PAUL BRYANT

A child actor, Bryant appeared in 22 films in the 1940s. But his most lasting legacy is his role in the development of West Coast jazz. A deft organist and pianist, Bryant blended a sophisticated, "cool" sound with what an admirer once described as skills that could have been learned only at the "School of Funkiola." He appeared on eight albums, most through the Los Angeles label Pacific Jazz Records, and performed around the world -- at Count Basie's Lounge in New York; the Blackberry Jazz Club in Japan; and the L.A. clubs where West Coast jazz was effectively invented, such as Dynamite Jackson's and the Last Word. Paul Carlton Bryant was born in Asbury Park, N.J., on Sept. 22, 1933, to Gene Odom and Maxwell Bryant. He moved to Los Angeles with his mother, his primary caretaker, at a young age -- "for a better life," Lott said. Like thousands of other read more...