Nat King Cole, Noble Sissle, and others, Los Angeles, 1940s

Summary: Paul Leroy "Ox Blood" Howard (1895-1980, Los Angeles) was an American jazz saxophonist and clarinetist.
Maria Cole was a jazz singer who worked with Count Basie and Duke Ellington, among others. She married to Nat King Cole in 1948.
Noble Lee Sissle was an African-American jazz composer, lyricist, bandleader, singer, and playwright, best known for the Broadway musical "Shuffle Along" (1921), and its hit song I'm Just Wild About Harry.
Sonny Howard was a well known "sportsman" (gambler) on Central Avenue.
H. H. Towles was a prominent physician and pioneer director of Golden State Mutual Life.
Ethel Sissle (1915-1984) was maried to the band leader Noble Sissle, and later to Walter L. Gordon, Jr.
Curtis C. Taylor was a successful attorney. He earned his law degree at Howard University .
Dr. N. Curtis King was a physician who founded the Rose Netta Hospital in Los Angeles. It was known for having an interracial staff, and the first interracial blood bank, established by the Red Cross in 1942. Dr. King was also head of the Los Angeles Venereal Clinic and several other clinics.
Description: All information concerning the content and description of the image was provided by Walter Gordon.
Seated, L to R: Curtis Taylor, Ethel Sisle, Nat King Cole, Maria Cole, and Curtis King. Standing, L to R: Noble Sisle, an unidentified woman, H. H. Towles, Sonny Howard, and Paul Howard.

Genre: Black-and-white photographs
Names: Taylor, Curtis C. (Cavielle), 1896-1967
King, N. Curtis (Norris Curtis), 1894-1960
Cole, Maria, 1922-2012
Howard, Sonny (Roy)
Sissle, Noble, 1889-1975
Towles, H. H. (Henry Howard), 1888-1964
Cole, Nat King, 1919-1965
Howard, Paul, 1895-1980
Sissle, Ethel
Location: California--Los Angeles
Resource type: still image
Subjects: African American jazz musicians--California--Los Angeles
African American physicians--California--Los Angeles
African American dentists--California--Los Angeles
African American lawyers--California--Los Angeles

Repository: University of California, Los Angeles. Library Special Collections
Local Identifier: Collection 1867 Box 6 Folder 2
YRLSC_gordonphotos_0690
ARK: ark:/21198/zz0025psq3
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