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Overcoming discrimination
On the touring circuit it was well-known
that Ella's manager felt very strongly about civil rights
and required equal treatment for his musicians, regardless
of their color. Norman refused to accept any type of discrimination
at hotels, restaurants or concert halls, even when they
traveled to the Deep South. Once, while in Dallas touring
for the Philharmonic, a police squad irritated by Norman's
principles barged backstage to hassle the performers.
They came into Ella's dressing room, where band members
Dizzy Gillespie and Illinois Jacquet were shooting dice,
and arrested everyone. "They took us down,"
Ella later recalled, "and then when we got there,
they had the nerve to ask for an autograph."
Norman wasn't the only one willing to
stand up for Ella. She received support from numerous
celebrity fans, including a zealous Marilyn Monroe.
"I owe Marilyn Monroe a real debt," Ella later
said. "It was because of her that I played the Mocambo,
a very popular nightclub in the '50s. She personally called
the owner of the Mocambo, and told him she wanted me booked
immediately, and if he would do it, she would take a front
table every night. She told him - and it was true, due
to Marilyn's superstar status - that the press would go
wild. The owner said yes, and Marilyn was there, front
table, every night. The press went overboard…. After
that, I never had to play a small jazz club again. She
was an unusual woman - a little ahead of her times. And
she didn't know it."
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