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Al Jolson (May 28, 1886 -- October 23, 1950) was an American singer, comedian and actor. In his heyday, he was dubbed "The World's Greatest Entertainer"
Pretty Baby is a song written by Tony Jackson during the Ragtime era. The song was remembered as being prominent in Jackson's repertory before he left New Orleans in 1912, but was not published until 1916.
The 1916 sheet music credits Jackson along with Gus Kahn and Egbert Van Alstyne. It is not clear what their actual role in developing Jackson's tune was; Tin Pan Alley practice at the time often gave partial author credit to staff writers to keep more of the royalty payments within the company. However Kahn may have rewritten some of Jackson's lyrics (the original was said to have been rather risque), and Van Alstyne may have had a hand in arranging the song's bridge. The song and lyrics apparently referred to one of Jackson's male lovers.
The song has been covered by many singers including Al Jolson, Doris Day (in Young Man with a Horn), and Dean Martin, inspiring his album Pretty Baby. The song also inspired the 1978 Louis Malle film Pretty Baby, on whose soundtrack it appears.
Blackface is a form of theatrical makeup used in minstrel shows, and later vaudeville, in which performers create a stereotyped caricature of a black person. The practice gained popularity during the 19th century and contributed to the proliferation of stereotypes such as the "happy-go-lucky darky on the plantation" or the "dandified coon". blackface minstrel shows were the national art of the time, translating formal art such as opera into popular terms for a general audience. Early in the 20th century, blackface branched off from the minstrel show and became a form in its own right, until it ended in the United States with the U.S. Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. The Netherlands continues to celebrate St. Nicolas Eve with Zwarte Piet in full blackface Moorish costume.
Pretty Baby is a song written by Tony Jackson during the Ragtime era. The song was remembered as being prominent in Jackson's repertory before he left New Orleans in 1912, but was not published until 1916.
The 1916 sheet music credits Jackson along with Gus Kahn and Egbert Van Alstyne. It is not clear what their actual role in developing Jackson's tune was; Tin Pan Alley practice at the time often gave partial author credit to staff writers to keep more of the royalty payments within the company. However Kahn may have rewritten some of Jackson's lyrics (the original was said to have been rather risque), and Van Alstyne may have had a hand in arranging the song's bridge. The song and lyrics apparently referred to one of Jackson's male lovers.
The song has been covered by many singers including Al Jolson, Doris Day (in Young Man with a Horn), and Dean Martin, inspiring his album Pretty Baby. The song also inspired the 1978 Louis Malle film Pretty Baby, on whose soundtrack it appears.
Blackface is a form of theatrical makeup used in minstrel shows, and later vaudeville, in which performers create a stereotyped caricature of a black person. The practice gained popularity during the 19th century and contributed to the proliferation of stereotypes such as the "happy-go-lucky darky on the plantation" or the "dandified coon". blackface minstrel shows were the national art of the time, translating formal art such as opera into popular terms for a general audience. Early in the 20th century, blackface branched off from the minstrel show and became a form in its own right, until it ended in the United States with the U.S. Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. The Netherlands continues to celebrate St. Nicolas Eve with Zwarte Piet in full blackface Moorish costume.