|
Gus Levene
Gus Levene, born Gershun Levene (July 11, 1911 – February 9, 1979), was an American arranger, composer, orchestrator and guitarist. In the mid-1940s, he was one of the top network radio arrangers. Levene is best remembered for his work as an arranger for Dean Martin and orchestration for numerous Hollywood film productions, including the 1956 hit film ''The King and I''. Early life and education Gershun Levene was born into a family of Jewish merchants in Dallas, Texas. He was interested in music from an early age, and learned to play guitar, violin and viola. He attended Southern Methodist University for two years, majoring in music. His first cousin, Milton Leventhal, became a surgeon in Dallas, TX. Career Levene began his career as the chief arranger for the pit orchestra at the Palace Theater in Dallas, and composed music for string quartets in the city. He also performed with the WFAA radio orchestra. On September 4, 1932, his composition "Ballet Suite Exodus", which ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and County seat, seat of Dallas County, Texas, Dallas County with portions extending into Collin County, Texas, Collin, Denton County, Texas, Denton, Kaufman County, Texas, Kaufman and Rockwall County, Texas, Rockwall counties. With a 2020 United States census, 2020 census population of 1,304,379, it is the List of United States cities by population, ninth most-populous city in the U.S. and the List of cities in Texas by population, third-largest in Texas after Houston and San Antonio. Located in the North Texas region, the city of Dallas is the main core of the largest metropolitan area in the Southern United States and the largest inland metropolitan area in the U.S. that lacks any navigable link ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
CBS Radio
CBS Radio was a radio broadcasting company and radio network operator owned by CBS Corporation and founded in 1928, with consolidated radio station groups owned by CBS and Westinghouse Broadcasting/Group W since the 1920s, and Infinity Broadcasting since the 1970s. The broadcasting company was sold to Entercom (now known as Audacy, Inc.) on November 17, 2017. Although CBS's involvement in radio dates back to the establishment of the original CBS Radio Network in 1927, the most recent radio division was formed by the 1997 acquisition of Infinity Broadcasting by CBS owner Westinghouse. In 1999, Infinity became a division of the original Viacom; in 2005, Viacom spun CBS and Infinity Broadcasting back into a separate company, and the division was renamed CBS Radio. It was the last radio group left to be tied to a major broadcast television network, as NBC divested its radio interests in the 1980s, and ABC sold off its division to Citadel Broadcasting (now part of Cumulus Media) i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Victors (1963 Film)
''The Victors'' is a 1963 British-American black-and-white war film written, produced and directed by Carl Foreman. He called it a "personal statement" about the futility of war. Both victor and vanquished are losers. It follows a group of U.S. soldiers through Europe during the Second World War, from Britain in 1942, through the fierce fighting in Italy and the invasion of Normandy, to the uneasy peace of occupied Berlin. It is adapted from a collection of short stories called ''The Human Kind'' by English author Alexander Baron, based upon his own wartime experiences. The British characters were changed to Americans in order to appeal to American audiences. ''The Victors'' features an all-star cast, with fifteen American and European leading players, including six actresses whose photographs appear on the posters — Melina Mercouri from Greece, Jeanne Moreau from France, Rosanna Schiaffino from Italy, Romy Schneider and Senta Berger from Austria and Elke Sommer from West Ger ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reprise Records
Reprise Records is an American record label founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operates through Warner Records, one of its flagship labels. Artists currently signed to Reprise Records include Enya, Michael Bublé, Eric Clapton, Stevie Nicks, Neil Young, Deftones, Mastodon (band), Mastodon, Lindsey Buckingham, Josh Groban, Disturbed (band), Disturbed, Idina Menzel, My Chemical Romance, Gerard Way, Green Day, Dwight Yoakam, and Never Shout Never. Company history Beginnings Reprise Records was formed in 1960 by Frank Sinatra in order to allow more artistic freedom for his own recordings. Soon thereafter, he garnered the nickname "The Chairman of the Board". Because of dissatisfaction with Capitol Records, and after trying to buy Norman Granz's Verve Records, the first album Sinatra released on Reprise was ''Ring-a-Ding-Ding!'' As CEO of Reprise, Sinatra recruited several artists for the fledgling label, such as fellow Rat Pack members Dean Ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" is a song written in 1943 by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane and introduced by Judy Garland in the 1944 MGM musical ''Meet Me in St. Louis''. Frank Sinatra later recorded a version with modified lyrics. In 2007, ASCAP ranked it the third most performed Christmas song during the preceding five years that had been written by ASCAP members. In 2004 it finished at No. 76 in AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs rankings of the top tunes in American cinema. ''Meet Me in St. Louis'' The song was written in 1943 for the then-upcoming film ''Meet Me in St. Louis'', for which MGM had hired Martin and Blane to write several songs. Martin was vacationing in a house in the neighborhood of Southside in Birmingham, Alabama that his father Hugh Martin had designed for his mother as a honeymoon cottage, located just down the street from his birthplace, and which later became the home of Martin and his family in 1923. The song first appeared in a scene in which a fa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular entertainers of the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. He is among the List of best-selling music artists, world's best-selling music artists with an estimated 150 million record sales. Born to Italian immigrants in Hoboken, New Jersey, Sinatra was greatly influenced by the intimate, easy-listening vocal style of Bing Crosby and began his musical career in the swing era with bandleaders Harry James and Tommy Dorsey. He found success as a solo artist after signing with Columbia Records in 1943, becoming the idol of the "Bobby soxer (music), bobby soxers". Sinatra released his debut album, ''The Voice of Frank Sinatra'', in 1946. When his film career stalled in the early 1950s, Sinatra turned to Las Vegas, where he became one of its best-known concert ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
A Winter Romance
''A Winter Romance'' is a 1959 long playing album by Dean Martin, accompanied by an orchestra arranged and conducted by Gus Levene. While not exclusively a Christmas album, it features several songs associated with Christmas as part of its larger winter theme. It was Martin's only Christmas themed album for Capitol Records. Martin later recorded ''The Dean Martin Christmas Album'' for Reprise Records in 1966. The original artwork featured a picture of Martin embracing a fetching young woman. At the same time, he is throwing a passing flirt at a second, attractive woman. Reception The initial Billboard (magazine), ''Billboard'' magazine review from November 30, 1959, chose the album as one of its "Spotlight Winners of the Week" and commented that "The tunes are all one the winter kick... Martin sings them with his usual ease and nonchalance... A potent waxing for the holiday season". Track listing Original LP Capitol (S) T-1285 Side A #"A Winter Romance" (Sammy Cahn, Ken ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
At Long Last Love
''At Long Last Love'' is a 1975 American jukebox musical comedy film written, produced, and directed by Peter Bogdanovich. It stars Burt Reynolds, Cybill Shepherd, Madeline Kahn, and Duilio Del Prete as two couples who each switch partners during a party and attempt to make each other jealous. Featuring 18 songs with music and lyrics by Cole Porter, Bogdanovich was inspired to make a musical with the composer's songs after Shepherd gave him a book of his songs. All of the musical sequences were performed live by the cast, since ''At Long Last Love'' was meant by Bogdanovich to be a tribute to 1930s musical films like '' One Hour with You'', ''The Love Parade'', ''The Merry Widow'' and ''The Smiling Lieutenant'' that also filmed the songs in the same manner. 20th Century Fox rushed the film's release, only allowing for two test screenings before the final version premiered at Radio City Music Hall. Despite a few positive published opinions from critics like Roger Ebert, ''At Long ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Music Man (1962 Film)
''The Music Man'' is a 1962 American musical film directed and produced by Morton DaCosta, based on Meredith Willson's 1957 Broadway musical of the same name, which DaCosta also directed. Robert Preston reprises the title role from the stage version, starring alongside Shirley Jones, Buddy Hackett, Hermione Gingold, Ron Howard, and Paul Ford. Released by Warner Bros. on June 19, 1962, the film was one of the biggest hits of the year and was widely acclaimed by critics. It was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, with composer Ray Heindorf winning Best Music, Scoring of Music, Adaptation or Treatment. The film also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, and Preston and Jones were both nominated in their respective acting categories. In 2005, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marjorie Morningstar (film)
''Marjorie Morningstar'' is a 1958 American romantic drama film directed by Irving Rapper from a screenplay by Everett Freeman, based on the 1955 novel of the same name by Herman Wouk. The film tells a fictional coming-of-age story about a young Jewish girl named Marjorie Morgenstern in New York City in the 1950s, chronicling her attempts to become an artist—exemplified through her relationship with the actor and playwright Noel Airman. The film stars Gene Kelly and Natalie Wood, with Claire Trevor, Ed Wynn, Everett Sloane, Martin Milner, and Carolyn Jones. The central conflict in the film revolves around the traditional models of social behavior and religious behavior expected by New York Jewish families in the 1950s, and Marjorie's desire to follow an unconventional path. The film is notable for its inclusion of Jewish religious scenes—including a Passover meal, a synagogue sequence, and Jewish icons in the Morgenstern house. These depictions were one of the first times Je ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Big Land
''The Big Land'' is a 1957 American Western film in Warnercolor directed by Gordon Douglas and starring Alan Ladd, Virginia Mayo and Edmond O'Brien Plot Back home in Texas following the Civil War, former Confederate officer Chad Morgan ( Alan Ladd) leads a cattle drive to Missouri, assuring fellow ranchers that their stock will bring $20 a head at auction. Instead, ruthless cattle baron Brog ( Anthony Caruso) has scared off all competition and offers a dollar and a half a head for the half-starved Longhorns, who had little good grazing along the trail. Chad had enough of violence during the war, and chooses not to confront Brog, a skilled gunfighter, who wounds one of his companions. Blamed for what happened, Morgan chooses not to return to Texas. He spends a night in a livery stable and meets town drunk Joe Jagger (Edmond O'Brien), who is nearly lynched for trying to steal whiskey. Chad helps keep Joe sober after they leave town. On their journey, Chad finds out the rail line ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carousel (film)
''Carousel'' is a 1956 American drama fantasy musical film based on the 1945 Rodgers and Hammerstein stage musical of the same name, which in turn was based on Ferenc Molnár's 1909 non-musical play ''Liliom''. The film stars Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones, and was directed by Henry King. Like the original stage production, the film contains what many critics consider some of Rodgers and Hammerstein's most beautiful songs, as well as what may be, along with the plots of '' Allegro'', '' South Pacific'', and ''The King and I'', the most serious storyline found in their musicals. Plot The story revolves around Billy Bigelow, a rough-talking, macho, handsome carousel barker, and Julie Jordan, a young, innocent mill worker, both living their busy lives in the small town of Boothbay Harbor, Maine. They fall in love, but are fired from their jobs for different reasons: Billy, because he paid too much attention to Julie and incurred the wrath of the jealous carousel owner Mrs. Mu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.svg "Click for more on -> Dallas")
.jpg "Click for more on -> The Music Man (1962 Film)")