Dorothy Donegan:
Sensations of 1945
Dorothy Donegan, a jazz pianist who brashly mixed swing, boogie-woogie, vaudeville, pop, ragtime and Bach -- sometimes within a span of 10 minutes -- and who was known for an outrageous sense of humor, was born in 1922.
She started playing in bars at the age of 14 in her hometown of Chicago. In 1943, when she was 21, she gave a concert at Orchestra Hall in Chicago, the first black performer to do so.
Hollywood soon came calling. Persuaded by her agent to turn down a five-year contract from MGM, she accepted a $3,000-a-week contract from United Artists for one picture, ''Sensations of 1945.'' This was the beginning and ending of her film career, but she continued to have a long career playing jazz clubs in the US and internationally.
Art Tatum called her "the only woman who can make me practice".
Donegan was outspoken about her view that sexism, along with her insistence on being paid the same rates as male musicians, had limited her career. In 1992, Donegan received an "American Jazz Master" fellowship from the NEA.
Ms. Donegan was better known as a performer than as a recording artist, and her flamboyance helped her find work in a field that was largely hostile to women. To a certain extent, it was also her downfall; her concerts were often criticized for having an excess of personality. Here is a RARE 1992 video from the Catalina Jazz Club in Hollywood of Dorothy with Linda Hopkins - it gives you a feel for what her live shows were really like!
Sit back and enjoy this AMAZING clip from the movie "SENSATIONS OF 1945" with Dorothy Donegan, Gene Rogers (another amazing stride pianist), Cab Calloway and his orchestra, and others
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