Ella Fitzgerald, Jailed in Houston for Shooting Dice: Photo of the Day

Photo by Pete Vazquez/via Houston Chronicle

Ella: Shooting dice will get you arrested.

It's the inestimable Ella Fitzgerald sitting forlornly in a Houston jail, arrested for shooting dice in her Music Hall dressing room with -- get this lineup -- Dizzy Gillespie, Illinois Jacquet and Norman Granz.

It comes from the Houston Chronicle's always terrific Bayou City History blog, where J.R. Gonzales gets to wallow in the photo archives of the Post and Chron. (Yeah, we're jealous.)

Follow the link for the full story, but there's this excerpt from the Post's report on the incident:

Sgt. W.A. Scotton said saxophonist Jacquet had the dice in his hand as the troop of officers walked in. The troop confiscated the dice and $185 in cash. Then they agreed to wait until the first show was over before taking the performers to the police station.

Mr. Jacquet, the saxophone man, was the most nonchalant of those arrested. He told reporters his name was Louis Armstrong.

The hardened criminals were booked, let out on $10 bonds and made it back for their second shows that night with the audience unaware of what had gone on.

Update: Here's a 1999 story we did that talks about the incident.