Cab Calloway: Sketches

Cabell «Cab« Calloway (Dec. 25, 1907 – Nov. 18, 1994) ranked among the most famous black stars in the 1930s, a charismatic and unique performer. He was a jazz vocalist, dancer and bandleader of one of the most popular African American big bands during the Harlem Renaissance and jazz and swing eras of the 1930s-40s.

Calloway was also an ambassador for his race, leading one of the most popular African American big bands during the Harlem Renaissance and jazz and swing eras of the 1930s-40s, with Harlem’s famous Cotton Club as his home stage.

Best known for his “Hi de hi de hi de ho” refrain from signature song “Minnie the Moocher,” portrayal of Sportin’ Life in Porgy and Bess (1952), and role in The Blues Brothers (1980), Cab influenced countless performers, including Michael and Janet Jackson, and many of today’s hip-hop artists.

American Masters celebrates Calloway's career and legacy during Black History Month with the new documentary Cab Calloway: Sketches which was premiering in the U.S. on February 27, 2012, on PBS.

Cab Calloway: Sketches

Watch here the full one hour documentary:

Watch Cab Calloway: Sketches on PBS. See more from American Masters.

NOTE: If you are not able to watch the documentary due to regional restrictions, you may install a software like Hotspot Shield to fix that. If you do so, you act on your own risk! (I've tested it and it works well.) 

Check out About the Documentary for more informations.

Cab Calloway: Sketches is a co-production of Artline Films, ARTE France, and AVRO, in association with Inscape Productions and THIRTEEN’s American Masters for WNET.

Gail Levin is director and executive producer for Inscape Productions. Jean-François Pitet and Gail Levin are co-writers. Olivier Mille is producer for Artline Films. Susan Lacy is the series creator and executive producer of American Masters.

This program is made possible in part by the support of CNC, PROCIREP, ANGOA, and SACEM.


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