The Burt Boyar Collection of Sammy Davis, Jr. Biographical Materials consists of drafts, galleys and page proofs for the booksYes I Can: The Story of Sammy Davis, Jr. andSammy: An Autobiography, thirty-five cassette tapes with interviews conducted by Boyar and his wife Jane for their bookWhy Me?: The Sammy Davis, Jr. Story, and digital media and text files of Davis appearances, recordings and interviews stored on a portable hard drive. These materials span the years 1954 to 2000 with the majority dating from 1965 to 1988.
Yes I Can: The Story of Sammy Davis, Jr. (1965) is represented by typescript drafts, master galleys, unbound galleys, page proofs, uncorrected proofs, and uncut proofs and signatures. A portion of this material has been arranged under the book's three preliminary titles:Everybody Else Had A Raincoat;Yes I Can: The Autobiography of Sammy Davis, Jr.; andYes I Can: The Story of a Negro in a White World. Each title contains significant quantities of draft materials annotated by Davis, Burt and Jane Boyar, and others.
The Boyars conducted a series of taped interviews with Davis between 1985 and 1988 forWhy Me?, their 1989 biography of Davis. The recording sessions mainly take place in Los Angeles, with a few sessions held in Reno, Nevada, or at Caesar's Palace and the Desert Inn in Las Vegas. In these interviews, which typically last two hours per tape, Davis is very forthcoming about his life and career. He talks candidly about his difficulties with alcohol and drug abuse, his three marriages, and his relationship with his children. He also shares his thoughts and feelings about politics and social issues, such as civil rights, and his relationships with Robert Kennedy, Richard Nixon, and Ronald and Nancy Reagan.
Many of Davis' stories focus upon the entertainment business, including his membership in the Rat Pack, performing at various venues, explanations of his signature song "Mr. Bojangles," and his friendships with fellow celebrities, such as Frank Sinatra, Liza Minnelli, Jerry Lewis, Bill Cosby, Shirley MacLaine, and Burt Reynolds. Although the vast majority of the recordings feature Davis, there are also brief interviews with Altovise, his third wife, on tapes 32 and 34. She discusses meeting Davis for the first time, their courtship, and her role as his sister in the Broadway production ofGolden Boy. Additionally, she expounds on her membership in the charity organization Share Happily and Reap Endlessly, dancing in the musicalHigh Sprits, and her friendship with actress Lucille Ball. These cassettes were originally numbered sequentially to 38, although tapes 1, 29, and 30 are unaccounted for. They are housed in the Library of Congress Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division where they were assigned shelf numbers as indicated in this finding aid.
A portable hard drive, also housed in the Library of Congress Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division, contains digital media and text files. The digital audio files document radio, television, and live appearances by Sammy Davis, Jr., as well as a number of his commercially released recordings. Also included are digital versions of complete interviews and excerpts of interviews originally recorded during the 1980s.
Collection material in English
The Burt Boyar Collection of Sammy Davis, Jr. Biographical Materials is open to research. Researchers are advised to contact the Music Division prior to visiting in order to determine whether the desired materials will be available at that time.
Certain restrictions to use or copying of materials may apply.
Materials from the Burt Boyar Collection of Sammy Davis, Jr. Biographical Materials are governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.) and other applicable international copyright laws.
Burton Anselm Boyar was born on November 30, 1927 in New York City to Benjamin and Lillian Boyar. He acquired an early appreciation for the world of the theater, eventually working as a radio actor and pursuing a career in the performing arts. His nationally syndicated newspaper columnBeau Broadway presented interviews, criticisms, and musings pertaining to the New York theater world. Boyar first contacted Sammy Davis, Jr. in 1957 about an interview for a feature story. One dinner invitation quickly turned into nightly discussions and a blossoming friendship that would last for the rest of Davis' life. Boyar agreed to write the entertainer's biography, and after working on it for six years, publishedYes I Can: The Story of Sammy Davis, Jr., in 1965. The best selling book became a contender for the Pulitzer Prize.
In the years following, Boyar and his wife Jane collaborated on several books on the life of Sammy Davis, Jr.Why Me?, published in 1989, further explored the highs and lows of Davis' life and career. With the 2000 publication,Sammy: An Autobiography, the Boyars revised material from the two previous biographies. In 2007, Boyar publishedPhoto by Sammy Davis, Jr., a compilation of black-and-white photographs taken by the performer with text by Boyar.
21 items
15 containers
6.5 linear feet
35 sound cassettes
Author Burt Boyar is the biographer of American entertainer Sammy Davis Jr. The collection contains draft materials for his booksYes I Can: The Story of Sammy Davis, Jr. (1965) andSammy: An Autobiography (2000), and taped interviews with Davis used in writing the bookWhy Me?: The Sammy Davis, Jr. Story (1989).
The Burt Boyar Collection of Sammy Davis, Jr. Biographical Materials is organized in two series:
Gift, Burt Boyar, 2009.
Additional accruals are possible.
The Library of Congress Music Division holds theBob Fosse and Gwen Verdon Collection (ML31.F72) which contains photographs of Davis.The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Records , held by the Library of Congress Manuscript Division, has administrative files about Davis.
Sound recordings and a hard drive from the Burt Boyar Collection of Sammy Davis, Jr. Biographical Materials were transferred to the Library of Congress Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division in 2012 where they are identified as part of the Burt Boyar Collection (MAVIS collection no. 14552). An inventory of this material is available in the Music Division's collection file.
The Burt Boyar Collection of Sammy Davis, Jr. Biographical Materials was processed by Pamela Murrell in 2009. Marsha Maguire, from the Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division, supplied additional information about the sound recordings and the portable hard drive. Christopher Hartten coded the finding aid for EAD format in 2012.
Part of the Music Division Repository
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [item, date, container number], Burt Boyar Collection of Sammy Davis, Jr. Biographical Materials, Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [item, date, container number], Burt Boyar Collection of Sammy Davis, Jr. Biographical Materials, Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. https://findingaids.loc.gov/repositories/15/resources/1309 Accessed February 14, 2026.
