Evening star., 1950-10-24

from Southwest colored boys, Mr..
Jolson said later, that he learned
the Negro dialect which favored
much of his on-stage speech.
AIS father wanted him to be a
cantor, but the boy had other
ideas. AS a youth he peddled pa
pers and carried shopping baskets
at the old Center Market to get
the money to attend vaudeville
and burlesque shows. He wanted
to get into show business.
His first paid singing was done
in cabarets here, where he was a
singing waiter" He then went
ION the road"
Joined DOckstader in 1909.
He started performing blackface
soon after at the suggestion of an
old Negro dresser in a Brooklyn
theater. In 1909 he joined the
Dockstader minstrels. then one of
the top acts on Broadway.
Two years later. the Shuberts
discovered him. and hired him for
their new Winter Garden theater.
Many shows nearly all of
them successful-followed, among
them. "Sinbad," Wonder Bar"
THE Honeymoon Express" and
"The Revue of Revues."
His last professional appearance
in Washington was at the National
Theater in Hold Your Hat" 10
years ago.
Jolson was credited with start
ing the late George Gershwin on
the road to fame. 1T was late in
1918" Jolson recalled years later.
II was appearing in a New York
show and this forlorn kid came
backstage. He said he had a song
for me - some thing called
| 'Swanee.'
wouldn't Brush OFF,"
II tried to brush him off, but
he wouldn't brush off. Finally.
/ I stopped the rehearsal and
agreed to listen to the tune. It
/ sounded okay SO I sang it in the
show. They say it made Gersh-
win famous: I know it made me
$4,000 through sheet music roy
alties."
After his first movie success in
"The Jazz Singer" he appeared
! in such hits as. '"The Singing
Fool" Nanny" Rose of Wash
ington Square," and, Go Into
Your Dance" The latter he made
with his third wife, Ruby Keeler,
whom he married in 1929. They
were divorced 10 years later.
They had an adopted son, Albert
Lost Fortune in Market.
| Mr.. Jolson was a millionaire
during the peak of his early popu-
larity. but he admitted later that
racing bets and the stock market
caused him serious financial re-
verses when his popularity was on
the wane.
After his success touring the
camps, however, Sidney Skolsky,
Hollywood columnist, sold Co
ilumbia Pictures the idea of making
movie about the singer. The
theme was that he had been the
toast of one generation and then
had come back to achieve instant
| popularity with a second.
That picture and a sequel, "Jol-
son Sings Again" contained
dozens of old songs the Nanny
Singer had made famous. The
songs and the singer both were
successes again, and Mr.. Jolson
had more engagements than he
could fill.
Rejected $4,000 a Week.
In 1947 he turned down $40, 900
week to appear six times daily
at the Roxy Theater in New York.
His guest appearances on the Bing
Crosby show shot it up to it's high
est Hooper rating. He was under
contract with Columbia Broad
casting System for guest appear
ance on both radio and television.
His TV appearances were con-
sidered a big success.
In addition to his widow, Erie,
and two adopted sons, Mr.. Jolson
lis survived by his mother Mrs.
Ida Yoelson. who lives in the
house Mr.. Jolson bought her att
1887 Lanier place NV; four
brothers, Harry Jblsoh, of Holly
wood; George Jolson, 1927 Four
Iteenth street NE, Emil Yoelson,
PISS Woodley place NV, and
Meyer Yoelson. who lives at the
Lanier place address, and sister,
Mrs. Gertrude Sollod, Baltimore
Rabbi Yoelson died in 1945.