Short answers, pulled from the story.
Edward Kennedy Ellington was born on the 29th of April 1899 in Washington, D.C. He grew up in a family that instilled in him a sense of dignity and racial pride while his parents James and Daisy Ellington were both pianists.
The engagement began on the 4th of December 1926 and launched Ellington to national fame through weekly radio broadcasts. The venue required him to expand his band from six to eleven pieces to perform music for revues that mixed comedy, dance, and vaudeville.
Billy Strayhorn began collaborating with Duke Ellington in 1939 and became a vital member of the Ellington organization. Strayhorn contributed original lyrics and music while arranging and polishing many of Ellington's works to extend the jazz form beyond the three-minute limit.
Paul Gonsalves played a 27-chorus marathon solo during the performance of Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue which whipped the crowd into a frenzy. The concert made international headlines and led to the best-selling LP of Ellington's career despite the band re-recording several numbers the next day.
Ellington premiered the first of his Sacred Concerts in September 1965 creating a jazz Christian liturgy. He performed it dozens of times and conducted his orchestra from the Steinway piano while playing the keyboard parts for the work.