Subject: As seen in an ARRL Letter...

This should bring back memories... =======================

HAMS REMEMBER BIG BAND LEADER "TEX" BENEKE, K0HWY, SK

Big band singer and saxophonist Gordon L. "Tex" Beneke, K0HWY, of Santa Ana, California, died at a rest home in Costa Mesa May 30, reportedly of respiratory arrest. He was 86. Beneke took over the Glenn Miller Orchestra in 1946 after Miller's death during World War II, and he continued to capitalize on the Miller sound throughout his career. He later broke with the Miller estate and formed his own band, billing it as "Tex Beneke and His Orchestra: Playing the Music Made Famous by Glenn Miller." A native of Forth Worth, Texas, Beneke joined Miller's orchestra in 1938. His southern-style vocals helped make hits out of Miller's "Chattanooga Choo-Choo" and "Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree," among others. Fred Mason, W5SLT, recalls that Beneke operated 10 meters from his hotel room during his travels around the country, using a wire hanging out the window. Mason also remembers running phone patches in the early 1950s, so Beneke could talk with his parents in Fort Worth. Tim La Marca, N6RNK--a younger-generation big band leader--says he met Beneke in the early 1990s--first on the air and later in person. A mutual acquaintance had told Beneke about the young musician, so Beneke gave him a call on the local repeater. "Imagine my surprise when one evening, just as I was about to turn off my radio, there was a voice I had not heard on the repeater before." A few months later, La Marca got to meet Beneke when his band was performing in Pasadena. "After the performance, we went backstage to meet Tex--one of the highlights of my life," he said. "You can't mention the Big Band Era without the name of Tex Beneke coming to mind," La Marca said. "Even though his key is silent, we still have the recordings of his wonderful music to remember him by." Curiously, Beneke's role was omitted from the movie, "The Glenn Miller Story." Beneke himself appeared in films such as "Sun Valley Serenade" in 1941 and "Orchestra Wives" in 1942.

***** Remember, an out of tune piano makes noise, not music! ***** call, (805) 966-7060 . E-MAIL: dennis@rain.org .

*** Bye from the Paradise Playground of the Pacific Beaches.

*** Dennis Schwendtner *** WB6OBB ***

*** http://www.rain.org/~dennis ***

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