Monk was renowned for a distinct look which included suits, hats, and sunglasses.

He started playing the piano at the age of six and was largely self-taught.

Larkin called him "the elephant on the keyboard," but jazz fans loved his spiky, percussive sounds.

At 17, Monk toured with an evangelist, playing the church organ.

Although his middle name on his birth certificate was Junior, Thelonious adopted the middle name "Sphere" (taken from his maternal grandfather, Sphere Batts) to show that he wasn't "square".

Monk's last six years were spent as a guest in the Weehawken, New Jersey, home of his long-standing patron and friend, Pannonica de Koenigswarter.

Minton's is famous for its role in the development of modern jazz. During the early 1940s, its jam sessions featured Monk, Bud Powell, Kenny Clarke, Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie.

"Boo Boo" was the nickname of Monk's daughter, Barbara Evelyn Monk.

Hawkins was one of the earliest established jazz musicians to promote Monk, and the pianist later returned the favor by inviting Hawkins to join him on a 1957 session with John Coltrane.

"In Walked Bud", based in part on the Irving Berlin standard "Blue Skies", was composed by Monk in honor of his friend and fellow pianist Bud Powell. Many biographies have cited "In Walked Bud" as Monk's gratitude for Powell's actions in his defense during a police raid of the Savoy Ballroom in 1945.