Murray Kane (born Moses Simon Kaplan, May 26, 1915 – January 31, 1986) was an American Corporal, composer and

band manager A talent manager (also known as an artist manager, band manager or music manager) is an individual who guides the professional career of artists in the entertainment industry. The responsibility of the talent manager is to oversee the day-to-day ...

. As a performer, he was a member of the Crew Chiefs vocal group and the

Glenn Miller Orchestra Glenn Miller and His Orchestra was an American swing dance band formed by Glenn Miller in 1938. Arranged around a clarinet and tenor saxophone playing melody, and three other saxophones playing harmony, the band became the most popular and com ...

Early life

Kane was born in 1915 in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, New York. During high school, Kane hosted a radio show on WNEW alongside Hal Kanner.

Career

Early career

Around 1937–38, after graduating from high school, Kane and Kanner recruited a female vocalist and performed under the names of "The Manhattanites" and "Two Bees and A Honey". The group was later joined by Daisy Brennier, and they performed with Fred Waring and His Pennsylvanians on the

Chesterfield Chesterfield may refer to: Places Canada * Rural Municipality of Chesterfield No. 261, Saskatchewan * Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut United Kingdom * Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a market town in England ** Chesterfield (UK Parliament constitue ...

radio tour.

Glenn Miller Orchestra

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Kane was a member of

Glenn Miller Alton Glen Miller (March 1, 1904 – December 15, 1944) was an American big band founder, owner, conductor, composer, arranger, trombone player and recording artist before and during World War II, when he was an officer in the United States Arm ...

's Army Air Force Orchestra, performing with them overseas for the duration of the war.

The Crew Chiefs

Kane's military career originally saw him as a

Private First Class Private first class (french: Soldat de 1 classe; es, Soldado de primera) is a military rank held by junior enlisted personnel in a number of armed forces. French speaking countries In France and other French speaking countries, the rank (; ) ...

officer in the

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

. In 1943, Kane formed The Crew Chiefs with Sergeant Steve Steck, Corporal

Artie Malvin Artie Malvin (July 7, 1922 – June 16, 2006) was a composer and vocalist who was the baritone member of The Crew Chiefs. He also sang with Glenn Miller's band. Career During World War II, Malvin performed with Glenn Miller as part of The Cre ...

, and Privates Lynn Allison and Gene Steck. Around the same time, his rank was changed to that of Corporal. His despondency at this move led him to compose " Have Ya Got Any Gum, Chum?", quoting a popular phrase used between children and soldiers. Kane left the group in 1945.

Management career

After leaving The Crew Chiefs, Kane became a talent scout in New York City. He managed and composed for the DeMarco Sisters and secured them as a permanent fixture on

Fred Allen John Florence Sullivan (May 31, 1894 – March 17, 1956), known professionally as Fred Allen, was an American comedian. His absurdist, topically pointed radio program ''The Fred Allen Show'' (1932–1949) made him one of the most popular and for ...

's radio show. In 1950, Kane became the vocal arranger for

The McGuire Sisters The McGuire Sisters were a singing trio in American popular music. The group was composed of three sisters: * Ruby Christine McGuire (July 30, 1926 – December 28, 2018) * Dorothy "Dottie" McGuire (February 13, 1928 – September 7, 2012) * Ph ...

, after hearing them perform on

Kate Smith Kathryn Elizabeth Smith (May 1, 1907 – June 17, 1986) was an American contralto. Referred to as The First Lady of Radio, Smith is well known for her renditions of Irving Berlin's "God Bless America" & "When The Moon Comes Over The Mountain". ...

's radio show. Kane's compositions and arrangements helped the group secure an audition (and

contract A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tran ...

) at

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

. Kane subsequently became their personal manager, and helped arrange their breakthrough performance on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts. The group retired in 1968. Through his work with The McGuire Sisters, Kane also worked with The Kane Triplets, who later performed on ''

The Jack Benny Show ''The Jack Benny Program'', starring Jack Benny, is a radio-TV comedy series that ran for more than three decades and is generally regarded as a high-water mark in 20th century American comedy. He played one role throughout his radio and televis ...

'', ''

The Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television program, television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York City, New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in Septembe ...

'', '' The Mike Douglas Show'', '' The Perry Como Show'' and '' The Tonight Show''. In 1984, Kane restarted The McGuire Sisters' career with a song entitled "The Second Time Around".

Later life and death

Kane moved to

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

in 1975. He died in Las Vegas on January 31, 1986, at the age of 70.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kane, Murray 1915 births 1986 deaths United States Army Air Forces soldiers Singers from New York City American jazz singers Musicians from Las Vegas Musicians from Brooklyn 20th-century American singers Jazz musicians from New York (state) United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II