Sammy Davis Jr. was an American singer, actor, and comedian born in Harlem in 1925. His career spanned almost 60 years as his father, Sammy Davis Sr., took him on the road at age 3 with the Will Mastin Davis Jr. was called to serve in the army in 1943 during World War II. During this time, he was assigned to the Special Services, the entertainment branch of the American military. On his return, he rejoined the Trio but was quickly singled out as an individual talent. In 1959 Davis became a member of 'The Rat Pack', formed by his friend Frank Sinatra.
Photographed by Duffy smoking with a cup of tea in 1960 - the same year he starred in the movie "Ocean's 11." Davis had recently married Swedish-born actress May Britt, who attended the shoot and was part of the session.
Duffy spoke of this session in an interview with Icon Magazine in 2009. He said of the session, 'He was very colour-conscious. He was one of the most insecure people I've ever photographed; He was like an eggshell, absolutely no confidence at all. He was fine if sitting on a stool with a cane or a bowler hat, as he was always trying to be Mr Showbiz, but he'd never been shot like this before. I didn't do anything special; I think I just asked, and people would acquiesce, especially if they could tell I didn't have an angle and wasn't trying to score off them.'
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