[Dixielandjazz] Calloway on PBS - New York Daily News

[Robert Ringwald]

Calloway on PBS: Here's the Cab You Should Take
by David Hinckley
New York Daily News, February 24, 2012
Contrary to every lesson of modern celebrity marketing, Cab Calloway proved it was
possible to overbrand yourself.
He also proved that's a double-edged career sword, as this new "American Masters"
special nicely illustrates.
He did become enormously successful. He was a jazz musician, bandleader, dancer and
all-around entertainment personality who to a gratifying extent transcended the segregation
of mid-20th-century showbiz and became recognized across all color lines.
This PBS "POV" special does a wonderful job of dusting off old animation footage
of a Cab character dancing to "Minnie the Moocher" in Betty Boop cartoons.
Calloway's sinuous figure, hair flopping and feet flying, was as recognizable on
the screen as Saturday morning cowboys.
All this made him famous and at least modestly rich. In contrast with a discouraging
number of great musicians, Calloway enjoyed a long and comfortable retirement, becoming,
among other things, a fixture at Belmont Park.
In his performance heyday, Calloway was simply a spectacle, the kind of performer
you couldn't take your eyes off.
He dressed sharp and stylish. His hats and lapels were wide enough to cover a stage
all by themselves. His suits might be white, his shoes brighter than his dressing
room mirror.
He had a wicked grin that said mischief and fun were never mutually exclusive, and
he had the songs to prove it.
"Minnie the Moocher," to many fans his signature tune, chronicled a shady lady of
questionable habits, but was performed in such an intriguing style that we kept wanting
to know more and more about her and her adventures.
What he did with Minnie and a hundred other songs underscored Calloway's pure skill
as an entertainer -- and it was this skill that was sometimes overshadowed by the
persona.
When fans think of great musicians from Calloway's prime years, the late '20s into
the '50s, they think of Duke Ellington or Count Basie, who led entertainment bands
and were considered serious artists.
Because Calloway had so much fun, it was often assumed he was somehow less serious
about the music part.
Not true, as this documentary proves.
The show doesn't directly address whether Calloway was taken less seriously than
some of his peers. There's nothing defensive about the program, which marvels at
his all-around skill and how he helped lay foundations for everything from Michael
Jackson's moonwalk to rap music.
The most satisfying impact of this show is to polish Calloway's reputation and restore
him to where he belongs, in the top tier of 20th-century performers.
The fact Ch. 13 is airing the show opposite the Oscars, however, suggests it has
more modest expectations.
That's a shame, because Cab Calloway was both his chosen brand and a whole lot more.



--Bob Ringwald
www.ringwald.com
Fulton Street Jazz Band
530/ 642-9551 Office
916/ 806-9551 Cell
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"There are three things I like about being on an Italian cruise ship 
First their cuisine is unsurpassed.
Second their service is superb.
And then, in time of emergency, there is none of this nonsense about women and children first."
--Winston Churchill. 




--Bob Ringwald
www.ringwald.com
Fulton Street Jazz Band
530/ 642-9551 Office
916/ 806-9551 Cell
Amateur (Ham) Radio K6YBV

"There are three things I like about being on an Italian cruise ship 
First their cuisine is unsurpassed.
Second their service is superb.
And then, in time of emergency, there is none of this nonsense about women and children first."
--Winston Churchill.