Paul Whiteman
Paul Whiteman began his musical career as a viola player for the San Francisco Symphony. He enlisted in the Navy during World War I, and his musical abilities resulted in the Navy putting him in charge of his own band. After the war he moved to New York in 1920, where he recorded his first hit, Whispering/The Japanese Sandman. It sold more than two million copies, making Whiteman was an instant star. In 1924 he introduced the George Gershwin classic Rhapsody in Blue, which became the band's signature song. Whiteman had the foresight to hire some of the best jazz musicians of the era, including Red Nichols, Frankie Trumbauer, Tommy Dorsey and Bix Beiderbecke. Bing Crosby got his start with Whiteman in 1929, in a trio called the Rhythm Boys. Whiteman's band continued its run into the 1930s, but toward the end of the decade their popularity began to wane, and in the early 1940s Whiteman took a job as musical director for the American Broadcasting Co., a position he kept into the '60s. He would put together his band every so often during that period, and in the early 1960s they even managed to secure engagements in Las Vegas, after which Whiteman retired. Date of Birth 28 March 1890, Denver, Colorado, USA Date of Death 29 December 1967, Doylestown, Pennsylvania, USA (heart attack)
Known For
Credits
- 1959 · The Big Party as Self
- 1955 · America's Greatest Bands as
- 1950 · The Golden Twenties as Self (archive footage)
- 1949 · The Lambertville Story as Paul Whiteman
- 1948 · The Ed Sullivan Show as Self
- 1947 · The Fabulous Dorseys as Paul Whiteman
- 1945 · Rhapsody in Blue as Paul Whiteman
- 1944 · Atlantic City as Himself
- 1941 · Birth of the Blues as Self (archive footage)
- 1940 · Strike Up the Band as Paul Whiteman
- 1938 · Hollywood Hotel as Producer at Callahan's Drive In (uncredited)
- 1935 · Thanks a Million as Himself - Bandleader
- 1933 · I Know Everybody and Everybody's Racket as Self / Orchestra Leader (as Paul Whiteman and Orchestra)
- 1930 · My Pal Paul as Himself
- 1930 · King of Jazz as Paul Whiteman
- 1930 · The Voice of Hollywood No. 3 as Himself
- 1927 · London as