Armstrong was born on August 4, 1901, into a poverty-ridden section of New Orleans nicknamed “the Battlefield.” His father abandoned the family when Armstrong was a child, an… See more

Armstrong spent his youth singing on the street for spare change, but he didn’t receive any … See more

After leaving New Orleans in 1922, Armstrong spent three years playing in jazz ensembles in Chicago and Harlem. He was largely content to be a journeyman musician, b… See more

Armstrong made no secret of his fondness for marijuana, which he described as “a thousand times better than whiskey.” In 1930, when the drug was still not widely known, he … See more