Anita O'Day: The Life of a Jazz Singer

"She survived it all to become one of the world's great jazz singers"

2007 1h 30m EN

🙌

7.7

BANGER

★7.7TMDB · 3

Documentary

Synopsis

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This documentary explores the life of jazz singer Anita O'Day. As a child, Anita had a tonsillectomy, during which her uvula was accidentally removed. The surgery prevents her from singing vibrato and holding long notes, but lends to her much-revered percussive style. Anita overcomes her vocal hurdle, as well as many others -- including poverty, heroin addiction and jail time for a drug arrest -- to become one of the most prolific and respected jazz vocalists of the 20th century. Initial release: 30 April 2007

“She survived it all to become one of the world's great jazz singers”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Anita O'Day
Herself
Buddy Bregman
Himself
Leonard Feather
Himself
Will Friedwald
Himself
Johnny Mandel
Himself
John Cameron Mitchell
Himself
Annie Ross
Herself
George Wein
Himself

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Ian McCrudden
Languages: English

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

90 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.2M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 19 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Anita O'Day and Buddy Bregman and Leonard Feather carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "She survived it all to become one of the world's great jazz singers".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0843838 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 3 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Ian McCrudden directs. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

190 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
2Shot for just $0.2M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
3Released 19 years ago.
4Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
5Anita O'Day and Buddy Bregman and Leonard Feather carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "She survived it all to become one of the world's great jazz singers".
7IMDB entry: tt0843838 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 3 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.