Editing King Oliver (section)

==Hardships in later years, decline and death==
Oliver's business acumen could not equal his musical skill. A succession of managers stole money from him, and he tried to negotiate more money for his band than the [[Savoy Ballroom]] was willing to pay – losing the job. He lost the chance of an important engagement at New York City's famous [[Cotton Club]] when he held out for more money; young [[Duke Ellington]] took the job and subsequently catapulted to fame.<ref>{{cite book |title=The World of Jazz Trumpet: A Comprehensive History and Practical Philosophy |first=Scotty |last=Barnhart |author-link=Scotty Barnhart |page=21 |year=2005 |publisher=[[Hal Leonard Corporation]] |isbn=978-0634095276}}</ref>

The [[Great Depression]] brought hardship to Oliver. He lost his life savings to a collapsed bank in Chicago, and he struggled to keep his band together through a series of hand-to-mouth gigs until the group broke up.

Oliver also had health problems, such as [[periodontal disease|pyorrhea]], a gum disease that was partly caused by his love of sugar sandwiches and it made it very difficult for him to play<ref>{{cite web|first=Scott |last=Yanow|author-link=Scott Yanow |url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/king-oliver-mn0000094639/biography |title=King Oliver &#124; Biography |website=[[AllMusic]] |date=1938-04-08 |access-date=2015-06-13}}</ref> and he soon began delegating solos to younger players, but by 1935, he could no longer play the trumpet at all.<ref name="blackpast1938">{{cite web|url=http://www.blackpast.org/aah/oliver-joseph-king-1885-1938 |title=Oliver, Joseph "King" (1885-1938) &#124; The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed |publisher=Blackpast.org |date=1922-06-17 |access-date=2015-06-13}}</ref> Oliver was stranded in [[Savannah, Georgia]], where he pawned his trumpet and finest suits and briefly ran a fruit stall, then he worked as a janitor at Wimberly's Recreation Hall (526–528 West Broad Street).<ref name="blackpast1938"/>

Oliver died in poverty "of [[arteriosclerosis]], too broke to afford treatment"<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.jazz.com/encyclopedia/2008/7/17/oliver-joe-king |title=Joe 'King' Oliver |first=Peter |last=Gerler |publisher=jazz.com |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Jazz Musicians |access-date=22 April 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121018043447/http://www.jazz.com/encyclopedia/2008/7/17/oliver-joe-king |archive-date=18 October 2012 }}</ref> in a Savannah rooming house around April 1938.<ref>There is disagreement on the date of Oliver's death. His grave marker says '''April 8''' and this date appears in [[John Chilton]]'s ''Who's Who in Jazz'', as well as in his [http://www.allmusic.com/artist/king-oliver-p7257 biography at AllMusic]. However, in [http://www.doctorjazz.co.uk/portnewor.html#koliver his biography] at ''Portraits from Jelly Roll's New Orleans'', by Peter Hanley, the author quotes an '''April 10''' date from Oliver's Chatham County, Georgia, death certificate No.&nbsp;8483.</ref> His sister spent her rent money to have his body brought to New York, where he was buried at [[Woodlawn Cemetery (Bronx, New York)|Woodlawn Cemetery]] in [[The Bronx]].  Armstrong and other loyal musician friends were in attendance.<ref>Williams, MT. ''King Oliver (Kings of Jazz)''. Barnes; Perpetua (1961), p. 31. ASIN: B0007ECVCE.</ref>