"There was no Broadway play that had ever been taken on the road before, and they took it all across the United States. Many years later there was a gentleman from Missouri and he met Jolson for the first time, he said, "Mr. Jolson", he said, "If it wasn't for the fact that you took that play La Belle Paree, (this is 1911), on the road", he said, "I never would have seen you", he said, "but I'm so happy that I was able to see you in person on the stage." That man that he spoke to from Missouri was President Harry Truman."


Yowza, Yowza, Yowza. This is Brian Marcus Decker, for the Jolson and Friends blog located on the web at www.JolsonBlog.com, which is the first tech-nostalgic blog dedicated to the musical influences of Al Jolson and Friends.

Well folk, next stop is Part III of "Asa, the Magnificent Minstrel", a very informative six-part series on Al Jolson with another fellow Jolson auteur, Dr. Larry I. Gaum. He has produced a very informative and award-winning documentary in Canada entitled "Asa, the Magnificent Minstrel."

Free Jolson and Friends Podcasts

After collecting audio assets for five Jolson related interviews, in the last few months I launched the First Jolson Podcast and you can listen to the current six-part Asa, the Magnificent Minstrel interview with Dr. Larry I. Gaum and the recent seven-part series on Vaudeville with authors Trav S.D. as well as our favorite child actress, Sybil Jason.

To listen to the free Jolson and Friends Blog Podcast published audio files

Use feed.jolsonblog.com and click on:

Jolson and Friends Blog Podcast: Asa the Magnificent Minstrel Interview Part III

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Use www.apple.com/itunes/download/ or www.podcastalley.com or www.bloglines.com/ to set-up account and then search on Jolson and Friends Blog Podcast.

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The Eleventh Annual Long Island Jolson Festival

A Tribute to Al Jolson on Saturday, September 8 featuring special guest of honor Herb Goldman author of "Jolson The Legend Comes To Life", Tony Babino "The Heart of Al Jolson", , Radio Personality Joe Franklin, Janet Cantor Gari - daughter of Eddie Cantor and Brian Gari - grandson of Eddie Cantor.

This fantastic event will take place 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 P.M at:

Knights of Columbus

2985 Kenneth Place

Oceanside, NY

Tickets are $38.50 per person including meals and entertainment. If you cannot come for the whole day, you may attend just the show, with no food, for $20. PLEASE BOOK EARLY!

For more information go to www.jolson.org/ or email any questions or comments to Jan Hernstat at jolsonvp@optonline.net.

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For additional information, special orders, discounted shipping outside the U.S., payments through Pay Pal, please contact: brian@affinitee.com.

To order please specify style (Jolson, Cantor, Moon, Jolie, Houdini King of Cards, World's Greatest Mystery Man, History of Old Time Baseball, Asbury Park Clown, Sherlock Double Profile, Sherlock Improbable, Sudoku), quantity, size, t-shirt color (white/natural or black), type (t-shirts or matching gift cards) and your shipping address. Please send checks to:

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Part III: Asa, the Magnificent Minstrel Interview

"So Jolson at first didn't know who he was, and he said, "Well what you like me to sing?" He said, "I want you to sing April Showers". And Jolson entertained that fat, pudgy little man with a scar on his face for over an hour. That man was the mobster, Al Capone."

Brian Marcus Decker: One of the really, really important things to me, from watching Asa, the Magnificent Minstrel several times is that there really are a significant number of well-documented facts and stories related to Jolson that are included in the documentary. For example, as you mentioned before, William Demarest appearing in the original 1927 The Jazz Singer, outside of the supporting roles that he had in both The Jolson Story and The Jolson Sings Again many years later.

Also that Jolson played a candy vendor in the theater when young Jolson, performed by Scotty Becket with the vocal tracks by the late Rudy Wissler, sings from the balcony in The Jolson Story. And even a mention of one of the big Jolson fans of his era, being someone by the name of Al Capone. Larry, could you share with us a few of your favorite Jolson stories?

Dr. Larry I. Gaum: First of all, Jolson; and this is my personal thoughts and those of many others, Jolson appeared twice (in "The Jolson Story"). Number one, the candy vendor. You have to understand that Jolson wanted to play himself in "The Jolson Story" and he even made a test for Harry Cohn. You can see the movie test where he sings one of his songs, and he was sure that Harry Cohn was going to select Jolson to play himself; however, that was not the case. But I think that if Jolson had any opportunity at all to appear in that movie, he was going to do it come hell or high water. And the candy vendor in the balcony in Kernan's Theater was Jolson himself, possibly with makeup or some disguise. During that song, young Scotty Becket and the vocal track by the late Rudy Wissler, who I think, by the way, Wissler had a tremendous, tremendous voice, very talented person.

The "Swanee" number, when Jolson was standing there at rehearsals and Larry Parks had to do "Swanee" and that little dance that Jolson did, Jolson said to Harry Cohn, "Look, that kid can't get the dance right". He said, "I'm the only one that can do that dance." And Harry Cohn agreed to let Jolson perform "Swanee" in the movie The Jolson Story. You can see the cameras were taken pretty far back; there are no close-ups. But that was Jolson himself now it's interesting because in one of the takes, the musical director or one of the technicians hollered "cut' and Harry Cohen, who for all of his exterior, and I mean there were a lot of people that hated Harry Cohen, he loved Jolson. And he got up and he hollered, he said, "When Jolson is singing, nobody says cut." And they had to come over and placate Cohn, and they said, "Look, sir, one of the fluorescent lights was flickering and if we let Jolson continue and we had to film him, it costs money." And he calmed down and he said, "Okay, but under no other circumstances do you say cut to Jolson."

Now, you asked me about Al Capone. In 1921 Jolson appeared in the Broadway play Bombo and it was through Jolson's ingenuity and business sense that they took Bombo on the road. It was the first time, well, it was actually "La Belle Paree" in 1911 where they took it on the road and that's where it began. There was no Broadway play that had ever been taken on the road before, and they took it all across the United States. Many years later there was a gentleman from Missouri and he met Jolson for the first time, he said, "Mr. Jolson", he said, "If it wasn't for the fact that you took that play "La Belle Paree", (this is 1911), on the road", he said, "I never would have seen you", he said, "but I'm so happy that I was able to see you in person on the stage." That man that he spoke to from Missouri was President Harry Truman. And I think that that's a beautiful story and it's true.

Now, with reference to Al Capone, in 1921 Bombo was playing in Chicago and Jolson had just finished his performance. Two or three rough-looking individuals came and literally physically took him under the arm and they said, "You come with us." Now this was Chicago in 1921. Jolson was scared out of his wits. But they brought him into a room in a hotel and there was a pudgy, sort of fat little man sitting there and he said, "I want you to perform for me, I want you to sing." So Jolson at first didn't know who he was, and he said, "Well what you like me to sing?" He said, "I want you to sing April Showers". And Jolson entertained that fat, pudgy little man with a scar on his face for over an hour. That man was the mobster, Al Capone. It's, again, an authenticated true story and it just gives me goose bumps. But that's that.


"Of all of the movies that I've watched Jolson in, like "Go Into Your Dance", and "Wonder Bar", "Hallelujah, I'm a Bum", "The Singing Fool"; I like "Rose of Washington Square". And one of the reasons is that there's where he sang "California, Here I Come". And I can sit back today, all that many years later from that and that was filmed in 1939, and I'm enthralled with his performance of "California, Here I Come."

Brian Marcus Decker: In your "Asa, the Magnificent Minstrel" DVD, you cover a good retrospective of famous Jolson songs, including some fun, entertaining film footage that includes "My Mammy", "Toot, Toot, Tootsie", "Sitting on Top of the World", "About a Quarter to Nine", "Let Me Sing I'm Happy", "Dinah", "Rock-A-Bye", "California, Here I Come" and, of course, "April Showers". Of all the Jolie featured films, starting with The "Jazz Singer" in 1927, what do you consider his best feature film and why?

Dr. Larry I. Gaum: When you're talking about The Jazz Singer, this was the first talkie so-to-speak. There was another short that he shot that had Vitaphone sound, but "The Jazz Singer" today is considered to be the first talking movie. It was the first commercially successful talkie in 1927. I mean we have to give Jolson credit here for doing what he did. He left Broadway to an unknown media. But again, he was smart, he was a businessman and he knew and saw that the movies and especially sound would be successful.

Of all of the movies that I've watched Jolson in, like "Go Into Your Dance", and "Wonder Bar", "Hallelujah, I'm a Bum", "The Singing Fool"; I like "Rose of Washington Square". And one of the reasons is that there's where he sang "California, Here I Come". And I can sit back today, all that many years later from that and that was filmed in 1939, and I'm enthralled with his performance of "California, Here I Come". I've got a scratchy tape that I've played over and over and over, and I've also included it in the documentary. But I would have to say Rose of Washington Square, where I think not only his musical capabilities came out, but his acting was not all that bad either. And despite the fact that people today say, "Well, he wasn't a very good actor", and I said it in the documentary, but I'll tell you something, Brian, I've since changed my mind.

PART IV July 29, 2007: Asa, the Magnificent Minstrel Interview with Dr. Larry I. Gaum

• You provide some background on each of Al Jolson's four marriages, but there's some really, really great commentary on his third wife, Ruby Keeler. This includes Ruby's accomplishments as a dancer and based on her performances in "Go Into Your Dance", as well as her connection with organized crime. Can you share with us some of these stories that are featured in your documentary about Ruby?

• How does Ruby Keeler compared to a Ginger Rogers or an Ann Miller or a Cyd Charisse as a dancer?

This is Brian Marcus Decker and thank you for joining us on the Jolson and Friends blog. This is the first and most important blog dedicated to the life and musical influences of the legendary Al Jolson, the world's greatest entertainer and friends. And please come visit us again at www.jolsonblog.com, and certainly feel free to listen to the audio podcasts.

Jolson and Friends Blog Required Reading List

No Applause--Just Throw Money: The Book That Made Vaudeville Famous (Paperback) by Trav S.D.

Click here to shop and buy this book from Amazon

My Fifteen Minutes: An Autobiography of a Child Star of the Golden Era of Hollywood (Paperback) by Sybil Jason.

Click here to shop and buy this book from Amazon

When Jolson Was King: (Paperback) by Richard Grudens.

Richard Grudens has written an entertaining and informative (must read) book for anyone interested in the legendary, Al Jolson "The World's Greatest Entertainer".

"The book contains many facets of Jolson' career including those around him, his competition, employers, and comments from those he inspired enough to form their own careers, the issue of minstrel, blackface performers, fabled stories of the famed Friar's Club, a chapter of the infamous Shubert Brothers, and chapters covering Jolson's experiences in film, radio and his extensive USO travels. Covered too are vignettes of the theatres in which Jolson performed, and of those great theatrical competitors like the Barrymore's and where they were voicing their talents while Jolson was pulling them in at the Winter Garden, and a full feature on Jolson's films from the first talkie, The Jazz Singer to his famed bio-pics The Jolson Story and Jolson Sings Again." - Richard Grudens

Click here to shop and buy this book from Amazon

Changes to Jolson and Friends Blog

In the upcoming months I am looking to continue to evolve the Jolson and Friends Blog and wanted preview some upcoming changes. As of this post, I am promoting the sale of Al Jolson, Eddie Cantor, Houdini, History of Baseball and several other unique Limited Edition T-shirt designs (featured above) and matching gift cards (with free shipping). The sales from these items help offset the cost of maintaining this blog.

Due to the time intensive nature of ongoing research, content development, production and maintaining and the Blog, the next blog update will happen on July 29, 2007.

I am starting to work on several future Jolson and Friends projects including:

• Jolson and Friends Recommended Reading and Viewer Lists including cost-saving shopping links to find out-of-print books, videos and more.
• Expanded global coverage of local events.
• Future podcasts of upcoming interviews and special performance-based content.

To ensure that you are automatically informed about new postings, please enter your email address at the sidebar on the left of this blog page or send an email to my attention, with the subject line "Subscribe", to: brian@JolsonBlog.com.

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