Duke Ellington Movies

A white man's brain is transplanted into a black man's skull.

The Cold War and Civil Rights collide in this remarkable story of music, diplomacy and race. Beginning in 1955, when America asked its greatest jazz...

Duke Ellington & His Orchestra plus Sarah Vaughan & Her Trio live in Berlin. Featuring: Duke Ellington (piano), Sarah Vaughan (vocals), Harold Ashby...

A made-for-TV musical revue, compiled from soundies and film and TV performances by jazz greats from the 1930s to the 1950s.

Harry Belafonte and Sidney Poitier travel down memory lane to see what life was like back in the 1920s. Harry Belafonte introduces this musical,...

An aspiring singer is tasked with promoting the music catalogue of his great-grandfather, the famous songwriter Jimmy McHugh, recorded by everyone...

In 1999, on the occasion of the centenary of Ellington's birth, Franco Maresco commissioned Steve Lacy to perform ten songs by the Duke, which were...

Chronicling the Harlem Renaissance era, this retrospective documentary tracks the origins of the soulful music of the period, along with the...

Duke Ellington and Orchestra perform 'C Jam Blues'.

Improvisational jazz performance filmed in 1950 by Gjon Mili plus Duke Ellington Trio filmed in July 1966, Count Basie at the Montreux Jazz Festival...

Documentary portrait of the legendary jazz bandleader. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with The Film Foundation in 2000.

Ossie Davis narrates a history of "race films," films made before 1950 which catered to a primarily black audience.

With a unique style that encompassed soul, jazz and pop, Lou Rawls established himself as one of the premier voices of the modern musical age. This...

A compilation reel of television commercials produced by Story Board Inc.

The classic songs of legendary jazz composer Duke Ellington come alive on stage in this performance video. Duke Ellington's Sophisticated Ladies...

This short documentary by writer and archivist Ehsan Khoshbakht tells the story of Duke Ellington's concert tour of the Middle East in 1963 and the...

Restored Film released in 1943, directed by Jay Bonafield

Profile of Duke Ellington featuring performances and interviews with the legendary bandleader. The performance footage was recorded in a number of...

In 1955, on his report, a medical examiner wrote in the box: age, “about 53 years”. Charlie Parker nicknamed Bird just died, at 34. His...

Short directed by Will Cowan as tribute to Duke Ellington