Did Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr get along?

Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr. were longtime friends and members of the Rat Pack. They met as young performers in 1941 when Sammy was performing with his father and uncle in the Will Mastin Trio and Frank Sinatra was singing with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra.

The two men bonded over a sandwich backstage. In 1947, Sinatra headlined at the Capitol Theater in New York City under the condition that the Will Mastin Trio open for him.

According to the book “Sinatra: The Chairman” by James Kaplan, Sinatra also demanded that management pay the trio five times their standard rate.

Sammy Davis Jr. was also a member of the famous Rat Pack, which included Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and others. In 1944, during World War II, Sammy Davis Jr was drafted into the U.S. Army at age 18.

In 2017, Sammy Davis Jr was inducted into the National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame. On May 27–28, 1973, Davis hosted the first annual 20-hour Highway Safety Foundation telethon.