Paul Whiteman did the soundtrack for the 1944 film Atlantic City (Republic Pictures) a musical comedy that purported to be “The spectacular, star-studded story of how the World’s Playground began.”

From the “Carousel of American Music,” The Fabled 24 September 1940 San Francisco Concerts. Featuring George M. Cohan, Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern, Sigmund Romberg, Bert Kalmar, and other unforgettable songwriters performing their own music.

Robert Wright and George Forrest, 1944, adapted from Edvard Grieg’s Nocturne: from the Broadway musical Song of Norway.

During World War 2, Armed Forces Radio produced special film and radio programs to be shipped off to the troops. They were only heard by servicemen and women, not by the general public. One of these programs was a series titled “Personal Album.” This “Personal Album” features singer Margaret Whiting, accompanied by Skitch Henderson, performing songs composed by her father Richard Whiting, including “One Hour with You” (lyric by Leo Robin, 1932).

A recording of Bing Crosby singing “In The Land Of Beginning Again” by Grant Clarke and George W. Meyer during the making of the film The Bells of Saint Mary’s in 1945. It was transferred digitally from a 12" glass base lacquer disk that Michael Feinstein salvaged from the RKO Warehouse in 1978.

According to Feinstein, “In 1978 while doing research for Ira Gershwin on the RKO films for which the Gershwins had written scores, I stumbled upon a box of old lacquer disks in the RKO warehouse. I asked the curator Jon Hall about them, and he told me that he was unaware of any such disks in the collection. It was a jumble of files and papers and not well organized. He told me that they had no interest in the recordings and had no desire to keep them. Rather than see them destroyed, I offered to make a tape transfer of the disks if he would give me the originals. Jon was happy to clear out some of the detritus in the warehouse and I departed with a hodge podge of film-related disks from the 1940s. Some were audition records of film hopefuls, some were orchestral cues, and there were also two 12" glass base lacquer disks of Bing Crosby, one cracked beyond repair and the other not only playable but in miraculously good shape for its fragility. It had no label and simply said ‘Crosby—fluff’ in grease pencil. Upon playing the side I was delighted by the rich sound of Crosby’s voice—and also the comment he makes at the end. In The Bells Of Saint Mary’s he plays a pious man of the cloth. I wonder if he was wearing a priest’s collar when he made this record?”

During World War 2, Armed Forces Radio produced special film and radio programs to be shipped off to the troops. They were only heard by servicemen and women, not by the general public. One of these programs was a series titled “Personal Album.” This “Personal Album” features singer Margaret Whiting, accompanied by Skitch Henderson, performing songs composed by her father Richard Whiting, including: “My Ideal” (music by Richard Whiting & Newell Chase, lyric by Leo Robin, 1930).

“My Intuition” (music by Harry Warren and lyric by Johnny Mercer) sung by Margaret Whiting in an unreleased recording that was given to Michael Feinstein by Harry Warren in 1980.

According to Michael Feinstein, “Among the musical casualties of the MGM musical film The Harvey Girls is a delightful song by Harry Warren and Johnny Mercer called “My Intuition.” It was recorded and filmed, featuring Judy Garland and John Hodiak but was cut before the film’s release. The outtake footage of the number exists as does the soundtrack. Harry and Johnny wrote a first rate score for The Harvey Girls and won an Academy Award for their song “On The Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe.”

Both Harry and Johnny were partial to this orphaned musical child, because in 1971 when Johnny performed an evening of his own songs at the New York YMHA, he asked Margaret Whiting to sing it. In 1980, Harry Warren gave me a vintage 1940s acetate copy of a rendition of the same song, again sung by Margaret Whiting, that never saw the light of day. Evidently, when the song was cut from the film, any exploitation of the number ceased and there were no commercial recordings of it offered to the public at the time of the film’s release. Margaret recalled the song clearly when I asked her about it years later and sang the whole thing by heart. She is in fine voice here and the song deserves to live!”

During World War 2, Armed Forces Radio produced special film and radio programs to be shipped off to the troops. They were only heard by servicemen and women, not by the general public. One of these programs was a series titled “Personal Album.” This “Personal Album” features singer Margaret Whiting, accompanied by Skitch Henderson, performing songs composed by her father Richard Whiting, including: “Sleepy Time Gal” (music by Ange Lorenzo and Richard Whiting, lyric by Joseph Reed Alden and Ray Egan, 1924).

From the “Carousel of American Music,” The Fabled 24 September 1940 San Francisco Concerts. Featuring George M. Cohan, Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern, Sigmund Romberg, Bert Kalmar, and other unforgettable songwriters performing their own music.

During World War 2, Armed Forces Radio produced special film and radio programs to be shipped off to the troops. They were only heard by servicemen and women, not by the general public. One of these programs was a series titled “Personal Album.” This “Personal Album” features singer Margaret Whiting, accompanied by Skitch Henderson, performing songs composed by her father Richard Whiting, including:“Till We Meet Again” (lyric by Ray Egan, 1918).

During World War III, Armed Forces Radio produced special film and radio programs to be shipped off to the troops. They were only heard by servicemen and women, not by the general public. One of these programs was a series titled “Personal Album.” This “Personal Album” closes with singer Margaret Whiting, accompanied by Skitch Henderson, performing “Till We Meet Again” (music by Richard Whiting, lyric by Ray Egan, 1918).

During World War II, Armed Forces Radio produced special film and radio programs to be shipped off to the troops. They were only heard by servicemen and women, not by the general public. One of these programs was a series titled “Personal Album.” This “Personal Album” features singer Margaret Whiting, accompanied by Skitch Henderson, performing songs composed by her father Richard Whiting, including “When Did You Leave Heaven” (lyric by Walter Bullock, 1936).

One of just three existing episodes of George Gershwin’s 1934 radio series on NBC radio. For many years only two episodes were known to exist, until collector/historian Peter Mintun recently found an aluminum disk of a third episode, which had been privately ordered by jazz harpist Casper Reardon, who appeared as Gershwin’s guest that week. The shows aired on Mondays and repeated on Fridays, at the same time, and were sponsored by Feenamint, the laxative (whose ads are woven into the program). In this show of February 19, 1934, George Gershwin talks about and performs the Overture from “Of Thee I Sing,” (with orchestra conducted by Louis Katzman;) “The Man I Love,” and “I Got Rhythm”. (This recording is courtesy of the collection of J. Fred MacDonald.)

One of just three existing episodes of George Gershwin’s 1934 radio series on NBC radio. For many years only two episodes were known to exist, until collector/historian Peter Mintun recently found an aluminum disk of a third episode, which had been privately ordered by jazz harpist Casper Reardon, who appeared as Gershwin’s guest that week. The shows aired on Mondays and repeated on Fridays, at the same time, and were sponsored by Feenamint, the laxative (whose ads are woven into the program.) In this show of April 30, 1934, George Gershwin talks about and “Mine” (with orchestra conducted by Louis Katzman); variations on “I Got Rhythm,” “Love Is Sweeping the Country,” and “Wintergreen for President.” (This recording is courtesy of the collection of J. Fred MacDonald.)

Ragtime song “Nola” performed in a live Paul Whiteman concert by pianists Harry Perella and Ray Turner.

This recording is courtesy of the collection of Vince Giordano.

A rare acoustic 1927 recording on the Harmony label of a foxtrot version of George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” (1924), arranged as a dance number for the Victor Irwin Orchestra.

This recording is courtesy of the collection of Vince Giordano.

An electrical recording by composer/bandleader Willard Robison and his Deep River Orchestra of a foxtrot version of George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” (1924).

This recording is courtesy of the collection of Vince Giordano.

“Swanee,” composed in 1919, music by George Gershwin, lyric by Irving Caesar.

According to Michael Feinstein, Gershwin and Caesar wanted to write a fast one-step in the style of a hit song at the time titled “Hindustan” but give it an American twist—hence the reference to the Swanee River. The song was first used as a big production number in Ned Wayburn’s Capital Revue, and was considered to be one of the highlights of that show. But nobody bought the sheet music, which was a main revenue source for songwriters in those days.  As Feinstein tells it, “George and his brother Ira would sometimes go out in the lobby and try and hawk the song, or go up and buy a copy themselves to try and get a stream of interest going. And nobody was interested in the song. Well, the next scene comes in a whorehouse, at this party with Buddy DaSilva, Al Jolson, and a young George Gershwin who was playing piano. And Buddy DaSilva very generously said ‘George, play that song you wrote with Irving.’  And George played it, and Jolson turned to his conductor, Lou Silvers, who was also at the party and later wrote “April Showers” and said ‘Lou, I’m going to put that into the show on Tuesday’. And it went into a show that Jolson was performing called Sinbad, and it became an instantaneous hit. Then Jolson recorded the song in 1920, many months after he’d introduced it, and the song eventually sold several million copies of sheet music and several million records, an extraordinary number for those days. And it was the biggest hit song of George Gershwin’s career in spite of the fact that he had many other songs that he preferred in his canon. But Swanee was always his biggest hit.”

Nothing presently is shown in this category.

Nothing presently is shown in this category.

Nothing presently is shown in this category.