Al Jolson American artist Date of Birth: 26.05.1886 Country: USA

1. Biography of Al Jolson
2. Early Career and Unique Performance Style
3. Success on Broadway and Film
4. Later Years and Legacy

Biography of Al Jolson

American Artist, Pioneer of Popular Music in the USA
Al Jolson, an American artist, was a pioneer in popular music in the United States. He was born as Asa Yoelson in the town of Srednik in Lithuania. Soon after, his family immigrated to the United States, where Asa's father became a rabbi in one of the synagogues in Washington. The spelling of the family name was changed to Yoelson. During the Spanish-American War, Al and his brother performed musical revues for the soldiers in the active army. In December 1911, his first record was released for sale, but the exact number and sales volume of his records have not been established.

Early Career and Unique Performance Style

In the early 20th century, Jolson developed distinctive features of his stage style, including a pseudo-operatic manner of singing, expressive gestures, easy interaction with the audience, and artistic whistling. Choosing to portray himself as a minstrel-show artist, he appeared on stage in blackface. His slogan was "You ain't heard nothin' yet!" By the 1920s, Jolson's charisma was widely recognized across America, and his ability to establish a psychological connection with any audience was noted by Charlie Chaplin.

Success on Broadway and Film

In the 1920s, Jolson's shows and musicals, some with music by George Gershwin, were a highlight of New York's Broadway. His performances, for the first time in theater history, were interrupted by shouts of enthusiasm from the audience, lasting up to forty-five minutes, and individual songs, such as "Avalon," were later performed by many other artists. In 1927, Jolson achieved even wider success when he played the lead role in "The Jazz Singer," the first talking film, which surpassed the box office success of the best silent films. Despite the film's title, Jolson's singing style had a more indirect relationship to jazz, drawing inspiration from the vaudeville shows of the turn of the century.

Later Years and Legacy

From 1928 to 1940, Al Jolson was married to actress Ruby Keeler. In the 1930s, performances with blackface fell out of fashion, and proponents of this technique were accused of latent racism. Bing Crosby, who had a less sentimental and melodramatic style, became the main idol of the 1930s youth. In 1940, as Jolson aged, he left the Broadway stage to work in radio. During the war years, he frequently traveled to the front lines to perform for soldiers and boost morale. Towards the end of the war, he fell ill with malaria and had to stop his front-line tours. Despite a decline in popularity, Jolson managed to capture the attention of a younger generation of Americans when the musical biopic "The Jolson Story" was released in 1946, dedicated to his life and work. The actor who portrayed Jolson in this film was nominated for an Academy Award. Shortly after, a sequel was released. Jolson passed away from a massive heart attack in 1950. He is honored with three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, in memory of the "greatest entertainer in the world," as the American press hailed him. Jolson had a significant influence on the style and performance manner of Russian artists such as Yuri Morfessi, Leonid Utesov, and Petr Kirichek. Al Jolson is also the favorite actor of Charles Montgomery Burns from the animated series "The Simpsons," who believes that Jolson is still alive. Jolson was one of the oldest performers to travel to the front lines to sing for soldiers during World War II, as he was 55 years old when the United States entered the war.