1 00:00:00,280 --> 00:00:02,000 Speaker 1: This day in History Class. It's a production of I 2 00:00:02,080 --> 00:00:07,760 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hi everyone, I'm Eves and Welcome to the 3 00:00:07,800 --> 00:00:10,800 Speaker 1: Same History Class, a podcast that brings you a new 4 00:00:10,840 --> 00:00:26,640 Speaker 1: slice of history every day. Today is April. The day 5 00:00:26,680 --> 00:00:32,400 Speaker 1: was April nineteen seventeen American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald was born. 6 00:00:33,760 --> 00:00:37,200 Speaker 1: Fitzgerald has been affectionately dubbed the First Lady of Song. 7 00:00:38,840 --> 00:00:43,720 Speaker 1: Ella Jane Fitzgerald was born in Newport News, Virginia. Her parents, 8 00:00:43,800 --> 00:00:48,120 Speaker 1: William Fitzgerald and Temperance Fitzgerald, separated soon after she was born. 9 00:00:49,040 --> 00:00:52,040 Speaker 1: Ella moved to Yonkers, New York with her mother, and 10 00:00:52,200 --> 00:00:57,040 Speaker 1: they moved in with Temperance's boyfriend. Ellamate friends easily in 11 00:00:57,080 --> 00:00:59,800 Speaker 1: her new neighborhood, and she was already developing her in 12 00:01:00,120 --> 00:01:03,160 Speaker 1: ist in the arts. She studied music in school, saying 13 00:01:03,160 --> 00:01:05,840 Speaker 1: in the glee club, and took piano lessons. She was 14 00:01:05,920 --> 00:01:09,280 Speaker 1: exposed to formal music making through her family's attendance at 15 00:01:09,280 --> 00:01:13,400 Speaker 1: the Bethany African Methodist Episcopal Church. She listened to artists 16 00:01:13,440 --> 00:01:17,360 Speaker 1: like Being Crosby, the Boswell sisters, and Louis Armstrong, and 17 00:01:17,440 --> 00:01:21,119 Speaker 1: she often went to Harlem to go to theaters. But 18 00:01:21,200 --> 00:01:24,880 Speaker 1: when Ella was a teenager, her mother died. Ella's aunt, Virginia, 19 00:01:25,040 --> 00:01:28,280 Speaker 1: stepped in to take care of her. She had a 20 00:01:28,280 --> 00:01:31,240 Speaker 1: hard time adjusting to this change, and her grades dropped 21 00:01:31,240 --> 00:01:34,520 Speaker 1: as she often skipped school. She was eventually sent to 22 00:01:34,560 --> 00:01:37,600 Speaker 1: a reform school, where she was often beaten by the staff. 23 00:01:38,680 --> 00:01:42,600 Speaker 1: In Ella competed in an amateur night at the Apollo Theater. 24 00:01:43,120 --> 00:01:45,279 Speaker 1: While she had intended to go on stage and dance, 25 00:01:45,400 --> 00:01:48,960 Speaker 1: she faced stiff competition in that arena, so she decided 26 00:01:49,000 --> 00:01:52,919 Speaker 1: to sing instead. She's sang The Object of My Affections 27 00:01:52,960 --> 00:01:56,720 Speaker 1: by the Boswell Sisters, and the crowd loved her performance. 28 00:01:57,120 --> 00:01:59,440 Speaker 1: She got first prize that day, and she went on 29 00:01:59,560 --> 00:02:03,920 Speaker 1: to enter and win more talent contests. In January of 30 00:02:04,000 --> 00:02:07,680 Speaker 1: nineteen thirty five, Ella performed with the Tiny Bradshaw Band 31 00:02:07,760 --> 00:02:10,920 Speaker 1: at the Harlem Opera House. There she met drummer and 32 00:02:10,919 --> 00:02:14,919 Speaker 1: bandleader Chick Webb. Soon she began traveling with Webb's band 33 00:02:15,000 --> 00:02:18,800 Speaker 1: as a singer. Her first recording, Love and Kisses, was 34 00:02:18,840 --> 00:02:22,919 Speaker 1: released under the Decca label. She began performing with Webb's 35 00:02:23,000 --> 00:02:26,839 Speaker 1: band at Harlem's Savoy Ballroom, and in nineteen thirty eight 36 00:02:26,960 --> 00:02:29,639 Speaker 1: she recorded a version of the Nursery rhyme A tisket 37 00:02:29,639 --> 00:02:32,640 Speaker 1: a tasket. The song was popular and performed well on 38 00:02:32,680 --> 00:02:35,760 Speaker 1: the music charts, and Ella garnered more fame as a singer. 39 00:02:37,200 --> 00:02:40,200 Speaker 1: After Webb died in nineteen thirty nine, the band continued 40 00:02:40,320 --> 00:02:43,800 Speaker 1: under the name Ella Fitzgerald in her famous orchestra. The 41 00:02:43,840 --> 00:02:46,320 Speaker 1: band performed well for a while, but broke up in 42 00:02:46,400 --> 00:02:50,840 Speaker 1: nineteen forty two. At that point, Ella began her solo career. 43 00:02:51,320 --> 00:02:54,040 Speaker 1: She recorded with Louis Armstrong, and she went on tour 44 00:02:54,120 --> 00:02:57,400 Speaker 1: with Dizzy Gillespie's band in nineteen forty six, where she 45 00:02:57,480 --> 00:03:00,840 Speaker 1: fell in love with bassist Ray Brown. The couple married 46 00:03:00,880 --> 00:03:06,000 Speaker 1: and eventually adopted a son. Fitzgerald mastered scat singing, moving 47 00:03:06,040 --> 00:03:08,720 Speaker 1: towards be Bob as the swing era ended and jazz 48 00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:12,560 Speaker 1: music changed rapidly. When she joined the jazz at the 49 00:03:12,560 --> 00:03:17,000 Speaker 1: Philharmonic tour in Norman Grands became her manager, her popularity 50 00:03:17,080 --> 00:03:22,320 Speaker 1: shot up. Grants founded Verve Records to feature Fitzgerald's music 51 00:03:23,080 --> 00:03:26,320 Speaker 1: in the nineteen fifties, and in nineteen sixties she recorded 52 00:03:26,400 --> 00:03:29,640 Speaker 1: covers of other musicians songs like those of Cole Porter, 53 00:03:29,919 --> 00:03:34,480 Speaker 1: Duke Ellington, and Johnny Mercer, and she made television appearances 54 00:03:34,560 --> 00:03:37,640 Speaker 1: on shows like The Bing Crosby Show and The Ed 55 00:03:37,760 --> 00:03:42,760 Speaker 1: Sullivan Show. Fitzgerald continued to tour around the world, and 56 00:03:42,880 --> 00:03:46,960 Speaker 1: she recorded live concert albums. In nineteen seventy four, she 57 00:03:47,080 --> 00:03:49,360 Speaker 1: spent a couple of weeks in New York performing with 58 00:03:49,520 --> 00:03:53,480 Speaker 1: Frank Sinatra and Count Basie. By the nineteen seventies, her 59 00:03:53,520 --> 00:03:57,640 Speaker 1: health was declining. Over the course of her career, she 60 00:03:57,800 --> 00:04:01,600 Speaker 1: won fourteen Grammy Awards and looting one for Lifetime Achievement, 61 00:04:02,120 --> 00:04:04,840 Speaker 1: and she was awarded the National Medal of Arts and 62 00:04:05,000 --> 00:04:07,600 Speaker 1: the Presidential Medal of Freedom in nineteen eight seven in 63 00:04:07,680 --> 00:04:12,280 Speaker 1: nineteen ninety two, respectively. By the nineteen nineties, she had 64 00:04:12,320 --> 00:04:16,040 Speaker 1: recorded more than two hundred albums. She had continued to 65 00:04:16,080 --> 00:04:20,640 Speaker 1: perform and record sporadically while dealing with respiratory and heart issues, 66 00:04:20,680 --> 00:04:24,160 Speaker 1: as well as diabetes, but she never fully recovered from 67 00:04:24,200 --> 00:04:26,599 Speaker 1: surgery she had late in her life when her legs 68 00:04:26,640 --> 00:04:31,000 Speaker 1: were amputated below the knees. She died in nineteen nine six. 69 00:04:32,279 --> 00:04:34,760 Speaker 1: I'm Eve Jeff Cote, and hopefully you know a little 70 00:04:34,760 --> 00:04:37,760 Speaker 1: more about history today than you did yesterday. And if 71 00:04:37,800 --> 00:04:40,200 Speaker 1: you have any comments or suggestions or just want to 72 00:04:40,240 --> 00:04:42,479 Speaker 1: send us a nice note. You can send us to 73 00:04:42,600 --> 00:04:47,000 Speaker 1: us via social media at t d i HC Podcast. 74 00:04:47,600 --> 00:04:50,360 Speaker 1: You can also hit us up via email at this 75 00:04:50,480 --> 00:04:54,160 Speaker 1: Day at i heeart media dot com. Thanks again for 76 00:04:54,160 --> 00:05:00,280 Speaker 1: listening to the show and we'll see you tomorrow. Yeah. 77 00:05:03,920 --> 00:05:06,239 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from I Heart Radio, visit the iHeart 78 00:05:06,279 --> 00:05:08,760 Speaker 1: Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your 79 00:05:08,760 --> 00:05:09,440 Speaker 1: favorite shows.