Thomas Jefferson Edwards was born in Richmond, Virginia
on October 15, 1922. His most successful record was the
multi-million-selling song "It's All in the Game". He became
the first African-American to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
The song was composed by then-future U.S. Vice-President
Charles G. Dawes in 1911 as "Melody in A Major" with lyrics written
in 1951 by Carl Sigman. On October 23, 1969, Edwards died at the age
of 47 from massive internal hemorrhaging due to esophageal varices
linked to cirrhosis of the liver (alcoholism).
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