Louis Prima collection

Louis Leo Prima (1910-1978) was an Italian American musician, performer, and bandleader who first rose to fame during the 1930s; he was known for his showmanship, musicality, and high-energy performances. Prima's musical career spans five decades, and is notable for encompassing several musical styles, including traditional New Orleans jazz, swing, big band, rock n’ roll, and rhythm and blues.

Born on December 7, 1910 in New Orleans, Louisiana to Anthony and Angelina (Carvella) Prima, Louis Prima grew up in a musical family, first playing the violin and, later, the cornet and trumpet. The Prima’s lived in a predominantly Italian American and African American neighborhood near the French Quarter and throughout his youth, Prima was exposed to traditional New Orleans jazz and performers, including Louis Armstrong. Prima played in high school bands at both Jesuit High School and Warren Easton High School; he eventually dropped out of school to pursue a career as a professional performer. Prima performed at local venues, including the Saenger Theatre and the Shim Sham Club, and in 1934 was encouraged by bandleader Guy Lombardo to move to New York City. While in New York, Prima became a fixture on “Swing Street” (52nd Street), Manhattan’s center for jazz clubs at the time, performing with Louis Prima and his New Orleans Gang and recording songs on the Brunswick label, including the song “Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing),” which became a swing music standard and was later popularized by Benny Goodman.

Prima left New York to expand his career in Los Angeles in 1936, where he began to appear in films in addition to touring and performing music. In 1936, Prima divorced his first wife, Louise Polizzi, and married the actress Alma Ross. In the late 1930s he began to transition his sound to the emerging popular big band style. After signing with the William Morris Agency in 1938, Prima toured extensively throughout the United States and was one of few white performers contracted to appear in both white and Black venues. Prima emphasized his Italian American identity throughout the 1940s, in spite of anti-Italian American sentiment heightened by the United States’ involvement in World War II, recording hit songs like “Angelina,” “Baciagaloop (Makes Love on the Stoop)”, and “Felicia No Capicia”. His marriage to Alma Ross ended in 1945 and he then married Tracelene Barrett. He met Keely Smith (neé Dorothy Keely, 1928-2017) in 1948 and hired her to replace his former singing partner, Lilly Ann Carol. Prima divorced Tracelene in 1953 and married Keely Smith later that year. In 1954 Prima and Smith began what became an extended residency at The Sahara Hotel in Las Vegas, performing with Sam Butera and The Witnesses; the act performed prolifically for live audiences as well as on popular late night television programs. Their act became a popular mainstay on the Las Vegas strip throughout the 1950s. Prima performed with other notable Las Vegas acts, including Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis, Jr. In addition to his active performance and recording schedule, Prima was involved in other business enterprises throughout his career, including horse racing, golf clubs, his own recording company, and other ventures.

At the first annual Grammy Awards in 1959, Prima and Smith were awarded the Grammy for Best Performance By a Vocal Group or Chorus for “That Old Black Magic.” After Prima’s divorce from Smith in 1962, he began performing with Gia Maione, who then became his fifth wife. They had two children and remained together until Prima’s death in 1978. Prima continued to perform and tour until 1975, when, following surgery, he fell into a coma from which he did not recover. Louis Prima died on August 24th, 1978 in New Orleans; he is buried in Metairie Cemetery next to his parents. He was survived by six children and his widow, Gia Maione Prima, who formed the Gia Maione Prima Foundation and continued to promote Prima’s music and legacy until her own death in 2013. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2010.