Altovise Joanne Davis ( Gore; August 30, 1943 – March 14, 2009) was an American entertainer, best known for being

Sammy Davis Jr. Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American singer, dancer, actor, comedian, film producer and television director. At age three, Davis began his career in vaudeville with his father Sammy Davis Sr. and the ...

's third wife.

Biography

Born in

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

, as Altovise Joanne Gore, she was raised in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, New York. A life member of

The Actors Studio The Actors Studio is a membership organization for professional actors, theatre directors and playwrights at 432 West 44th Street between Ninth and Tenth avenues in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded ...

, Gore worked during the 1960s as a chorus-line

dancer Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoi ...

in various musical shows both in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

. Her relationship with Sammy Davis Jr. started in 1968 while they were working in the same show. They were married in a

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

courthouse by the Rev.

Jesse Jackson Jesse Louis Jackson (né Burns; born October 8, 1941) is an American political activist, Baptist minister, and politician. He was a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988 and served as a shadow U.S. senator ...

on May 11, 1970, and adopted a son, Manny, in 1989. Sammy Davis Jr. died from

throat cancer Head and neck cancer develops from tissues in the lip and oral cavity (mouth), larynx (throat), salivary glands, nose, sinuses or the skin of the face. The most common types of head and neck cancers occur in the lip, mouth, and larynx. Symptoms ...

on May 16, 1990, five days after their 20th wedding anniversary.

Television and film roles

In the 1970s and 1980s Altovise Davis made a few guest appearances in major

TV series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed betw ...

such as ''

Charlie's Angels ''Charlie's Angels'' is an American crime drama television series that aired on ABC from September 22, 1976, to June 24, 1981, producing five seasons and 115 episodes. The series was created by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts and was produced by Aa ...

'' and ''

CHiPs ''CHiPs'' is an American crime drama television series created by Rick Rosner and originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to May 1, 1983. It follows the lives of two motorcycle officers of the California Highway Patrol (CHP). The serie ...

'' and minor roles in films such as ''

Welcome to Arrow Beach ''Welcome to Arrow Beach'' is a 1974 American horror film directed by and starring Laurence Harvey. Following its limited theatrical release, an edited version of the film was reissued in 1976 under the title ''Tender Flesh''. Plot Robbin Stanle ...

'' (1974), ''

Kingdom of the Spiders ''Kingdom of the Spiders'' is a 1977 American science fiction horror film directed by John "Bud" Cardos and produced by Igo Kantor and Jeffrey M. Sneller. The screenplay is credited to Richard Robinson and Alan Caillou, from an original story ...

'' (1977), ''

Boardwalk A boardwalk (alternatively board walk, boarded path, or promenade) is an elevated footpath, walkway, or causeway built with wooden planks that enables pedestrians to cross wet, fragile, or marshy land. They are also in effect a low type of brid ...

'' (1979), and ''

Can't Stop the Music ''Can't Stop the Music'' is a 1980 American musical comedy film directed by Nancy Walker. Written by Allan Carr and Bronté Woodard, the film is a pseudo-biography of the 1970s disco group the Village People loosely based on the actual story ...

'' (1980). Both she and her husband were frequent panelists on the 1970s television game show ''

Tattletales ''Tattletales'' is an American game show produced by Goodson- Todman Productions in association with Fremantle. The program had two runs on the CBS daytime schedule between February 1974 and June 1984. It was hosted by Bert Convy, with severa ...

''.

In popular culture

Davis was portrayed in a sketch titled "Ghost II: Sammy's Visit" on the

sketch comedy Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. The form developed and became popular in vaudeville, and is ...

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical theatre, musical performances, sketch comedy, magic (illusion), magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is ...

In Living Color ''In Living Color'' is an American sketch comedy television series that originally ran on Fox from April 15, 1990 to May 19, 1994. Keenen Ivory Wayans created, wrote and starred in the program. The show was produced by Ivory Way Productions in a ...

'' in its third season by

Kim Wayans Kimberly Nichole Wayans (born October 16, 1961) is an American actress and comedian. Wayans is the sister of Keenen Ivory, Damon Sr., Marlon, Shawn and Nadia Wayans. She is best known for her numerous roles on the Fox sketch comedy show ''In ...

. The sketch was a parody sequel to the

Whoopi Goldberg Caryn Elaine Johnson (born November 13, 1955), known professionally as Whoopi Goldberg (), is an American actor, comedian, author, and television personality.Kuchwara, Michael (AP Drama Writer)"Whoopi Goldberg: A One-Woman Character Parade". ' ...

film ''

Ghost A ghost is the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that is believed to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to rea ...

''. In the sketch, Goldberg's character Oda Mae ( T'Keyah Keymah) meets the spirit of

(

Tommy Davidson Thomas Davidson (born November 10, 1963) is an American comedian and actor. He was an original cast member on the sketch comedy TV show ''In Living Color'', Mitchell on ''Between Brothers'' (1997-1999), Dexter on ''Malcolm & Eddie'' (1999-2000) ...

) to help him reunite with Altovise one last time.

Taxes

Long saddled with tax problems following the death of her husband, Altovise Davis was included in 2008 on the

California Franchise Tax Board The California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) administers and collects state personal income tax and corporate franchise and income tax of California. It is part of the California Government Operations Agency. The board is composed of the Californi ...

's list of the top 250 delinquent taxpayers, with $2,708,901.75 in unpaid personal income tax.

Death

She died of complications from a

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

on March 14, 2009, at age 65 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. She is interred in an unmarked grave at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in

Glendale, California Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from ...

, next to her husband, Sammy Davis Jr.

Filmography

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Altovise 1943 births 2009 deaths Actresses from New York (state) American female dancers Dancers from New York (state) American stage actresses Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School alumni People from Brooklyn Actresses from Los Angeles Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) African-American actresses Sammy Davis Jr. African-American women musicians