Sammy Davis Jr. Said “They Used Me” – Top 6 Singers He Secretly Hated | HO!!!!

He was the Rat Pack’s most dazzling showman, a bridge between Black and white America, a trailblazer who danced, sang, and joked his way to the top. Yet, in his final years, Sammy Davis Jr. confided to friends a bitter truth: “They used me—and then they left.” Behind the stage lights, Sammy’s relationships with some of the biggest names in entertainment were fraught with betrayal, coldness, and wounds that never healed. Here, we investigate the six famous stars who, sources say, left Sammy Davis Jr. feeling most exploited and alone.

1. Frank Sinatra: The Brother Who Turned His Back

To the world, Frank Sinatra was Sammy’s closest ally—the man who forced Vegas hotels to let Sammy stay on the same floor, who brought him into the Rat Pack and called him “brother.” But insiders say that, offstage, their bond was more complicated. Frank positioned Sammy as both a symbol of progress and a convenient diversity card. “Frank always introduced him as his ‘special friend’—close, but never quite equal,” recalls one Rat Pack associate.

Tensions peaked when Sammy announced his engagement to white actress May Britt. The move, bold for 1960s America, made Sammy a liability to promoters. “Frank didn’t defend him—he just went silent,” says a former producer. Sammy’s TV spots were quietly reduced, and invitations to private gatherings dried up. “He was always center stage, but never truly family,” says a friend. In his final years, Sammy described Frank’s silence as “deadly cold.”

2. Elvis Presley: The King Who Never Looked Back

Sammy admired Elvis Presley’s talent, but their relationship was marked by an unspoken resentment. “Elvis sang Black music and was crowned King. Sammy did the same and was called an entertainer,” says a music historian. The two shared stages but never a real friendship. When a joint TV special was proposed, Elvis’s team pulled out, fearing backlash from Southern audiences.

“Elvis took what we made, turned it into a crown, and they called him king. I wore the same crown, and they said it’s a costume,” Sammy once lamented. Elvis never publicly acknowledged the Black artists who paved his way. “Sammy wanted recognition, not from the world, but from Elvis himself. He never got it,” says a former Jackson 5 producer.

3. Dean Martin: The Partner Who Stayed Distant

Dean Martin and Sammy were a comedy duo onstage—Martin tossing jokes, Sammy tapping and riffing back. But offstage, Dean was distant, even cold. “Dean only smiled when there was an audience,” Sammy told a confidant. At private parties, Dean barely acknowledged him. “He wouldn’t speak a word to me unless he absolutely had to.”

Sammy was excluded from Rat Pack dinners, golf outings, and fishing trips. “Dean would say, ‘He doesn’t play those games,’” recalls a friend. When a TV special cut Sammy’s segment, Dean said nothing. “It was the absence of words that hurt most,” says a longtime crew member. “Sammy was always the outsider.”

4. Miles Davis: The Judgment of Silence

There was no feud between Sammy and jazz legend Miles Davis—just a cold, silent contempt. Sammy, the ultimate showman, was seen by Miles as a crowd-pleaser for white audiences. At a backstage meeting, Miles reportedly greeted Sammy with a nod and a dismissive, “TV must be fun.” The message was clear: Sammy’s world was not Miles’s world.

“Miles never acknowledged Sammy in interviews, never mentioned him as an influence or peer,” says a jazz journalist. Sammy understood the divide: “Some people said I was a crowd-pleaser, but I had no choice. I laughed to live. I danced to survive.” The lack of respect from his own community cut deeper than any white rejection.

5. Diana Ross: The Diva Who Saw Through Him

Sammy and Diana Ross—two icons, two eras—never publicly clashed, but their relationship was icy. “She never looked me in the eye,” Sammy told a friend. During a joint tour, Diana reportedly insisted on minimal stage time with Sammy, citing “incompatible brand image.” She viewed Sammy as a relic of an era where Black entertainers had to “perform tricks” for white audiences.

One producer recalls, “Diana refused to sing with Sammy on a TV special. She didn’t want to be associated with the old type of entertainer.” Sammy understood the subtext—and it hurt. “If someone like her also turns their back on me, then who do I have left?” he once said. For Sammy, the coldness from a fellow Black star was a wound that never healed.

6. Michael Jackson: The Protégé Who Forgot

Perhaps the most painful silence came from Michael Jackson. Sammy championed Michael as a child, calling him “born for the spotlight.” He saw Michael as his spiritual successor, someone who would carry forward the torch he’d lit. But as Michael’s fame soared, he left Sammy behind.

Sammy reached out repeatedly—never asking for favors, just hoping for a connection. There was no reply. “I thought at least the kid would remember me, but perhaps I was wrong,” Sammy told a friend. “I’m not jealous. I’m proud. But I wish there was a word of thanks… for the days I stood between two worlds, opening doors for those who came later.”

Industry insiders speculate Michael avoided association with Sammy’s era—a time of backdoor entrances and forced humility. “Michael was the global icon, transcending race. Sammy was the memory of what it took to get there,” says a Motown executive.

The Legacy of Loneliness

Sammy Davis Jr. died with the applause of millions, but in private, he mourned the friends and proteges who abandoned him. “They used me, and then they left,” he said near the end of his life—a lament not just for himself, but for every pioneer who is forgotten once their usefulness fades.

His story is a cautionary tale for every artist who dreams of belonging. Sammy’s pain was not just about racism, but about being used as a symbol, then discarded by those closest to him—white and Black, old guard and new.

If you’ve ever felt abandoned after giving your all, you’ll understand Sammy’s solitude. The lights dim, the audience leaves, and only the silence remains. For Sammy Davis Jr., that silence was the deepest betrayal of all.