He played at the Savoy and the Grand Terrace, yet he remains among the most obscure and with such a gaudy name!
The following 'information' can't possibly be right, but it is online in 2 sources -
"The King Kolax Orchestra may have been the first all-black band to play on NBC radio, in 1942 or 1943."
http://hubcap.clemson.edu/~campber/kolax.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Kolax
