Sam Davis’s girlfriend — the search almost always leads to one man: Sammy Davis Jr., the Rat Pack icon whose love life was every bit as dramatic as his legendary stage career. His most famous girlfriend was Kim Novak, Hollywood’s top box-office star, whose secret 1957 romance triggered mob threats and studio interference at the height of American segregation.
Davis married three times — Loray White, May Britt, and Altovise Gore — and had documented relationships with over two dozen women across four decades. The recent death of his ex-wife May Britt on December 11, 2025, at age 91, has brought renewed attention to one of Hollywood’s most remarkable and turbulent romantic histories.
Here is the complete story of every major relationship, what it cost, and why it still matters.
Kim Novak — The Forbidden Romance That Sparked Mob Threats (1957-1958)
It started at Chicago’s Chez Paree in 1957. Sammy Davis Jr. was performing; Kim Novak was already the number one box-office draw in America, fresh off filming Hitchcock’s Vertigo. Mutual friend Tony Curtis arranged a dinner party in Los Angeles that fall. The spark was immediate.
By every standard Hollywood cared about, they were impossible. He was Black, Jewish, and five-foot-five. She was Columbia Pictures’ manufactured blonde star. Their connection didn’t care about any of that.
They met in secret. Davis hid under blankets in the back of cars to avoid photographers. He rented a Malibu beach house for private meetings. When gossip columnist Dorothy Kilgallen printed only their initials — “K.N. and S.D.” — all of Hollywood already knew.
Harry Cohn, the feared head of Columbia Pictures, was furious. But the real danger came from elsewhere. In January 1958, mobster Mickey Cohen cornered Davis’s father at a racetrack with a blunt ultimatum: Sammy had 24 hours to marry a Black woman — or they would break both his legs and put out his remaining eye. Davis had lost his left eye in a 1954 car accident. This was not a bluff.
The affair ended. But the bond didn’t. Novak visited Davis on his deathbed in 1990. Decades later, she reflected: “I loved him. But I wasn’t in love with him.”
Loray White — The Contract Marriage That Saved His Life (1958-1959)
With mob enforcers circling, Davis grabbed his address book. He needed a wife. Fast.
The name he found: Loray White, a 23-year-old singer at the Silver Slipper in Las Vegas. Davis had taken her on a few casual dates. He invited her to his suite at the Sands Hotel and proposed a deal — marry him for one year, play the role publicly, and the marriage would be dissolved. In return: cash, jewelry, and the social standing of his name.
She agreed. On January 10, 1958, they married in a two-minute ceremony in the Emerald Room at the Sands Hotel. Harry Belafonte served as best man. Davis was so emotionally shattered that his assistant Arthur Silber had to intervene to prevent harm that night.
The arrangement ended in annulment by April 1959. White stepped back from public life almost entirely. It was a marriage built from fear, not love — and both parties paid a price for it.
May Britt — The Marriage That Defied an Entire Nation (1960-1968)
Davis met May Britt at the Mocambo Club on Sunset Boulevard. She was a Swedish actress with credits including The Young Lions and The Blue Angel. He later wrote in his memoir: “I could have affairs with a thousand chicks and walk away without thinking to ask their names, but every time I thought about May I could feel myself getting drawn in deeper.”
They married on November 13, 1960, and the ceremony itself became a national event — for all the wrong reasons. Neo-Nazi groups protested outside Davis’s Hollywood Hills home. The original synagogue venue received bomb threats. Rabbi William Kramer, who officiated, told the couple: “You are people without prejudice… because you are normal in an abnormal society — society will treat you as sick.”
Frank Sinatra stood as best man. But the political fallout was severe. The Kennedy campaign reportedly asked Davis to delay the wedding until after Election Day 1960, fearing the interracial union would cost votes. After the election, JFK rescinded his invitation for Davis to perform at the inauguration.
20th Century Fox dropped May Britt’s contract. Her studio career was over. She never expressed regret. “I loved Sammy,” she said, “and I had the chance to marry the man I loved.”
Together they had three children: daughter Tracey (biological) and adopted sons Mark and Jeff. The marriage survived eight years before internal pressure — including Davis’s affair with dancer Lola Falana — led to their 1968 divorce.
May Britt later married Swedish businessman Lennart Ringquist in 1993. She died on December 11, 2025, at age 91 in Los Angeles — one of the last living witnesses to a marriage that helped change how America thought about interracial love.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Wedding Date | November 13, 1960 |
| Best Man | Frank Sinatra |
| Children | Tracey Davis, Mark Davis, Jeff Davis |
| Divorce | 1968 |
| May Britt’s Death | December 11, 2025 (age 91) |
Altovise Gore — The Quiet Love That Lasted (1968-1990)
After the divorce, Davis began dating Altovise Gore, a dancer he met during the Broadway production of Golden Boy in 1968. No mob threats this time. No studio pressure. Just two performers who found each other.
They married on May 11, 1970, in a ceremony officiated by Reverend Jesse Jackson. In 1989, they adopted a son, Manny. The marriage lasted until Davis’s death from throat cancer on May 16, 1990.
Twenty years. The longest and most stable relationship of his life.
Altovise spent the years after his death managing his estate and preserving his legacy. She passed away on October 7, 2009. “We loved each other very much,” she once said. “I was like a kid in a candy store, and he wanted me to have the best.”
The Overlooked Romances — Nichelle Nichols, Lola Falana, and More
Most coverage of Sam Davis Jr.’s girlfriend history focuses on the four women above. But according to public records, Davis had 26 documented relationships across his lifetime. Several deserve more attention than they typically receive.
Nichelle Nichols (1959) — Before she became Lt. Uhura on Star Trek, Nichols had what Davis described as “a short, stormy, exciting relationship” with him. Details are scarce, but the affair remains one of the most overlooked chapters.
Lola Falana (1967) — The dancer whose affair with Davis directly ended his marriage to May Britt. Falana later became a major Las Vegas headliner dubbed “the First Lady of Las Vegas.”
Other notable connections include Eartha Kitt (1954), Cordie King (1956), and Peggy Lipton of The Mod Squad (1971).
Sam Davis Jr.’s Complete Relationship Timeline
| Partner | Period | Nature | Key Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eartha Kitt | 1954 | Encounter | Early career connection with the legendary singer |
| Cordie King | 1956 | Relationship | Pre-Novak relationship with minimal press |
| Kim Novak | 1957-1958 | Secret girlfriend | Mob threats ended the relationship |
| Loray White | Jan 1958 – Apr 1959 | Contract marriage (annulled) | Arranged under 24-hour mob ultimatum |
| Nichelle Nichols | 1959 | Relationship | Future Lt. Uhura on Star Trek |
| May Britt | 1960-1968 | Marriage (divorced) | One of the most controversial interracial marriages in U.S. history |
| Lola Falana | 1967 | Affair | Contributed to the May Britt divorce |
| Altovise Gore | 1970-1990 | Marriage (until death) | Longest relationship — 20 years together |
| Peggy Lipton | 1971 | Encounter | The Mod Squad actress |
Why Sam Davis Jr.’s Love Life Still Matters
When Davis married May Britt in 1960, interracial marriage was illegal in 31 U.S. states. It wasn’t until the Supreme Court’s 1967 Loving v. Virginia decision that anti-miscegenation laws were finally struck down nationwide.
Davis didn’t wait for the law to catch up. He lived — and loved — ahead of his time.
His relationships were acts of defiance. Kim Novak faced studio blackmail. May Britt lost her career. Davis endured bomb threats, mob intimidation, and a presidential snub. Every relationship carried risk — and every one moved the needle toward a more tolerant America.
His love life was inseparable from the civil rights story. A Black man loving freely in mid-century America was, by definition, a political act.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Sam Davis Jr.’s most famous girlfriend?
Kim Novak is widely considered Sammy Davis Jr.’s most famous girlfriend. Their secret 1957 romance became one of Hollywood’s most dangerous affairs, triggering mob threats from Mickey Cohen and studio interference from Columbia Pictures head Harry Cohn.
Did Sammy Davis Jr. and Kim Novak actually date?
Yes. They had a documented 1957 relationship involving secret dinners and a rented Malibu beach house. However, Novak later described the bond as a deep friendship. She visited him at his deathbed in 1990.
Why did Sammy Davis Jr. marry Loray White?
Mob figures threatened Davis for dating Kim Novak, giving him a 24-hour ultimatum to marry a Black woman. He proposed a temporary contract marriage to Loray White, a singer he had briefly dated. They wed January 10, 1958, and the marriage was annulled in April 1959.
How many times was Sammy Davis Jr. married?
Three times. He married Loray White (1958-1959, annulled), Swedish actress May Britt (1960-1968, divorced), and dancer Altovise Gore (1970-1990, until his death from throat cancer).
What happened to May Britt after divorcing Sammy Davis Jr.?
May Britt stepped away from acting after the 1968 divorce to raise her three children. She later married Swedish businessman Lennart Ringquist in 1993. Britt died on December 11, 2025, at age 91 in Los Angeles.
Who was Sammy Davis Jr.’s last wife?
Altovise Gore, a dancer Davis met during the Broadway production of Golden Boy. They married in 1970 in a ceremony officiated by Reverend Jesse Jackson and remained together until his death on May 16, 1990 — a 20-year marriage, the longest of his life.
Did Sammy Davis Jr. date Nichelle Nichols?
Yes. In 1959, Davis had a brief but passionate relationship with Nichelle Nichols, who later became famous as Lt. Uhura on Star Trek. Davis described it as “short, stormy, and exciting.” It remains one of the least-reported chapters of his romantic life.
How many relationships did Sammy Davis Jr. have in total?
At least 26 documented relationships including three marriages and 11 confirmed dating relationships. His Wikipedia biography and Vanity Fair’s in-depth profile offer detailed documentation.
The Bottom Line
Sam Davis Jr.’s girlfriend story is not one story. It is many — each shaped by the pressures of a segregated America and the personal courage it took to love across lines drawn in stone.
From Kim Novak’s forbidden spark in 1957, through a mob-forced marriage to Loray White, to May Britt’s career-ending commitment and Altovise Gore’s steady two-decade devotion, Davis lived a love life as layered as his legendary talent. The women beside him were not footnotes. They were co-authors of one of Hollywood’s most remarkable human dramas.
