St. Louis Blues (1958 film)
St. Louis Blues is a 1958 American film broadly based on the life of W. C. Handy. It stars jazz and blues greats Nat "King" Cole, Pearl Bailey, Cab Calloway, Ella Fitzgerald, Eartha Kitt, and Barney Bigard, as well as gospel singer Mahalia Jackson and actress Ruby Dee. The film's soundtrack used over ten of Handy's songs including the title song.
| St. Louis Blues | |
|---|---|
 Film poster | |
| Directed by | Allen Reisner |
| Produced by | Robert Smith |
| Written by | Ted Sherdeman Robert Smith |
| Starring | Nat King Cole Eartha Kitt |
| Music by | W. C. Handy |
| Cinematography | Haskell B. Boggs |
| Edited by | Eda Warren |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 105 minutes |
| Country | United States |
In conjunction with the film, Cole recorded an album of W. C. Handy compositions, arranged by Nelson Riddle, and Fitzgerald incorporated "St. Louis Blues" into her concert repertoire.
Cast
- Nat King Cole as W.C. Handy
- Eartha Kitt as Gogo Germaine
- Cab Calloway as Blade
- Ella Fitzgerald as herself
- Mahalia Jackson as Bessie May
- Ruby Dee as Elizabeth
- Juano Hernandez as Rev. Charles Handy
- Teddy Buckner as Musician
- Barney Bigard as Musician
- George Callender as Musician
- Lee Young as Musician
- George Washington as Musician
- Billy Preston as Will Handy as a boy
- Pearl Bailey as Aunt Hagar
- Jester Hairston as Choir Master/Singer
External links
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