Billie

IMDb RATING

6.9/10

1.1K

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Music Documentary Biography Documentary History Music

Documentary on the famed jazz singer Billie Holiday.Documentary on the famed jazz singer Billie Holiday.Documentary on the famed jazz singer Billie Holiday.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.9/10

1.1K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 2 nominations total

Top cast63

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Linda Lipnack Kuehl

Self
(archive footage)
(voice)

Billie Holiday

Self
(archive footage)

Sylvia Syms

Self - Singer & Friend
(archive footage)
(voice)

Tony Bennett

Self - Singer & Friend
(archive footage)
(voice)

John Fagan

Self - Cousin
(archive footage)
(voice)

Mary Kane

Self - Childhood Friend
(archive footage)
(voice)
(as Mary 'Pony' Kane)

Skinny Davenport

Self - Pimp
(archive footage)
(voice)

Myra Luftman

Self - Linda Lipnack Kuehl's sister

Detroit Red

Self - Dancer
(archive footage)
(voice)

Dewey 'Pigmeat' Markham

Self - Entertainer
(archive footage)
(as Pgimeat Markham)

Bessie Smith

Self
(archive footage)

Louis Armstrong

Self
(archive footage)

John Hammond

Self - Music Producer
(archive footage)
(voice)

Ruby Davies

Self - Roommate
(archive footage)
(voice)

Sandy Williams

Self - Clarence's Bandmate
(archive footage)
(voice)

Irene Kitchings

Self - Friend
(archive footage)
(voice)

Count Basie

Self
(archive footage)
(voice)

Lester Young

Self - Saxophonist
(archive footage)
(voice)

Director
- James Erskine
Writer
- James Erskine
All cast & crew
Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
This documentary is based on the same research by Linda Lipnack Kuehl that the earlier documentary, Lady Day: The Many Faces of Billie Holiday (1990) is based on. Kuehl died before completing her book about Billie Holiday. Her death was ruled a suicide, although family members believe she may have been murdered.

Connections
Features Nouvelle-Orléans (1947)

Born Eleanora Fagan, Billie Holiday became her stage name.

Before seeing this documentary I knew little about Billie Holiday. She had a rough start in Philadelphia and Baltimore, including being sex trafficked by her prostitute mother. But she had a mesmerizing voice, while she could probably sing anything well she preformed more as a vocal stylist. And many of her songs were reflections of herself and her life. The documentary contains many vocal excerpts from interviews, including some by Holiday herself.

In many respects her life was mostly a tragedy, heavy into sex, drugs, and alcohol into her adulthood which ended when she was only 44. But she did have an indelible influence on her type of music.

On DVD from my public library, I watched it at home, my wife skipped.