SPOTLIGHT for
OCTOBER 7TH…
BIRTHDAYS...
1917 June Allyson, Actress/Singer
b. New York (The Bronx), USA
American leading lady whose sweet smile and sunny disposition made her the prototypical girl-next-door of American movies of the 1940s. Raised in semi-poverty in Bronx neighborhoods by her divorced mother, Allyson (nee Ella Geisman) was injured in a fall at age eight and spent four years confined within a steel brace. Swimming therapy slowly gave her mobility again, and she began to study dance as well. She entered dance contests after high school and earned roles in several musical short films. In 1938, she made her Broadway debut in the musical "Sing Out the News." After several roles in the chorus of various musicals, she was hired to understudy Betty Hutton in "Panama Hattie." Hutton's measles gave Allyson a shot at a performance and she impressed director George Abbott so much that he gave her a role in his next musical, "Best Foot Forward." She was subsequently hired by MGM to recreate her role in the screen version. The studio realized what it had in her and offered her a contract.
Her smoky voice and winning personality made her very popular and she made more than a score of films for MGM, most often in musicals and comedies. She became a box-office attraction, paired with many of the major stars of the day. In 1945, she married actor-director Dick Powell, with whom she occasionally co-starred. Following Powell's death from cancer in 1963, she retreated somewhat from film work, appearing only infrequently on screen and slightly more often in television films. Occasional nightclub appearances and commercials were her only other public performances since, and she died of pulmonary respiratory failure and acute bronchitis on July 8, 2006, after a long illness.
BIO:
www.classicmoviemusicals.com/all....htm
BIO:
www.reeljewels.com/allyson/
MORE:
www.members.tripod.com/j-hall...son.htm
WIKIPEDIA Bio:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_Allyson
1914 Alfred Drake
Vocals/Actor
d. July 25, 1992, New York, NY, USA.
One of Broadway's most venerable, respected musical leading men, Alfred Drake created the male leads in "Oklahoma!" (1943), "Kiss Me Kate" (1949) and "Kismet" (1953), winning Tonys for the latter two. Sadly, he re-created none of these roles on screen. Very much a man of his beloved live theater, he never did go to Hollywood, except for the staring role in "Tars and Spars" (1946) for Columbia Pictures, a post-war comedy.
And so, apart from a scattered handful of TV appearances, his name and art can only live on in the memories of those who saw him work his particular brand of magic on stage during the golden years of the Broadway musical, his performances on Broadway cast albums giving only a partial idea of just how potent that magic was.
~Biography By: Bob Sorrentino
WIKIPEDIA Bio:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Drake
PBS Bio:
www.pbs.org/wnet/broadwa.../drake_a.html
*LISTEN:
www.pbs.org/wnet/broadwa...drake_a.html
1924 Marty Flax, Baritone Sax
b. New York, NY, USA. USA.
d. May 3, 1972
né: Martin Flachsenhaar
Verve Bio:
www.vervemusicgroup.com/artist.aspx
1930 George Girard, trumpet
b. New Orleans, LA, USA.
d. Jan. 18, 1957, New Orleans, LA, USA
1911 Jo Jones, Drums
b. Chicago, IL, USA.
d. Sept. 3, 1985, New York, NY, USA.
né: Jonathan Jones.
Jo had studied music for 12 years becoming proficient on Piano, Trumpet and Saxes. Upon leaving school, he joined a Carnival touring the Chatauqua circuit, working as a Tap Dancer and Vocalist. He then settled in Omaha for 3 years before joining the Tommy Douglas combo in Kansas City (1933). From '35 to late '36 he worked with Count Basie, - then briefly left Basie to work in St. Louis before rejoining Basie when the Count got a good gig at the Reno Club in Kansas City. He remained with Basie (except for duty in US Army during WW2) until 1948. Among his other work, Jo appeared in '47 with the JATP; '48-9 with Illinois Jacquet; '50-1 with Lester Young, '51-3 with Joe Bushkin; then freelanced in NYC for several years before touring Europe in 1957 with Ella Fitzgerald and Oscar Peterson. During '57-'60, he led his own trio in NYC clubs, and also in '60 toured Puerto Rico. Looking back on his career, we see that with his rim shot subtleties and hi-hat nuances, Jo Jones helped create the concept of the drums as more than just a device for timing beats.
DrummerWorld Bio:
www.drummerworld.com/drummer...nes.html
WATCH:
www.drummerworld.com/Videos/...ter.html
1916 Johnny Long, Leader/Violin
b: Newell, NC,USA.
d. Oct. 31, 1972, Parkersburg, WV, USA.
Tag:. The "Old Left Handed Fiddler".
Worked with The Beachcombers; Paul Harman; Bob Houston; Helen Young; Julie Wilson.
1870 "Uncle" Dave Macon
Banjo/comic entertainer
b. Smart Station, TN, USA.
d. March 22, 1952, Readyville, Tennessee, USA.
né: David Harrison Macon Member: 'Grand Ole Opry' Show.
BIO:
www.countrymusichalloffame.com/in...tml
PBS Bio:
www.pbs.org/americanroot...avemacon.html
Uncle Dave Macon – Wikipedia Bio:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uncle_Dave_Macon
***LISTEN! (GREAT STUFF!!)
www.folkways.si.edu/search/A...ails.aspx
1908 Alton Moore, Trombone
b. Selma, AL, USA. d. 1978
Actor/Composer/Film Writer
b. Baltimore, MD, USA,
(cerebral hemorrhage).
Clarence was the first African-American to "star" in a film. Very early in his career, Muse found work as an opera singer, a minstrel performer and a vaudeville actor. He was considered a pioneer in the 'Black theatre' movement, composisng songs and writing sketches for plays. In his later years, Clarence, who held a law degree from Pennsylvania's Dickerson University, often requested that he be addressed as Dr. Muse.
NYT Bio:
movies2.nytimes.com/gst/movi...aphy.htmlAfrican American Registry:
www.aaregistry.com/african_...ilm_actor
1906 Wilson "Serious" Myers
Bass/Vocals/Arranger
b. Germantown, PA, USA.
né: Wilson Ernest Myers.
1896 Philmore Wellington Ohman, Piano
b. New Brittain, CT, d. Aug. 8, 1969.
Best recalled as part of the Arden and Ohman Two Piano team. But hey also co-led B'way Pit bands.
Bio:
nfo.net/usa/o1.htmlOhman
1912 Beverly Peer, Bass
b. New York, NY, USA.
d. Jan. 16, 1997, New York, NY, USA.
1901
Ralph Rainger
composer
b. New York, NY, d. Oct., 23, 1942, Palm Springs, CA, USA.
SOLID! Bio:
www.parabrisas.com/d_ohmanp.php
1907 Mike Riley
Leader/Trombone/Trumpet/Vocals/Composer
B: Brooklyn, NY, USA.
Composed: "The Music Goes 'Round And 'Round"; "Laughing Through Tears"; work with: Bill Crow: as told in his book "From Birdland To Broadway". With bands: Irving Aaronson; Ben Bernie; Rudy Vallee; Vincent Lopez; Will Osborne. & others.
1909 Jimmy Shirl, C&W songwriter
b. New York, NY, USA.
He might have been "Country", but he also worked with Louis Jordan and Jimmy Dorsey.
1922 Martha Stewart, vocals/actress.
b. Bardwell, KY, USA. (née: Martha Haworth.)
1925 Alvin Stoller, Drums
b. New York, NY, USA
d. Oct. 19, 1992.
Strangely, Alvin is little recalled today, but he played with such stars as Bing Crosby, Georgie Auld, Ella Fitzgerald, guitarist George Van Eps, Mel Torme, Joe Mondragon (Sax): Ben Webster, pianist Paul Smith, Guitarist Barney Kessel, violinist Stuff Smith, bandleader Paul Weston, leader/trumpeter Billy May, Barney Kessel, Sammy Davis, Jr., flutist Shelly Manne, and just too many others to name.
VERVE BIO:
www.vervemusicgroup.com/artist.aspx
Notable Events
on this date include...
1962.
"Scrapper" Blackwell
guitar
died in Indianapolis, IN, USA.
Age: 59
(some sources show him d. Oct. 8.)
1966.
Smiley Lewis, guitar
died in New Orleans, LA, USA. Age: 53
1987.
Will Mercer Cook, songwriter
died in Washington, DC, USA.
Age: 84
1988.
Billy Daniels, vocals
died in Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Age: 73
2000.
Jazz guitarist Dennis Sandole died at 87.
He was a mentor to John Coltrane, and others.
2001.
Jimmie Logsdon
C&W singer-songwriter
died. USA. Age: 79
Songs Recorded/Released
on this date include:
"Bring Back Those Rock-A-Bye Baby Days"
~Lee Morse
LISTEN:
www.redhotjazz.com/songs/mo...those.ram
1924
"Mail Man Blues"
~Lee Morse
LISTEN:
www.redhotjazz.com/songs/mo...blues.ram
1924
"Big Boy"
~The Wolverine Orchestra
LISTEN:
www.redhotjazz.com/songs/Bi...igboy.ram
1924 "Tia Juana"
~The Wolverine Orchestra
LISTEN:
www.redhotjazz.com/songs/Bi...Juana.ram
1924 "Lenox Avenue Shuffle"
~The Texas Blue Destroyers
LISTEN:
www.redhotjazz.com/Songs/bu...xave2.ram
1924 "Down In The Mouth Blues"
~The Texas Blue Destroyers
LISTEN:
www.redhotjazz.com/Songs/bu...outh2.ram
1924 "Go 'Long, Mule"
~Fletcher Henderson Orchestra
LISTEN:
www.redhotjazz.com/songs/he...gmule.ram
1924 "Too Tired"
~Ted Lewis and his Band
LISTEN:
www.redhotjazz.com/songs/le...tired.ram
1925 "Riverboat Shuffle"
~Jack Hylton's Kit-Cat Band
LISTEN:
www.redhotjazz.com/Songs/ki...uffle.ram
1926 "Everything That Happens Just Pleases
Me"
~Margaret Johnson
LISTEN:
www.redhotjazz.com/songs/Ma...sesMe.ram
1926 "Mama, Papa Don't Wanna Come Back Home"
~Margaret Johnson
LISTEN:
www.redhotjazz.com/songs/Ma...kHome.ram
1927 "Mokus"
~Walter Anderson and his Golden Pheasant Hoodlums
LISTEN:
www.redhotjazz.com/Songs/misc/mokus.ram
1927 "Make My Cot Where The Cot-Cot-Cotton Grows"
~California Ramblers
LISTEN:
www.redhotjazz.com/Songs/ca...mycot.ram
 | Currently listening : Musical Portrait |
No comments:
Post a Comment