
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ADELE ASTAIRE!
BIRTHDAYS
Adele Astaire
actress/dancer/vocals.
d.1981. née: Adele Austerlitz.
Fred Astaire's sister.
They worked mostly as a team in many London Stage shows. Later, when Adele married and retired from the stage, Fred carried on alone in Hollywood. Adele's father left Austria for the USA in 1895. He married a young woman ten years younger than he named Ann Gelius whose parents were from Alsace. Frederic and Ann Austerlitz's first child was Adele, who was born in 1897 and later her brother Fred on May 10, 1899.
Later in 1904, Adele (age 7,) her Brother (age 5) and mother moved to New York with their father to follow them later to start a show business career. It was here in New York that they would start their vaudeville journey. Adele was about a year older than her little brother 'Fred Astaire'.
The Astaire's were home schooled and their mother was manager, promoter and chaperone except for about a year or so when they had to take a year off because Adele had matured and Fred was to small for Adele to perform with. During this time they actually went to school in
Highwood, NJ.
Adele and Fred started dancing at an early age in Vaudeville around 1905 (She was eight) and would later tour as part of a successful dance team with her brother on the Orpheum Circuit. The family decided it would be wise to change their name to Astaire, rather than Austerlitz and took their Uncle's name of L' Astaire and would be billed as 'Fred and Adele Astaire' making their vaudeville debut in Keyport, N.J. in 1905 with Adele being the star of the team for many years.
By 1916 they made their professional Broadway debut in the musical comedy 'Over The Top' and would become stars of the Vaudeville and Broadway Stages. Life magazine (8/25/1941) reported that Adele became difficult to work with as she became more interested in her male
suitors.
Adele learned many of her routines from her routines from Fred but when Ziegfeld partnered her brother up with Marilyn Miller in the Broadway show 'Smiles', she went to Buddy Bradley for her solo routine in the show. Adele would continue learning different dances from Bradley untill Bradley left for England and was replaced by Herbie Harper, she would learn the steps from Harper and later show them to Fred.
Adele sang and danced with her brother Fred up till the time Fred started to gain more attention than herself, she then announced her retirement in 1932 and married one of her many suitors 'Lord Charles Francis Cavendish' which lasted till his death in 1942, later marrying Kingman Douglass. Fred and Adele's career lasted 28 years. Fred continued on his own and went on to become a super star in Movies. Adele Astaire died of a stroke in Tucson, Arizona in 1981 and interned at Oakwood Memorial Park in Chatsworth, CA.
Elmer E. Crumbley, trombone
b. King Fisher, OK, MA, USA.
Worked with Victoria Spivey.
b. King Fisher, OK, MA, USA.
Worked with Victoria Spivey.
Trombonist Elmer Crumbley made a lifetime out of music starting out in the days, and more importantly the places, where the end of his slide was likely to wind up tangled in tumbleweed or an over-eager lasso. In his later years the trombonist was still serving up a taste for folks who hadn't tired of traditional swing sounds, as in the audiences who bought tickets for '60s and '70s editions of the Cab Callowayand Earl Hines bands. He would then often be surrounded by much younger players, this veteran of oufits such as the Dandie Dixie Minstrels, a group Crumbley joined in 1926 in between stints with bandleader Lloyd Hunter. In the fall of 1930 the trombonist had made it as far east as Kansas City and the George E. Lee band; not bad considering he had started out in an Oklahoma town named after a snake and had only proceeded to move further west initially. Crumbley worked with western swing pioneer Tommy Douglas in Nebraska in the early '30s as well as another of that state`s bandleaders, Bill Owens. But he continued to work with Hunter as well as players such as Jabbo Smith and a Chicago hit with Erskine Tate.
The trombonist called up his own ensemble in Omaha in 1934 but by the end of the year had joined up with the Jimmie Lunceford band. He was like many players who had the experience of playing in this wonderful band--totally satisfied, or at least contented enough to stay on the band for the next 13 years. Subsequently Crumbley blew, sometimes bursting into song, with Eddie Wilcox as well as Lucky Millinder and Erskine Hawkins. European audiences enjoyed the trombonist in the late '50s on tour with Sammy Price, a period when he also became part of the scene at the Apollo in Harlem with a lively combo led by Reuben Phillips. By the middle of the next decade the seemingly indestructible careers of both Calloway and Hines were keeping Crumbley in slide oil.
~ Eugene Chadbourne
The trombonist called up his own ensemble in Omaha in 1934 but by the end of the year had joined up with the Jimmie Lunceford band. He was like many players who had the experience of playing in this wonderful band--totally satisfied, or at least contented enough to stay on the band for the next 13 years. Subsequently Crumbley blew, sometimes bursting into song, with Eddie Wilcox as well as Lucky Millinder and Erskine Hawkins. European audiences enjoyed the trombonist in the late '50s on tour with Sammy Price, a period when he also became part of the scene at the Apollo in Harlem with a lively combo led by Reuben Phillips. By the middle of the next decade the seemingly indestructible careers of both Calloway and Hines were keeping Crumbley in slide oil.
~ Eugene Chadbourne
Velma Middleton, singer/dancer
b. St. Louis, MO, USA.
b. St. Louis, MO, USA.
d. Feb. 10, 1961 Freetown, Sierra Leone.
Sang with Louis Armstrong, Trummy Young, and Barney Bigard. Velma Middleton spent most of her career as Louis Armstrong's singer. She was originally a dancer and, although overweight, she often did splits on stage including during the Armstrong years. Middleton had an average but reasonably pleasing and good-humored voice.
After freelancing — including visiting South America in 1938 with Connie McLean's Orchestra and working as a solo act — she joined Louis Armstrong's big band in 1942, appearing on some Soundies with Satch).
After Armstrong broke up the orchestra in 1947, Middleton joined his All-Stars. She was often used for comedy relief (such as for duets with Satch on "That's My Desire" and "Baby, It's Cold Outside") and occasional features. Jazz critics rarely thought highly of Middleton's singing, but Armstrong considered her part of his family, and she was a constant part of his show. - by Scott Yanow
She went on to appear in three Hollywood films - including the 1929 full technicolor and sound version of Sally (which was far less successful than the original Ziegfeld Broadway version in which she starred. Marilyn most certainly would have been in many more movies, except for her death at age 37 (infection after sinus operation). The 1949 film Look For The silver Lining was a biopic of her life. It starred June Haver as Marilyn.


1898
Marilyn Miller, dancer/vocals
d. April 7, 1936, infection following sinus surgery.
né: Mary Ellis Reynolds.
One of the best female tap dancers of the 1920s, Marilyn began her career in vaudeville as part of the "The Five Columbians", her family's vaudeville act, where she was billed as "Miss Sugarplum". Marilyn had arrived in New York City in 1914, - immediately began working on the New York stages.

A talented dancer, gifted singer, and actress, she became a Ziegfeld protege (and sometime mistress) in 1918. She debuted in the 1918 edition of the Ziegfeld follies. The Dec. 21, 1920 musical Sally was meant as a Musical Comedy starring debut for the then 22 year old Miller. The show was one of the top five money-makers of the 1920s.
She went on to appear in three Hollywood films - including the 1929 full technicolor and sound version of Sally (which was far less successful than the original Ziegfeld Broadway version in which she starred. Marilyn most certainly would have been in many more movies, except for her death at age 37 (infection after sinus operation). The 1949 film Look For The silver Lining was a biopic of her life. It starred June Haver as Marilyn.
1925
Arthur Edward "Art" Pepper, saxes
b. Gardena, CA, USA d. June 1, 1982, Panorama City, CA, USA.
American jazz musician noted for the beauty of his sound and his improvisations on alto saxophone, and a major figure in the 1950s in West Coast jazz.
b. Gardena, CA, USA d. June 1, 1982, Panorama City, CA, USA.
American jazz musician noted for the beauty of his sound and his improvisations on alto saxophone, and a major figure in the 1950s in West Coast jazz.
1928
"Piano Slim" (né: Robert T. Smith), piano.
b. La Grange, TX, USA
1916
b. La Grange, TX, USA
1916
Mike Simpson, reeds/flute
b. Winters, TX, USA
b. Winters, TX, USA

1907
Lawrence Walker
C&W bandleader
b. Duson, LA, USA.
C&W bandleader
b. Duson, LA, USA.
1910
Sammy Weiss, Drums
b. New York, NY, USA.
d. 1977 Weiss played in New York with many of the most prominent white jazz musicians of the ‘30s and early ‘40s, including Adrian Rollini, Wingy Manone, Miff Mole, Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman, and Tommy Dorsey. He also worked with Louis Armstrong, Paul Whiteman, Louis Prima, and Erskine Hawkins, among others.
After moving to California in 1945 Weiss led his own successful orchestra and worked freelance. Weiss led bands throughout the ‘60s, and also worked in television; his TV work included appearances on the Jack Benny Program in 1961 and 1964. - by Chris Kelsey

Notable Events Occurring
On This Date Include:
1960.
"Aunt Molly" Jackson
C&W singer/songwriter
died in Kentucky, USA.
1966.
Bud Powell, piano
died in New York, NY, USA.

1976.
Age: 83
Sam Wooding and his Orchestra 1925 - Seated, Left to Right: Tommy Ladnier(trumpet), John Warren (tuba)(behind), Sam Wooding (piano/leader), Willie Lewis (reeds), George Howe (drums). Standing, Left to Right: Herb Flemming (trombone), Eugene Sedric (reeds), Johnny Mitchell (banjo), Bobby Martin (trumpet), Garvin Bushell (reeds), Maceo Edwards (trumpet).
George W. Lee, bandleader
died in Memphis, TN, USA.
Age: 83
Sam Wooding and his Orchestra 1925 - Seated, Left to Right: Tommy Ladnier(trumpet), John Warren (tuba)(behind), Sam Wooding (piano/leader), Willie Lewis (reeds), George Howe (drums). Standing, Left to Right: Herb Flemming (trombone), Eugene Sedric (reeds), Johnny Mitchell (banjo), Bobby Martin (trumpet), Garvin Bushell (reeds), Maceo Edwards (trumpet).
This photo was taken in the Vox Phonograph Studio, Berlin in 1925.
1985.
Sam Wooding, piano
died in Long Island, NY, USA.
1994.
George Dixon, sax/trumpet/arranger
died in Chicago, IL, USA.
died in Chicago, IL, USA.
Songs Recorded/Released
On This Date Include:
1920

Art Hickman and his Orchestra
- Whispering
1922
Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra
- I Found a Four-Leaf Clover
- I'll Build a Stairway to Paradise
- Two Little Ruby Rings
1922
1925

Emmett Miller accompanied by his Georgia Crackers
- (I Got A Woman Crazy For Me) She's Funny That Way
McKenzie's Candy Kids
- Hot Honey
- If You Never Come Back
Bessie Smith
- My Man Blues
1927
Miff Mole and his (Little) Molers
- Honolulu Blues
- My Gal Sal
- The New Twister
1932

Hoagy Carmichael and his Orchestra
- Sing It Way Down Low
1933

Annette Hanshaw
1936

Emmett Miller accompanied
by his Georgia Crackers
by his Georgia Crackers
- Anytime
- I Ain't Got Nobody
- Right Or Wrong
- The Gypsy

LYRICS:
Don't Blame Me
(Dorothy Fields, Jimmy McHugh)
Don't blame me
For falling in love with you.
I'm under your spell
But how can I help it?
Don't blame me.
Can't you see
When you do the things you do
If I can't conceal
The thrill that I'm feeling,
Don't blame me.
I can't help it
If that doggone moon above
Makes me want
Someone like you to love.
Blame your kiss
As sweet as a kiss can be,
And blame all your charms
That melt in my arms,
But don't blame me.
Blame your kiss
As sweet as a kiss can be,
And blame all your charms
That melt in my arms,
But don't blame me.
Blame all your charms
That melt in my arms,
But don't blame me.
IT'S THE TALK OF THE TOWN
(Jerry Livingston / Marty Symes / Al J. Neiburg, 1933)
We were more than lovers,
We were more than sweethearts,
It's so hard to understand.
Don't know why it happened,
Don't know how it started,
Why should we be strangers,
After all we planned.
I can't show my face,
Can't go anyplace,
People stop an' stare,
It's so hard to bear,
Everybody knows you left me,
It's the talk of the town . . .
Every time we meet,
My heart skips a beat,
We don't stop to speak,
'Though it's just a week,
Everybody knows you left me,
It's the talk of the town . . .
We send out invitations,
To friends and relations,
Announcing our weddin' day
Friends and our relations,
Gave congratulations,
How can you face them?
What can you say?
Let's make up sweetheart,
We can't stay apart,
Don't let foolish pride,
Keep you from my side,
How can love like ours be ended?
It's the talk of the town . . .
<>
How can you face them?
What can you say?
Let's make up sweetheart,
We can't stay apart,
Don't let foolish pride,
Keep you from my side,
How can love like ours be ended?
It's the talk of the town . . . hmm
It's the talk of the town.











2 comments:
Nice post - Adele Astaire ..Keep Posting
Ron
Adele Astaire
FreeWallpapers
Lovely -- really nice job, Confetta! I know how long it takes to edit together audio a jpegs/video.
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