Altovise Davis

Altovise Davis, the widow of Rat Pack singer and dancer Sammy Davis Jr., died Saturday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center of complications from a stroke, her business partner, Barrett LaRoda, said. She was 65. Davis was surrounded at the Los Angeles hospital by friends and family, including her son, Manny Davis. She successfully auditioned for a London stage production of "Golden Boy," and after its run she joined his nightclub act as a dancer.

Altovise Davis had a difficult time after her husband's death. He owed a reported $7 million in income tax, and to satisfy the Internal Revenue Service, his mansion on Summit Drive in Beverly Hills was sold. Jewelry, memorabilia and other personal items were auctioned. She struggled with alcoholism, moved to Pennsylvania and went through an alcohol treatment program, she told Essence magazine in 2004.

When she met Sammy Davis, his career had reached its peak. A vaudeville performer as a child, he had become a consummate entertainer, singing, dancing and acting on stage, in film and on TV. With Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Joey Bishop and Peter Lawford, he was part of the Rat Pack, the raucous group of nightclub entertainers that electrified Las Vegas during the filming of 1960's "Ocean's Eleven." His first two marriages, to dancer Loray White and Swedish actress May Britt, ended in divorce.