, Billie was in superior form to what had sometimes been the case in

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6656-399: The band's response: "So much rhythm I've never heard, as guys were beating on the tables, instrument cases or anything else they could beat on with knives, forks, rolled-up newspapers or anything else they could find to make rhythm. It was absolutely crazy." The Dunbar was also known for its food. One musician recalled they "had good old southern-fried everything." For a brief period during

6784-537: The band, it was really just a matter of getting her tunes like she wanted them, because she knew how she wanted to sound and you couldn't tell her what to do." Some of the songs Holiday performed with Basie were recorded. "I Can't Get Started", " They Can't Take That Away from Me ", and "Swing It Brother Swing" are all commercially available. Holiday was unable to record in the studio with Basie, but she included many of his musicians in her recording sessions with Teddy Wilson. Holiday found herself in direct competition with

6912-537: The book quickly from a series of conversations with the singer in the Duftys' 93rd Street apartment. He also drew on the work of earlier interviewers and intended to let Holiday tell her story in her own way. In his 2015 study, Billie Holiday: The Musician and the Myth , John Szwed argued that Lady Sings the Blues is a generally accurate account of her life, but that co-writer Dufty was forced to water down or suppress material by

7040-468: The celebrities, and parties thrown by Duke Ellington and his guys with "chicks and champagne everywhere." Clayton recalled an instance when Ellington and his orchestra came to Los Angeles shortly after the 1932 release of the song It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing) . Ellington's band was in the Dunbar restaurant when the song came on the jukebox. It was the first time since leaving New York that they had heard their recording. Clayton described

7168-490: The charts was "Lover Man" in 1945. Holiday sang 32 songs at the Carnegie concert by her count, including Cole Porter 's " Night and Day " and her 1930s hit, "Strange Fruit". During the show, someone sent her a box of gardenias . "My old trademark", Holiday said. "I took them out of box and fastened them smack to the side of my head without even looking twice." There was a hatpin in the gardenias and Holiday unknowingly stuck it into

7296-549: The controversial song sold well, though Gabler attributed that mostly to the record's other side, " Fine and Mellow ", which was a jukebox hit. "The version I recorded for Commodore", Holiday said of "Strange Fruit", "became my biggest-selling record". "Strange Fruit" was the equivalent of a top-twenty hit in the 1930s. Holiday's popularity increased after "Strange Fruit". She received a mention in Time magazine. "I open Café Society as an unknown", Holiday said. "I left two years later as

7424-565: The couple decided to stay in Los Angeles. In 1914, the couple founded the NAACP Los Angeles center. After the United States entered World War I, Vada Somerville decided to become a dentist. She was afraid that her husband would be drafted into the armed forces and lose his patients. When she entered dental school at USC, she was the only woman and the only African American in her class. In 1918, Somerville graduated with her D.D.S. ,

7552-468: The dining room (formerly the site of a cabaret) for Holy Communion ceremonies. The Dunbar was sold to the Nelson family in the late 1930s, and it resumed its role as the cultural center of the Los Angeles black community. Just as racial segregation had created a need for the Dunbar, racial integration in the 1950s eliminated the need. Duke Ellington, who had previously kept a suite at the Dunbar, began staying at

7680-561: The educated black class was beginning to contribute new status and ideas into the discussion of race in America. In 1928, the Hotel Somerville served as the headquarters for the NAACP national convention. After the stock market crashed and the hotel was bought from the Somervilles, the Hotel Somerville was renamed the Dunbar Hotel and soon after it became a museum with local and national landmark status. By 1938, Vada had become an active member in

7808-482: The emotion was highly skillful. Their first collaboration included " What a Little Moonlight Can Do " and " Miss Brown to You ". "What a Little Moonlight Can Do" has been deemed her "claim to fame". Brunswick did not favor the recording session because producers wanted Holiday to sound more like Cleo Brown . However, after "What a Little Moonlight Can Do" was successful, the company began considering Holiday an artist in her own right. She began recording under her own name

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7936-642: The establishment of the Los Angeles chapter of the National Council of Negro Women . In 1948, Vada helped to co-found the Los Angeles County Human Relations Committee and established the Pilgrim House Community Center designed to take care of the health needs of black families who migrated to LA during World War II. Vada's support of black women was crucial to the creation of black women's service organizations such as

8064-414: The final note, all lights went out, and when they came back on, Holiday was gone. Holiday said her father, Clarence Holiday , was denied medical treatment for a fatal lung disorder because of racial prejudice, and that singing "Strange Fruit" reminded her of the incident. "It reminds me of how Pop died, but I have to keep singing it, not only because people ask for it, but because twenty years after Pop died

8192-472: The first NAACP convention held in the western United States. In 1929, when Oscar De Priest (the first African American to serve in Congress in the 20th century) visited Los Angeles, he was met at the station "by a large delegation of colored people, who formed a parade and escorted him to the Dunbar Hotel." The hotel was known for its physical amenities. Its Art Deco lobby had a spectacular chandelier (also in

8320-461: The future of black America was discussed every night of the week in the lobby." Celes King III , whose family owned the Dunbar in its heyday, said, "They were very serious discussions between people like W. E. B. Du Bois (founder of the NAACP), doctors, lawyers, educators and other professionals. This was the place where many of them put together the plans to improve the life style of their people." One of

8448-488: The ground. "He began lapping me and loving me like crazy", she said. A woman thought the dog was attacking Holiday. She screamed, a crowd gathered, and reporters arrived. "I might just as well have wheeled into Penn Station and had a quiet little get-together with the Associated Press , United Press , and International News Service ", she said. Ed Fishman (who fought with Joe Glaser to be Holiday's manager) thought of

8576-407: The hospital, narcotics police came to her hospital room and placed her under house arrest for narcotics possession. On July 15, she received last rites . Holiday died at age 44 at 3:10 am on July 17, 1959, of pulmonary edema and heart failure caused by cirrhosis of the liver. In her final years, Holiday had been progressively swindled out of her earnings by McKay and she died with US$ 0.70 in

8704-463: The hotel. It was not until February 1931 that the Dunbar was issued a permit "to conduct a cabaret in the dining room." Though he had sold the hotel, Somerville and others in the neighborhood opposed the establishment of a cabaret in his hotel, stating that such a use "would cast a lasting stigma on it." The Dunbar became known in the 1930s and 1940s as "the hub of Los Angeles black culture," and "the heart of Saturday night Los Angeles." In its heyday, it

8832-454: The imagery of the song reminded her of her father's death and that this played a role in her resistance to performing it. For her performance of "Strange Fruit" at the Café Society, she had waiters silence the crowd when the song began. During the song's long introduction, the lights dimmed and all movement had to cease. As Holiday began singing, only a small spotlight illuminated her face. On

8960-461: The impression that black people created jazz. The attempts failed because in 1947 Biberman was listed as one of the Hollywood Ten and sent to jail. Several scenes were deleted from the film. "They had taken miles of footage of music and scenes", Holiday said, but "none of it was left in the picture. And very damn little of me. I know I wore a white dress for a number I did... and that was cut out of

9088-570: The ironic account of her birth in Baltimore – 'Mom and Pop were just a couple of kids when they got married. He was eighteen, she was sixteen, and I was three' – and ended, very nearly shyly, with her hope for love and a long life with 'my man' at her side. It was evident, even then, that Miss Holiday was ill. I had known her casually over the years and I was shocked at her physical weakness. Her rehearsal had been desultory; her voice sounded tinny and trailed off; her body sagged tiredly. But I will not forget

9216-408: The last years of her life. Not only was there assurance of phrasing and intonation; but there was also an outgoing warmth, a palpable eagerness to reach and touch the audience. And there was mocking wit. A smile was often lightly evident on her lips and her eyes as if, for once, she could accept the fact that there were people who did dig her. The beat flowed in her uniquely sinuous, supple way of moving

9344-415: The late 1930s, Holiday had toured with Count Basie and Artie Shaw, scored a string of radio and retail hits with Teddy Wilson, and became an established artist in the recording industry. Her songs "What a Little Moonlight Can Do" and " Easy Living " were imitated by singers across America and were quickly becoming jazz standards . In September 1938, Holiday's single " I'm Gonna Lock My Heart " ranked sixth as

9472-613: The line "God bless the child" from a dinner conversation the two had had. On June 12, 1942, in Los Angeles, Holiday recorded " Trav'lin Light " with Paul Whiteman for a new label, Capitol Records . Because she was under contract to Columbia, she used the pseudonym "Lady Day". The song reached number 23 on the pop charts and number one on the R&;B charts , then called the Harlem Hit Parade. On October 11, 1943, Life magazine wrote, "She has

9600-415: The marriage only lasted a few years. Holiday grew up in Baltimore and had a very difficult childhood. Her mother often took what were then known as "transportation jobs", serving on passenger railroads. Holiday was raised largely by Eva Miller's mother-in-law, Martha Miller, and suffered from her mother's absences and being in others' care for her first decade of life. Holiday's autobiography, Lady Sings

9728-411: The metamorphosis that night. The lights went down, the musicians began to play and the narration began. Miss Holiday stepped from between the curtains, into the white spotlight awaiting her, wearing a white evening gown and white gardenias in her black hair. She was erect and beautiful; poised and smiling. And when the first section of narration was ended, she sang – with strength undiminished – with all of

9856-414: The most distinctive style of any popular vocalist, [and] is imitated by other vocalists." Milt Gabler, in addition to owning Commodore Records, became an A&R man for Decca Records . He signed Holiday to Decca on August 7, 1944, when she was 29. Her first Decca recording was " Lover Man " (number 16 Pop, number 5 R&B), one of her biggest hits. The success and distribution of the song made Holiday

9984-420: The most-played song that month. Her record label, Vocalion , listed the single as its fourth-best seller for the same month, and it peaked at number 2 on the pop charts, according to Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories: 1890–1954 . Holiday was in the middle of recording for Columbia in the late 1930s when she was introduced to " Strange Fruit ", a song by Abel Meeropol based on his poem about lynching . Meeropol,

10112-442: The movie A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich was filmed at the Dunbar. Owner Bernard Johnson also opened a museum of black culture for a time. But for most of the years from 1974 to 1987, the building was vacant and declined drastically, as transients began using it for shelter, and the building suffered from graffiti, broken windows and litter. A renovation effort was started in 1979, but stopped when city funding ceased. By 1987,

10240-411: The new design provides 41 residential units of affordable housing for seniors with amenities that include a community room, communal kitchen, media lounge, billiard table, library area and fitness room. In 2013, Councilwoman Jan Perry with many others attended the re-opening ceremony. "Central Avenue and the Dunbar Hotel have long been an important part of our Los Angeles history. It is wonderful to see

10368-474: The old records, you know. Some time I'd sit down and listen to 'em myself, and it sound like two of the same voices ... or the same mind, or something like that." Young nicknamed her "Lady Day", and she called him "Prez". In late 1937, Holiday had a brief stint as a big-band vocalist with Count Basie . The traveling conditions of the band were often poor; they performed many one-nighters in clubs, moving from city to city with little stability. Holiday chose

10496-511: The only existing filmed version of Holiday singing "Strange Fruit". Her final studio recordings were made for MGM Records in 1959, with lush backing from Ray Ellis and his Orchestra, who had also accompanied her on the Columbia album Lady in Satin the previous year (see below). The MGM sessions were released posthumously on a self-titled album, later retitled and re-released as Last Recording . On March 28, 1957, Holiday married Louis McKay,

10624-551: The outset of her career, she spelled her last name "Halliday", her father's birth surname, but eventually changed it to "Holiday", his performing name. The young singer teamed up with a neighbor, tenor saxophone player Kenneth Hollan. They were a team from 1929 to 1931, performing at clubs such as the Grey Dawn, Pod's and Jerry's on 133rd Street , and the Brooklyn Elks Club. Benny Goodman recalled hearing Holiday in 1931 at

10752-412: The picture." She recorded "The Blues Are Brewin'" for the film's soundtrack. Other songs included in the movie are " Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans? " and "Farewell to Storyville". Holiday's drug addictions were a problem on the set. She earned more than one thousand dollars per week from club ventures but spent most of it on heroin . Her lover, Joe Guy , traveled to Hollywood while Holiday

10880-577: The popular singer Ella Fitzgerald . The two later became friends. Fitzgerald was the vocalist for the Chick Webb Band, which was in competition with the Basie band. On January 16, 1938, the same day that Benny Goodman performed his legendary Carnegie Hall jazz concert , the Basie and Webb bands had a battle at the Savoy Ballroom . Webb and Fitzgerald were declared winners by Metronome magazine, while DownBeat magazine pronounced Holiday and Basie

11008-623: The records of Louis Armstrong and Bessie Smith . In particular, Holiday cited " West End Blues " as an intriguing influence, pointing specifically to the scat section duet with the clarinet as her favorite part. By the end of 1928, Holiday's mother moved to Harlem, New York, again leaving Holiday with Martha Miller. By early 1929, Holiday had joined her mother in Harlem. As a young teenager, Holiday started singing in nightclubs in Harlem. She took her professional pseudonym from Billie Dove , an actress she admired, and Clarence Halliday, her father. At

11136-412: The regulars at the Dunbar in its heyday was future mayor Tom Bradley , then a young police officer. Bradley would stop in for coffee and conversation. Bradley later recalled, "I remember, from the days of my childhood, walking down the avenue, just to get a look at some of those famous superstars." More than anything, the Dunbar is remembered for its role in the Central Avenue jazz scene. The nightclub at

11264-416: The restaurant. Holiday obliged but soon fell on hard times herself. "I needed some money one night and I knew Mom was sure to have some", she said. "So I walked in the restaurant like a stockholder and asked. Mom turned me down flat. She wouldn't give me a cent." The two argued, and Holiday shouted angrily, "God bless the child that's got his own", and stormed out. With Arthur Herzog, Jr. , a pianist, she wrote

11392-536: The second African-American women to finish the USC dental program. She then became the first black woman to be licensed to practice dentistry in the state of California with one of the highest scores. She retired from dentistry in 1933. After retiring from dentistry in 1933, Somerville devoted herself to civil rights activism and participation in many community organizations. She made the decision to devote herself full-time to "social welfare and civic work." some of which are

11520-439: The side of her head. "I didn't feel anything until the blood started rushing down in my eyes and ears", she said. After the third curtain call, she passed out. On April 27, 1948, Bob Sylvester and her promoter Al Wilde arranged a Broadway show for her. Titled Holiday on Broadway , it sold out. "The regular music critics and drama critics came and treated us like we were legit", she said. But it closed after three weeks. Holiday

11648-585: The songs requested of her or change her style. Holiday was hired by Artie Shaw a month after being fired from the Count Basie Band. This association placed her among the first black women to work with a white orchestra, an unusual arrangement at that time. This was also the first time a black female singer employed full-time toured the segregated U.S. South with a white bandleader. When Holiday faced racism, Shaw would often stick up for his vocalist. In her autobiography, Holiday describes an incident in which she

11776-487: The songs she sang and had a hand in the arrangements, choosing to portray her developing persona of a woman unlucky in love. Her tunes included "I Must Have That Man", "Travelin' All Alone", " I Can't Get Started ", and " Summertime ", a hit for Holiday in 1936, originating in George Gershwin 's Porgy and Bess the year before. Basie became used to Holiday's heavy involvement in the band. He said, "When she rehearsed with

11904-543: The stage. By March 1938, Shaw and Holiday had been broadcast on New York City's powerful radio station WABC (the original WABC, now WCBS ). Because of their success, they were given an extra time slot to broadcast in April, which increased their exposure. The New York Amsterdam News reviewed the broadcasts and reported an improvement in Holiday's performance. Metronome reported that the addition of Holiday to Shaw's band put it in

12032-415: The story along; the words became her own experiences; and coursing through it all was Lady's sound – a texture simultaneously steel-edged and yet soft inside; a voice that was almost unbearably wise in disillusion and yet still childlike, again at the centre. The audience was hers from before she sang, greeting her and saying good-bye with heavy, loving applause. And at one time, the musicians too applauded. It

12160-703: The string ensemble and walked out. The musical director, Toots Camarata , said Holiday was overwhelmed with joy. She may also have wanted strings to avoid comparisons between her commercially successful early work with Teddy Wilson and everything produced afterwards. Her 1930s recordings with Wilson used a small jazz combo; recordings for Decca often involved strings. A month later, in November, Holiday returned to Decca to record " That Ole Devil Called Love ", "Big Stuff", and " Don't Explain ". She wrote "Don't Explain" after she caught her husband, Jimmy Monroe, with lipstick on his collar. Holiday did not make any more records until August 1945, when she recorded "Don't Explain" for

12288-449: The things that killed him are still happening in the South", she wrote in her autobiography. When Holiday's producers at Columbia found the subject matter too sensitive, Milt Gabler agreed to record it for his Commodore Records label on April 20, 1939. "Strange Fruit" remained in her repertoire for 20 years. She recorded it again for Verve . The Commodore release did not get any airplay, but

12416-407: The threat of legal action. According to the reviewer Richard Brody , "Szwed traces the stories of two important relationships that are missing from the book—with Charles Laughton , in the 1930s, and with Tallulah Bankhead , in the late 1940s—and of one relationship that's sharply diminished in the book, her affair with Orson Welles around the time of Citizen Kane . The film version of the book

12544-440: The winners. Fitzgerald won a straw poll of the audience by a three-to-one margin. By February 1938, Holiday was no longer singing for Basie. Various reasons have been given for why she was fired. Jimmy Rushing , Basie's male vocalist, called her unprofessional. According to All Music Guide , Holiday was fired for being "temperamental and unreliable". She complained of low pay and poor working conditions and may have refused to sing

12672-403: The world was interested in looking out for me," she said. Dehydrated and unable to hold down food, she pleaded guilty and asked to be sent to the hospital. The district attorney spoke in her defense, saying, "If your honor please, this is a case of a drug addict, but more serious, however, than most of our cases, Miss Holiday is a professional entertainer and among the higher rank as far as income

12800-506: The worst of times." Roy Wilkins wrote in the New York Amsterdam News of the hotel's luxury and service: "Everything was just the opposite of what we had come to expect in 'Negro' hotels." The Somerville/Dunbar also played an important role in anchoring the new Central Avenue community. Prior to 1928, the black community in Los Angeles had been centered around 12th Street and Central Avenue, near Downtown Los Angeles . Somerville

12928-401: Was " No More ", one of her favorites. Holiday asked Gabler for strings on the recording. Such arrangements were associated with Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald. "I went on my knees to him", Holiday said. "I didn't want to do it with the ordinary six pieces. I begged Milt and told him I had to have strings behind me." On October 4, 1944, Holiday entered the studio to record "Lover Man", saw

13056-582: Was "the gathering spot for the crème de la crème of black society, the hotel for performers who could entertain in white hotels but not sleep in them." In 1940, radio comedian Eddie "Rochester" Anderson used the Dunbar as his headquarters while "campaigning" for the honorary seat of "Mayor of Central Avenue." The Dunbar also became the place where African American political and intellectual leaders and writers, including Langston Hughes , W. E. B. Du Bois , Ralph Bunche , Thurgood Marshall and James Weldon Johnson , gathered. It has been described as "a place where

13184-517: Was Holiday, Buddy DeFranco , Red Norvo, Carl Drinkard, Elaine Leighton (de) (nl) (1926–2012), Sonny Clark , Beryl Booker , Jimmy Raney and Red Mitchell . A recording of a live set in Germany was released as Lady Love – Billie Holiday . Holiday's autobiography, Lady Sings the Blues , was ghostwritten by William Dufty and published in 1956. Dufty, a New York Post writer and editor then married to Holiday's close friend Maely Dufty, wrote

13312-624: Was a big joke between them." The neighborhood was also the home of other famous jazz clubs, including Club Alabam (next door), the Last Word (across the street), and the Downbeat (nearby). Even local musicians who were playing at other Central Avenue clubs would gather at the Dunbar. Lee Young, the drummer who led a band at the Club Alabam, recalled: "The fellows in the band – Charles Mingus , Art Pepper , all of us – would hang out between sets next door at

13440-451: Was a night when Billie was on top, undeniably the best and most honest jazz singer alive. Her performance of "Fine and Mellow" on CBS 's The Sound of Jazz program is memorable for her interplay with her long-time friend Lester Young . Both were less than two years from death. Young died in March 1959. Holiday wanted to sing at his funeral, but her request was denied. Also in 1957, she sang as

13568-549: Was also noted favorably. On November 10, 1956, Holiday performed two concerts before packed audiences at Carnegie Hall. Live recordings of the second Carnegie Hall concert were released on a Verve/HMV album in the UK in late 1961 called The Essential Billie Holiday . The 13 tracks included on this album featured her own songs "I Love My Man", "Don't Explain" and " Fine and Mellow ", together with other songs closely associated with her, including " Body and Soul ", " My Man ", and "Lady Sings

13696-520: Was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed " Lady Day " by her friend and music partner, Lester Young , Holiday made a significant contribution to jazz music and pop singing. Her vocal style, strongly influenced by jazz instrumentalists, inspired a new way of manipulating phrasing and tempo . She was known for her vocal delivery and improvisational skills. After a turbulent childhood, Holiday began singing in nightclubs in Harlem where she

13824-551: Was arrested again on January 22, 1949, in her room at the Hotel Mark Twain in San Francisco by George Hunter White . Holiday said she began using hard drugs in the early 1940s. She married trombonist Jimmy Monroe on August 25, 1941. While still married, she became involved with trumpeter Joe Guy, her drug dealer. She divorced Monroe in 1947 and also split with Guy. In October 1949, Holiday recorded " Crazy He Calls Me ", which

13952-619: Was born on April 7, 1915, in Philadelphia to African American unwed teenage couple Clarence Halliday and Sarah Julia "Sadie" Fagan (née Harris). Her mother moved to Philadelphia at age 19, after she was evicted from her parents' home in the Sandtown-Winchester neighborhood of Baltimore , Maryland, for becoming pregnant. With no support from her parents, she made arrangements with her older, married half-sister, Eva Miller, for Holiday to stay with her in Baltimore. Not long after Holiday

14080-558: Was born, her father abandoned his family to pursue a career as a jazz banjo player and guitarist. Some historians have disputed Holiday's paternity, as a copy of her birth certificate in the Baltimore archives lists her father as "Frank DeViese". Other historians consider this an anomaly, probably inserted by a hospital or government worker. DeViese lived in Philadelphia, and Sadie, then known by her maiden name Harris, may have met him through her work. Harris married Philip Gough in 1920, but

14208-569: Was concerned." She was sentenced to Alderson Federal Prison Camp in West Virginia. The drug possession conviction caused her to lose her New York City Cabaret Card , preventing her working anywhere that sold alcohol; thereafter, she performed in concert venues and theaters. Holiday was released early (on March 16, 1948) because of good behavior. When she arrived at Newark , her pianist Bobby Tucker and her dog Mister were waiting. The dog leaped at Holiday, knocking off her hat, and tackling her to

14336-563: Was diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver. Although she had initially stopped drinking on her doctor's orders, it was not long before she relapsed. By May 1959, she had lost 20 pounds (9.1 kg). Her manager, Joe Glaser, jazz critic Leonard Feather, photojournalist Allan Morrison, and the singer's own friends all tried in vain to persuade her to go to a hospital. On May 31, 1959, Holiday was finally taken to Metropolitan Hospital in New York for treatment of both liver and heart disease . While in

14464-441: Was filming and supplied her with drugs. Guy was banned from the set when he was found there by Holiday's manager, Joe Glaser. By the late 1940s, Holiday had begun recording a number of slow, sentimental ballads. Metronome expressed its concerns in 1946 about "Good Morning Heartache", saying, "there's a danger that Billie's present formula will wear thin, but up to now it's wearing well." The New York Herald Tribune reported of

14592-550: Was first). In 1946, Holiday won the Metronome magazine popularity poll. On May 16, 1947, Holiday was arrested for possession of narcotics in her New York apartment. On May 27, she was in court. "It was called 'The United States of America versus Billie Holiday'. And that's just the way it felt", she recalled. During the trial, she heard that her lawyer would not come to the trial to represent her. "In plain English, that meant no one in

14720-451: Was formed and purchased the buildings. The project included transforming the three existing buildings, the Dunbar Hotel, Somerville I and Somerville II, into one cohesive, activated, mixed-use, intergenerational community that honors South Los Angeles and the historic Dunbar Hotel.The new community is called Dunbar Village. Along with the physical renovation of the property was the community transformation. The first step in this transformation

14848-583: Was funded in large part with city redevelopment funds at a cost of $ 4.2 million. In 1990, the Dunbar re-opened as a 73-unit apartment building for low-income senior citizens and museum of black history. Delegates from the NAACP national convention helped rededicate the Dunbar in July 1990 following its renovation. Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley attended the rededication ceremony and praised the efforts to "breathe new life and vigor into this magnificent hotel." The Dunbar hosted

14976-428: Was heard by producer John Hammond , who liked her voice. She signed a recording contract with Brunswick in 1935. Her collaboration with Teddy Wilson produced the hit " What a Little Moonlight Can Do ", which became a jazz standard . Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, Holiday had mainstream success on labels such as Columbia and Decca . By the late 1940s, however, she was beset with legal troubles and drug abuse. After

15104-692: Was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and the National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame . In 2000, she was also inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as an early influence; their website states that "Billie Holiday changed jazz forever". She was named one of the 50 Great Voices by NPR and was ranked fourth on the Rolling Stone list of "200 Greatest Singers of All Time" (2023). Several films about her life have been released, most recently The United States vs. Billie Holiday (2021). Eleanora Fagan

15232-409: Was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2010. Gabler said the hit was her most successful recording for Decca after "Lover Man". The charts of the 1940s did not list songs outside the top 30, making it impossible to recognize minor hits. By the late 1940s, despite her popularity and concert power, her singles were little played on radio, perhaps because of her reputation. In 1948, Holiday played at

15360-728: Was known as "a West Coast mixture of the Waldorf-Astoria and the Cotton Club ." The Los Angeles Herald-Examiner described the Dunbar this way: It was once the most glorious place on 'the Avenue.' At the Dunbar Hotel ... you could dance to the sounds of Cab Calloway , laugh till your stomach hurt with Redd Foxx and maybe, just maybe, get a room near Billie Holiday or Duke Ellington . The Dunbar hosted prominent African Americans traveling to Los Angeles, including Duke Ellington , Joe Louis , Louis Armstrong , Lena Horne , Paul Robeson , Marian Anderson , and Josephine Baker . The Dunbar

15488-539: Was never allowed to visit the bar or the dining room as did other members of the band ... [and] I was made to leave and enter through the kitchen." There are no surviving live recordings of Holiday with Shaw's band. Because she was under contract to a different record label and possibly because of her race, Holiday was able to make only one record with Shaw, "Any Old Time". However, Shaw played clarinet on four songs she recorded in New York on July 10, 1936: "Did I Remember?", "No Regrets", "Summertime" and " Billie's Blues ". By

15616-431: Was not permitted to sit on the bandstand with other vocalists because of racist policies. Shaw said to her, "I want you on the band stand like Helen Forrest , Tony Pastor and everyone else." When touring the South, Holiday would sometimes be heckled by members of the audience. In Louisville, Kentucky , a man called her a "nigger wench" and requested she sing another song. Holiday lost her temper and had to be escorted off

15744-543: Was released in 1972, with Diana Ross playing the role of Holiday. To accompany her autobiography, Holiday released the LP Lady Sings the Blues in June 1956. The album featured four new tracks, " Lady Sings the Blues ", " Too Marvelous for Words ", " Willow Weep for Me ", and " I Thought About You ", and eight new recordings of her biggest hits to date. The re-recordings included "Trav'lin' Light" "Strange Fruit" and "God Bless

15872-412: Was renamed the Dunbar in 1929, in honor of poet Paul Laurence Dunbar . In 1930, the hotel was purchased for $ 100,000 by Lucius W. Lomax, Sr. (1879-1961). With ownership being restored to an African-American, the "debilitating impact of John Somerville's loss was reversed, and the hotel once again became the gem of black Los Angeles." During Somerville's ownership, there was no nightclub or live music at

16000-487: Was securing the building from the gangs and drug dealers. The new owner installed a state-of-the-art camera system to help deter the rampant criminal activity occurring in the buildings. In a short time, this along with other security measures, helped to eliminate the frequent police visits to the property. Dunbar went from being one of the most visited properties by the police to a safe and secure community. Preserving Dunbar Hotel's historic brick facade, grand entry and lobby,

16128-543: Was selected through a competitive bidding process to redevelop the Dunbar Hotel. In approximately 2005 Blues entertainer Roy Gaines performed at the annual Jazz Festival and along with Deborah Dixon of the Southern California Blues Society they were interviewed and photographed in the hotel by the Los Angeles Times. It had been refurbished and was being occupied by then. In 2011, Dunbar Village L.P.

16256-411: Was the first black person to graduate from the University of Southern California . The hotel was built entirely by black contractors, laborers, and craftsmen and financed by black community members. For many years, the Somerville was the only major hotel in Los Angeles that welcomed blacks, and it quickly became the place to stay for visiting black dignitaries. In 1928, the Somerville housed delegates to

16384-399: Was the first to build a major structure so far south in the 42nd Street neighborhood, and soon other businesses followed. After the stock market crash in 1929, Somerville was forced to sell the hotel to a syndicate of white investors. The passing of the hotel from its original black ownership was a disappointment for a community that viewed the hotel as a symbol of black achievement. The hotel

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