[Dixielandjazz] FW: Orange Blossoms photo.

[Bill Haesler]

Dear DJMLers'
As I had hoped, Carole Nowicke has given me permission to post her comments
regarding my reply to the Orange Blossoms (Casa Loma band) thread.
I have edited some minor 'non-subject' material. 
Kind regards,
Bill.

Hello, Bill, 
> On Labor Day, 1925, Goldkette's 'Orange Blossoms' consisted of:  Henry Biagini
(trumpet & leader); Ed Arnold (trombone); Gene Prendergast and Ray Eberle
(altos); Reggie Comben (tenor); Tommy Gargano (drums); Oscar Legassey
alternating with Irish Henry (tuba); Al Cox (banjo) and Ed Murray (piano).

LeGasse' (his brother composer Homer spelled the name LaGassey--and nephew,
Homer, Jr.  was an award-winning automobile designer) is the chap I'm trying to
identify for a memorial article, he died this summer at age 99.  His legit job
from 1940-1970 was as tubist with the Detroit Symphony. He was a fine bassist as
he was trained as a cellist.  Oscar also played in the WWJ radio orchestra, the
WWJ "Sophisticats," the Fox Theatre orchestra, the Michigan Theatre orchestra,
and a number of other groups before joining the DSO. He knew theatre orchestras
were on the way out. While he was playing the Michigan and Orange Blossoms he
did so well (overtime at Michigan was $28-30 an hour--a lto of money in the
'20's!) that he owned three automobiles!  He loved cars.  Was still driving at
99. 

> During the winter of 1925-26, while the band was at Webster Hall, Detroit,

I'm wondering if that may be where my photo is from?  It's not Greystone
Ballroom. There are no dates or identification on these photos, they just have
them marked ca. 1928,but I think they are a bit earlier.

> Comben was transferred to the Detroit Athletic Club. His replacement was
'Spike"  Glen Gray Knoblaugh (also spelled Knoblauch, and later known as Glen
Gray ).

Just found out that Glen Gray attended Illinois Wesleyan Univ. When the current
jazz studies prof Tom Streeter (bass trombonist)  took over there, the then-Dean
would run kids out of practice rooms for playing jazz (1970s!).  They thought
there was still something shady about jazz even that recently!

> it was in his possession and Knoblaugh was in the alto chair. At the beginning
of summer, 1926, The Orange Blossoms played at Lake Orion, outside of Pontiac,
Michigan, and in Mid-summer were shifted to the...... 

That is incredible!  Lake Orion is a good 50 miles from Detroit and that would
have included a lot of unpaved roads--some of which were only paved in the
1980's.  I think wealthy people had little cottages out there in that time
period, but it's pretty isolated, and besides a pretty good restaurant
specializing in lake fish, there's nothing much there. I'm from a town even
smaller than Lake Orion, about 10 miles away.

>Bob-Lo Boats, cruise ships operating in Lake Erie, later playing at the.......

Bob-Lo I know a bit about. They cruised the lake and the Detroit River, taking
passengers to an amusement park on Bois Blanc (Bob-Lo) Island. I went to
pre-school with a little boy whose father's family owned the Browning Lines,
which operated the ships. A preservation society is trying to save one of the
boats.  About the only memory I have of Chuckie Browning was that we went to his
house one day so that I could ice skate on a pond with him, and fell through
some thin ice and nearly drowned. 

> trumpets; Walter "Pee Wee" Hunt on trombone; Doc Snyder and Larry Teal on altos..... 

I knew Larry Teal slightly. He was chairman of the music department at the
commnity college in my county.  At that time I didn't know he was "anybody."  He
was still working at the college in '87.  I was back in the area and was hired
to do "whatever" on a couple musicals and plays a friend (head of theatre arts)
was running--so for one I was head of wardrobe.  I'd always have to take Larry's
tennis whites out the washing machines so I could get my sailors' costumes clean
for Guys and Dolls. Larry at one point had a music studio where one of my
trombone interviewees taught, and Oscar LaGasse' and Harold Hall (oboeist) did
the carpentry work to turn the building into partitioned studios for him. 

> Under Henry Biagini's leadership the Orange Blossoms played for six months in......

Oscar and the oboeist both said that the men didn't like Hank Biagini.  I didn't
get any specifics.

Thank you so much!
Carole

Carole also added this in her last post, which may interest our DJML ex-Marines.

It's funny what bits and pieces people don't know though. I was talking with the
librarian of the Marine Band and asked him if he had any programs from the Chevy
Chase Lake concerts and dances. He didn't know the band played there, but I have
several years of (copies) of programs.  It was a new subdivision on the train
line from Washington, DC, out to Chevy Chase, Maryland. The builders had a lake,
amusement park, and dance pavilion, and part of the Marine Band played out there
daily from May-August. Seems amazing now to think one could just hire a military
band like that.
Carole.

Don Ingle, I have sent Carole a copy your reply to this thread as every little
could help her in her quest.