One of the greatest Jazz singers of all time was not whom you would typically expect. Instead of your average African American performer you might be use to seeing back in the early nineteen hundreds, Al Jolson was much more than that. His interactions with the audience, joyful appearance on stage, and thrilling personality were more then enough for thousands to attend his performances. One thing that contributed to making Al Jolson so exciting to watch was that he was a Jewish man who used blackface makeup. His attire consisted of all black from head to toe, except for his white gloves and his mouth to be outlined in white. This helped the audience to look directly at the two most important attributes on stage, his hands and mouth. To some this might seem odd when you look up on the stage and see a white man with black paint all over his body, but for others he was a large part of introducing African American music to the white community. Some may have thought that Jolson was putting on this act to mimic the African Americans, but in all reality he helped with the fight against anti-black discrimination in the musical production. Even though going “black faced” in this time was somewhat common, Jolson used it as an entertainment factor to really help all of his audiences to be entertained and amused the whole time they were watching. Besides just his appearance, he drew in his guests by connecting with the audience and every time did what ever he could to get into the show. This meant he would force himself to do outrageous acts such as cry, dance wildly, and improvised with many different jokes to keep the audience wanting more at all times. Although Al Jolson was in the entertainment business strictly to encourage people to enjoy music and to lend a helping hand to the African American’s his hard work had soon paid off. His legendary performances were earning him one thousand dollars each week, which soon rose to twenty-five hundred in a single week.
Besides singing, Al Jolson was featured a many Broadway plays, and films along with writing over eighty songs in a twenty year period. Jolson Stared in the “Jazz Singer” which was a stepping stone in production by being one of the first motion pictures with dialogue and sound. Around nineteen twenty-seven Hollywood started to take off and with Jolson’s help it soon progressed. He was the star of all Broadway shows and was basically the real reason music and plays were brought together on to one stage. Since Jolson started performing in ninteen-eveven he had never taken a real break from the limelight. In nineteen forty-one he somewhat hung up his microphone. Nothing could keep Jolson away for long, he continued to entertain troop during world ward II just for the pure joy of lightning someone’s spirit. From introducing music to the new world to amusing and audiences around the world, Al Jolson is sought to be one of the greatest entertainers we have ever seen.
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Are you saying that Al Jolsen was the best performer of his time? What about all the other jazz artists?
ReplyDeleteI thought Louis Armstrong was the best African American jazz performer, but I guess I am wrong. Al Jolson seems so much more interesting and he was the one that made i bigger impact about white people listening to African American jazz performers. Your blog is great!
ReplyDeleteMcKenna Hutcheson
Jacy- I was saying that there were many amazing Jazz proformers of Al Jolsons time, but it is my opinion that he was the most influential and talented.
ReplyDeleteIf people thought Al Jolsen was mocking the blacks, why didnt he set them straight? And how would you except people to believe that you are actually a black man by painting black on your face? If he said that he was doing this to introduce african american music to the white community, his way of performing did come off as racist and moking.
ReplyDeleteI find it very intersting that he would paint his lips and hands white. From your article he also sounds like he was a very entertaining performer. But one thing I would like to know is what made him have such a greater influence on jazz history than Louis Armstrong in your opinion?
ReplyDeleteFirst of all i just want to say I almost started crying when your page loaded because the white lips freak me out. After reading it made me respect him for going "black Faced" the white lips and odd appearence gets set aside when you find out what he did was actually helping the cause.
ReplyDeleteI think it was really cowardly of Jolson to dress up as a black musician. Instead of simply standing up for black rights as a white musician playing black, African American jazz pieces, he hid behind the mask of a black man. I think his act was a little bit degrading to blacks... just as a man would dress up as a clown for a circus, it sounds as if he was making a mockery of an entire race of underpriveledged people!
ReplyDeleteThats really cool of him to do that, i think people with compassion for issues like that are very well respected. That was a smart idea. I completly understand why some would believe its mockery, but i think he had no intentions to hurt anyone feelings.
ReplyDeleteFrom the writeup and the comments I feel I must clarify: Al Jolson was white. As Natasha has observed, performing in blackface was highly offensive to many, even in his time. I guess comparisons to Armstrong can be considered a matter of taste, but you'd have to actually listen to the music to make that call (I'd go with Armstrong). The issue here is the irony of the first talking motion picture being about Jazz, but being performed by a Jewish actor. What does this say about society at this time? Were people still simply not ready for black music (not that they were very positive on the Jews either)?
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