[Dixielandjazz] Bob Hope Tribute Story

[Don Ingle]

Dick: I have an old 12-inch acetate of a Command Performance radio show that
Bob Hope MC'ed. In it he made the introduction for Spike Jones' first ever
playing of "Chloe." He made a great intro and noted that the vocal was by
Red Ingle.
It has long been a treasure, and had been dubbed off earlier, happily so
since I cannot play 78's any longer and would be afraid to for its age. But
Spike did a number of radio shows on the coast, sustainers, played with
service audiences, and Hope was on several of these. His passing reminds us
that it was not just the vets of that war that are dying off at an
increasingly sad rate, but so too are the USO people that were there to take
the risks of a theater of war and entertain as Hope did so admirably.
God bless and rest friend Bob, you made our lives the richer for your
presence.
Don Ingle
----- Original Message -----
From: "Richard Broadie" <richard.broadie at gte.net>
To: "DJML" <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Monday, July 28, 2003 2:32 PM
Subject: [Dixielandjazz] Bob Hope Tribute Story


> I don't suppose that I have to inform you that Bob Hope died today.
>
> A few months ago, my local paper requested submissions of Bob Hope stories
> in celebation of his 100th birthday.  Bob has lived here part-time for
over
> 50 years and many of us locals have encountered him many times.    This
was
> my story about one incident.
>
> ***********************************************
>
> In the mid-1970s, during a seasonal engagement as a musician at the Palm
> Springs Tennis Club, I was informed by Mr. Chaddock, the owner, that our
> band would be entertaining at a private party later that night. When he
> mentioned the name, Bob Hope, I immediately suggested to the members of my
> band that we quickly rehearse his theme "Thanks for the Memories" because
of
> its unusual and somewhat difficult bridge (the middle part of the song).
The
> other members insisted that they knew the song inside-out and that there'd
> be no difficulty.
>
> On the evening of this party, Mr. Hope appeared to be at a pivotal point
in
> his career. Being in his 70s, the NBC executives had suggested that he
> retire because of age. The purpose of the party was for Bob to "prove" to
> the NBC brass, including Mr. Sarnoff, that he, indeed, could still
entertain
> at a very high level. Most of the luminaries present had just been flown
in
> from New York to attend this event. As the evening progressed, Mr. Hope
> presented a 20 minute stand-up routine that was very funny. In the ad-lib
> department, that evening, Mrs. Hope did an outstanding job, indicating to
us
> that she certainly had the skills to act as a writer for her famous
husband,
> should she ever choose to do so. At the end of the evening, as I'd
> anticipated, the band was asked to play "Thanks for the Memories."
>
> As everyone was leaving, I overheard Mr. Sarnoff discussing the humorous
> highlights. He agreed that Bob Hope was certainly funny enough to continue
> with NBC for many more years (which proved to be the case). He indicated
how
> delightful Dolores Hope had been that evening. When asked what he thought
> the funniest point of the evening was, Mr. Sarnoff said, "It was the band!
> Did you ever in your life ever hear such a strange and uncoordinated
bridge
> to "Thanks for the Memories?" He was still roaring with laughter over our
> inept presentation as he left the room. Incidentally, I have since learned
> the bridge to that wonderful song.
>
> *********************************************
>
> Mr. Hope  R.I.P.      Dick Broadie
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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