In this vignette about Ella Fitzgerald, we learn about her early career and the formative relationship she had with Chick Webb, who played the role of mentor and guardian, as well as bandleader. Using archival footage, new interviews, the words of those who knew her, as well as her own words, this clip gives you a glimpse into the early years of Ella’s career and the people who helped shape it.

NEW INTERVIEWS FEATURING:

• Norma Miller
• Frankie Manning
• Gertrude Jeanette
• Van Alexander
• Ella’s son, Ray Brown, Jr.

FEATURING STORIES ABOUT:

• Meeting Bardou Ali
• Ella’s Debut at Amateur Night at the Apollo
• Chick’s Wife, Sallye Webb
• How Chick Mentored Ella
• Ella’s brief romance with Louis Jordon, and More!

FEATURING THE VOICES OF:

• Bill Cosby as Chick Webb
• Tyne Daly as Jazz publicist Helen Oakley Dance
• Andy Garcia as Mario Bauzá

THE SAVOY KING is a feature documentary from Floating World Pictures about the Swing-era drummer-bandleader Chick Webb, Ella Fitzgerald, and Harlem’s Savoy Ballroom.

• Produced/Directed/Written by Jeff Kaufman
• Edited by Jamal El-Amin
• Graphics Wizard: Patrick Connelly
• Post-production Supervisor: Alita Renée Holly

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One of the challenges of creating a documentary about people who lived over seventy years ago is that much of the imagery is damaged, and of low quality. Just to give you a taste of some of what we’re up against, we wanted to share with you some images before and after our restoration efforts.

CHICK ON HIS DRUMS BEFORE & AFTER RESTORATION:

Rollover the picture to watch the tears, wrinkles & the writing on the drum disappear.

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Here is another example of the magic of photoshop and its creative use to restore old photographs. This photo was originally in an old magazine. The challenge was to improve the image quality, blow it up so that it could be used on HD video and restore the detail of the patrons inside the Savoy. This image has been scaled down from the final large photo, meaning the larger picture is of comparable resolution. Rollover the picture to watch the tears, spots & blotches magically disappear.

INSIDE THE SAVOY—BEFORE & AFTER RESTORATION:

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