- Ellington was celebrated in Stevie Wonder's song "Sir Duke" (from "Songs in the Key of Life" (1976)).
- (July 16, 2008) Pictured in silhouette in a poster for the film Black and Tan (1929) on a 42¢ USA commemorative postage stamp celebrating Vintage Black Cinema.
- Interred at Woodlawn Cemetery, The Bronx, NY (Division 49, at Fir & Knollwood Avenues).
- He was awarded the Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Recording at 6535 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California.
- Pictured on a 22¢ US commemorative postage stamp in the Performing Arts series (97th anniversary of his birth). (April 29, 1986)
- Charter inductee of the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame. (1978)
- Was a member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, a national music fraternity.
- Father of trumpeter/band leader Mercer Ellington, who assumed leadership of the Ellington band at his father's death.
- Grandfather of actress/singer/dancer Mercedes Ellington.
- Inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. (1971)
- His image is part the central design on the reverse of the District of Columbia 25¢ commemorative coin issued in 2009, as part of the USA's Statehood Quarters series. He is shown seated next to a piano, and the name "DUKE ELLINGTON" is engraved in the area above the piano keys.
- Second cousin of the artist Romare Bearden.
- Inducted into the International Tap Dance Hall of Fame in 2017.
- Inducted into the International Society of Jazz Arrangers & Composers (ISJAC) Hall of Fame in 2017 (inaugural class).
- Has one sister: Ruth.
- Parents are: James Edward Ellington, and Daisy Kennedy Ellington.
- Grandfather of Paul Ellington, Edward Ellington, and Gaye Ellington.
- In 2002, scholar Molefi Kete Asante listed Duke Ellington on his list of 100 Greatest African Americans.
- Stevie Wonder wrote the song "Sir Duke" as a tribute to Ellington, which appeared on his album Songs in the Key of Life released in 1976.
- Duke Ellington was one of hundreds of artists whose material was reported to have been destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content