A new feature documentary on Swing-era drummer-bandleader Chick Webb, Ella Fitzgerald, and Harlem's Savoy Ballroom. Produced in partnership with The New Heritage Theatre Group (New York's oldest non-profit Black theater), The Savoy King weaves together newly filmed stories from remarkable people who knew Chick at every phase of his life, with quotes from some of the greatest figures in Jazz history.
Home of the amazing Lindy Hop dancers, The Savoy Ballroom was the first musical venue in America where Blacks and Whites could socialize together. It had a huge, but largely unheralded, social impact. Born fatherless and poor, Chick developed spinal tuberculosis and was a hunchbacked dwarf in constant pain, yet he virtually invented modern drumming and built the hottest band of the 1930s (it was the Savoy's "house band"). Chick was mentored by Duke Ellington, toured with Louis Armstrong, argued with Jelly Roll Morton, jammed with Artie Shaw, married a beautiful dancer, discovered and practically adopted Ella Fitzgerald, beat Benny Goodman and Count Basie (with Bille Holiday) in legendary battle of the bands, befriended Afro-Cuban Jazz pioneer Mario Bauza, encouraged a struggling Dizzy Gillespie, and helmed the first Black band to host a national radio show (two decades before Nat King Cole broke the color barrier on television) . . . all before drumming himself to death at age 30.
Chick's brief, inspiring life illuminates the society-changing power of music, the life-lifting effect of mentoring, a hard-fought breakthrough in racial understanding that reverberates today in many ways, and the ability of everyone (with or without disabilities) to reach beyond their apparent limits.
“The Savoy King: Chick Webb and the Music That Changed America is a vibrant, evocative tribute to an unsung jazz giant, as seen through the eyes of people who knew and loved him, with an all-star voice cast, and wonderful music. I loved every minute of The Savoy King."
- Leonard Maltin, critic, historian, broadcaster, and author / editor of Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide
"I really enjoyed The Savoy King, and found it quite uplifting. Chick Webb was one of the most intriguing musicians in the history of Jazz, and I really loved him by the end of the film. Thanks to Jeff Kaufman for sharing this inspiring story with us in a very entertaining fashion."
- Terry Zwigoff, director of Crumb, Bad Santa, and Ghost World
"The Savoy King is a wonderful film – dynamic and true to the spirit of its subject. The editing is so deft, the story moves so well, and the heroic figure at the center is intrinsically fascinating. If Chick Webb's life had been a novel, filmmakers would have lined up to option it. Through genius and a fabled will, Chick became a true titan in American music. In telling this remarkable story of an indispensable man, Jeff Kaufman has made one of the great musical documentaries of our time."
- Music and film critic Gary Giddins, author of Visions of Jazz, and winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award
"The Savoy King is great. It tells us more about the valiant Chick Webb than we ever knew. The little giant of the drums left us more than 70 years ago, but this terrific film almost brings him back."
- Dan Morgenstern, Institute of Jazz Studies, Director of the Institute of Jazz Studies
"The Savoy King is a beautiful and brilliant documentary. It vividly brings alive a man, a time, a place, and the whole pre-WWII scene. This film is a smart pleasure that makes me want to watch it over and over. I hope a lot of people see it.”
- Howard Mandel, President of the Jazz Journalist Association, and senior editor of The Billboard Illustrated Encyclopedia of Jazz and Blues
"The Savoy King offers in abundance that quality available in the best art: sheer surprise that immediately collapses the distance between viewer and subject. In producing this work of imagination and verve on drummer/bandleader Chick Webb, filmmaker Jeff Kaufman has created one of the best documentaries I ever expect to see."
- Tad Hershorn, author of Norman Granz: The Man Who Used Jazz for Justice
"The Savoy King has lots of heart, just like Chick himself. It's got a fine RHYTHM; it's swingin' up a storm! This is a great film!"
- Ed Shaughnessy, former Tonight Show drummer, and drummer with Billie Holiday, Charlie Parker, Count Basie, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Charlie Mingus, Benny Goodman, and many others
"The Savoy King is thrilling and moving. Tears come to the eyes by the end. They have really done the memory of this little giant proud. It's actually a staggering achievement. As a drummer myself, The Savoy King made me marvel at the triumphant art of the little giant, Chick Webb."
- Pete York, drummer with the Spencer Davis Group, and Eric Clapton's Powerhouse
Jeff Kaufman | Los Angeles, CA | 323-401-7266 | jeff@savoyking.com
