Tracey Davis, the matriarch and heiress to the Sammy Davis Jr. rights has executed an unparalleled deal with Rick Appling who will produce a feature film and a series of documentaries based on her copyrights interest in books as well as her ownership granted to her by her father through a trust. Tracey is the daughter of the Hollywood marriage between Sammy Davis Jr. and May Britt. Britt, was the Swedish film star that graced the cover of Life Magazine in 1959. Tracey is an entrepreneur and author who scored great success with her best-selling book, Sammy Davis Jr.: My Father. Tracey shares a loving relationship with her mother and is working on her next book, May Britt: My Mother. Tracey states that, “For film projects of this magnitude, I know my father would have wanted to incorporate his friends, Clint Eastwood, Bill Cosby, Gladys Knight, and Quincy Jones. One thing I remember about my dad is that he would always say to me, 'I enjoyed and admired the up and coming cats.' I know that he would have loved Jay-Z, P Diddy, Savion Glover, Justin Timberlake, Taylor Swift, Usher, and Spike Lee.”
Chairman of LaRoda LTD, Barrett LaRoda negotiated and finalized the deal on behalf of Tracey Davis. LaRoda says, “Tracey has always been known as the enforcer and protector of her father’s legacy. I am extremely proud that she is going to once again share her father with the world. This is truly a legacy building block project.” Tracey has only assigned her rights once before and that was to entertainment tycoon, Quincy Jones. Tracey has decided to grant her rights to independent film maker, Rick Appling. Sammy, known to be an advocate of the independent industry and he himself, had many independent projects. Appling was groomed in the film industry by John Daly, who was a producer of thirteen Oscar winning movies including Platoon. Appling says, “God is Good. Being chosen to do the Sammy Davis Jr. story is one of my greatest accomplishments to date. I look forward to working with Tracey as her experience, knowledge, and love for her father I know will come across to the audiences of these films.”
Sammy Davis Jr., known as "Mr. Entertainment, had a successful recording, Broadway theatre, film and television career, but his passion was dancing, live performing and concerts.
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