American singer-songwriter and trumpet player (born 1917)

Dizzy Gillespie

John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy Eldridge but adding layers of harmonic and rhythmic complexity previously unheard in jazz. His combination of musicianship, showmanship, and wit made him a leading popularizer of early bebop styles. His beret and horn-rimmed spectacles, scat singing, bent horn, pouched cheeks, and light-hearted personality have made him an enduring icon.

Born

1917

October 21

Died

1993

Era

1910s

Country

—

About

Dizzy, in brief

Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Life timeline

Key dates

1917 Born
1993 Died

Also on October 21

What else happened on this day, through history

310 Sixty-five days after being exiled by the Emperor Maxentius to Sicily, Pope Eusebius dies.
685 Election of Pope Conon following the death of Pope John V.
1094 El Cid and his forces defeat a larger army of the Almoravids in the battle of Cuarte.
1096 A Seljuk Turkish army successfully ambushes the People's Crusade at the Battle of Civetot.

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The world in 1917

When Dizzy arrived

april 12 World War I: Canadian forces successfully complete the taking of Vimy Ridge from the Germans.
april 16 Russian Revolution: Vladimir Lenin returns to Petrograd, Russia, from exile in Switzerland.
april 2 American entry into World War I: President Wilson asks the U.S. Congress for a declaration of war on Germany.
april 6 World War I: The United States declares war on Germany.

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Same-day contemporaries

Also born on October 21

Alfred Nobel 1833–1896 Swedish chemist and engineer, invented Dynamite and founded the Nobel Prize (born 1833) Brent Hayden 1983– Canadian swimmer Carrie Fisher 1956–2016 American actress, screenwriter, author, producer, and speaker (born 1956) Georg Solti 1912–1997 Hungarian-English conductor and director (died 1997) Joey Harrington 1978– American football player and sportscaster Keith Green 1953–1982 American singer-songwriter and pianist (born 1953) Ken Watanabe 1959– Japanese actor and producer Lavinia Miloșovici 1976– Romanian gymnast Mary Blair 1911– American illustrator and animator (died 1978)

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Same-year contemporaries

Also born in 1917

Augusto Roa Bastos 1917–2005 Paraguayan journalist, author, and academic (born 1917) Cleveland Amory 1917–1998 American author and activist (born 1917) David Tomlinson 1917–2000 English actor and comedian (born 1917) Dinah Shore 1917–1994 American actress and singer (born 1916) Domenico Bartolucci 1917–2013 Italian cardinal and composer (died 2013) Donald Davidson 1917–2003 American philosopher and academic (born 1917) El Santo 1917–1984 Mexican professional wrestler (born 1917) Fannie Lou Hamer 1917–1977 American activist and philanthropist (born 1917) Herbert A. Hauptman 1917–2011 American mathematician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2011)

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More to explore

Dizzy's birthday October 21 Dizzy's zodiac Libra When Dizzy arrived 1917