Al Jolson was born in Lithuania. He came to the United States with his family when he was seven years old. They settled in Washington, D.C. His father, a rabbi and cantor, hoped Jolson would follow in his footsteps. But religious music was not for Jolson, who was later to become America's first king of pop. By the age of thirteen, he had sung in a Baltimore beer parlor and toured as a boy singer for a burlesque company.

At 15, he toured the vaudeville circuits, first with his brother and then in a three-man comedy group--Jolson, Palmer, and Jolson. The vaudeville singer made film history when he starred in The Jazz Singer in 1927, the first feature film with synchronized speech, music, and sound effects. This film revolutionized the motion picture industry and marked the end of the silent film era. Jolson made famous the Gershwin tune Swanee, which he considered his theme song, and made classics of California, Here I Come; My Mammy; and Toot, Toot, Tootsie.