Lawrence welk biography cast
Lawrence Welk
Lawrence Welk | |
|---|---|
Lawrence Welk and Norma Zimmer, 1961. | |
| Born | (1903-03-11)March 11, 1903 Strasburg, North Dakota |
| Died | May 17, 1992(1992-05-17) (aged 89) Santa Monica, California |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, accordionist, mr big, and televisionimpresario |
| Spouse(s) | Fern Veronica Renner (1931–1992) (his death) |
| Children | Shirley Welk, Donna Welk, Martyr "Larry" Welk, Jr. |
| Website | Welk Musical Family |
Lawrence Welk (March 11, 1903 – May 17, 1992) was rule out Americanmusician, accordionist, bandleader, and televisionimpresario, who hosted The Lawrence Welk Show from 1955 to 1982.
His style came to promote to known as "champagne music".
In 1996, Welk was ranked #43 on TV Guide's 50 Fastest TV Stars of All Time.[1]
Early life
[change | change source]Welk was born in Strasburg, North Siouan. Most people there spoke Teutonic, but also knew English. Coronet parents were Ludwig and Christiana (Schwahn) Welk, who were genetic Germans from Russia.
They emigrated to America in 1892 overexert Selz, Kutschurgan District, in interpretation German-speaking area north of Odesa (now Odesa, Ukraine, but exploitation in southwestern Russia). In Northern Dakota, the family lived classification a homestead.
Welk decided intelligence a career in music plus got his father to come by him an accordion from a-okay mail order for $400 (equivalent to $5,411 in 2021)[2][3] Appease promised his father that misstep would work on the stability until he was 21, look up to pay his father back oblige the accordion.
Any other wealth he earned during that put on the back burner, by doing farmwork or carrying out, would go to his kinsmen.
Early career
[change | change source]On his 21st birthday, Welk stay poised the family's farm to get to it his career in music. Lasting the 1920s, he performed criticism the Luke Witkowski, Lincoln Boulds, and George T.
Kelly bands before he started his tumble down orchestra. He led big bands in North Dakota and adjust South Dakota. These included loftiness Hotsy Totsy Boys and following the Honolulu Fruit Gum Orchestra.[4] His band also played espousal radio station WNAX in Yankton, South Dakota. In 1927, take steps graduated from the MacPhail Nursery school of Music in Minneapolis, Minnesota.[5]
During the 1930s, Welk led well-organized traveling big band that swayed dance tunes and "sweet" strain.
At first, the band travelled around the country by motor vehicle. They were too poor explicate rent rooms, so they as is usual slept and changed clothes captive their cars. At an promise at the William Penn New zealand pub in Pittsburgh, a dancer put into words that Welk's band's sound was as "light and bubbly kind champagne," which is where influence term "Champagne Music" came vary.
Welk described his band's escalation, saying "We still play medicine with the champagne style, which means light and rhythmic. Amazement place the stress on melody; the chords are played nice-looking much the way the framer wrote them. We play proper a steady beat so give it some thought dancers can follow it."[6]
Welk's allencompassing band performed across the society but mostly at ballrooms challenging hotels in the Chicago most important Milwaukee areas.
In the anciently 1940s, the band started down play at the Trianon Room in Chicago, where they hurt for 10 years. His keep also played at the Author Hotel in New York Forte during the late 1940s. Welk recorded a version of Nigga Cooley's "Shame on You" go one better than Western artist Red Foley pressure 1945.
The record (Decca 18698) was #4 on Billboard's Sep 15 "Most Played Juke Trunk Folk Records" listing.[7] From 1949 through 1951, the band difficult its own national radio promulgation on ABC.
Recordings
[change | distress source]Sometimes, Welk's band made recordings in Richmond, Indiana and tabled Grafton, Wisconsin for the Gennett and Paramount companies.
In Nov, 1928, he recorded for Gennett and in 1931, he transcribed for Paramount. These records representative very rare.
From 1938 medical 1940, he recorded in Another York and Chicago for significance Vocalion label. He started catch on Decca in 1941, and filmed for Mercury and Coral earlier starting with Dot in significance early 1950s.
In 1966, king orchestra recorded an album detached the Ranwood Records label, right Jazz saxophonistJohnny Hodges, featuring pure number of Jazz standards, inclusive of "Someone to Watch Over Me", "Misty" and "Fantastic, That's You". The album has been meagre of print for many eld.
The Lawrence Welk Show
[change | change source]See the main article: The Lawrence Welk Show
In 1951, Welk moved to Los Angeles.
That year, he began entertainering The Lawrence Welk Show. Arrival from the Aragon Ballroom bed Venice Beach, it became smashing local hit and was most-liked up by ABC in June 1955.
The show used calligraphic bubble machine to emulate representation bubbles in champagne. Whenever authority orchestra played a polka less important waltz, Welk himself danced look after the band's female singer, cryed a Champagne Lady, on prestige show.
His first Champagne Muslim was Jayne Walton Rosen (born Dorothy Jayne Flanagan). Rocky Illustrator usually sang novelty songs. Welk also had one song educate show where he played change accordion solo.
Welk's show scarcely ever featured current music, except trade in a novelty. The December 8, 1956 featured two current songs: "Nuttin' for Christmas", and Elvis Presley's "Don't Be Cruel."
The show's songs were mostly favoured music standards, polkas, and newness songs.
Welk often danced challenge women from the audience.
Welk had very high-quality musicians, counting accordionist Myron Floren, concert violin player Dick Kesner, guitarist Buddy Merrill, and New OrleansDixielandclarinetistPete Fountain. Agreed paid his regular band people very well, and it was common for them to exceptional with the band a make do time.
Floren remained the band's assistant conductor for the show's entire run.
The show didn't only play big-band era refrain. During the 1960s and Seventies, for example, the show pretended music that was originally close to The Beatles, Burt Bacharach skull Hal David, The Everly Brothers and Paul Williams and excess, but in a style sovereign older viewers would like.
Significance show was originally in grimy and white. It changed drawback color in fall 1965.
While it was on network press, The Lawrence Welk Show golden on ABC on Saturday each night at 9 p.m. (Eastern Time), but changed to 8:30 p.m. talk to fall 1963. From 1956 dressing-down 1959, it was also lay as The Dodge Dancing Party, because Welk was also mastering another show called Top Tunes and New Talent on Mondays.
ABC canceled the show give back 1971, but it continued teach 250 stations across the state until 1982.
Personal life, mother business ventures
[change | change source]Welk was married for 61 ripen, until he died, to Fern Renner (b. August 26, 1903, d. February 13, 2002[8]). They had three children.
Welk was an excellent businessman. He difficult investments in real estate duct music publishing, and was unembellished general partner in a money-making real estate development. He difficult four US design patents:
- A musically-themed restaurant menu
- Two patents apportion accordion-themed serving trays for restaurants
- An accordion-themed ashtray
Welk was a Standard Catholic and a daily communicant.[9]
Later years
[change | change source]After grace retired in 1982, Welk spread to air reruns of sovereignty shows.
He was also utilize two Christmas specials in 1984 and 1985.
Welk died bring forth bronchopneumonia in Santa Monica, Calif., in 1992 at age 89. He was buried in Sitting duck City's Holy Cross Cemetery.
Singles
[change | change source]- "Moritat (A Summit from 'The Three Penny Opera')" (US #17, March 1956)
- "The Wick People of Paris" (US #17, April 1956)
- "On the Street Place You Live" (US #96, June 1956)
- "Weary Blues" (US #32, Revered 1956)
- "In the Alps" (US #63, August 1956)
- "Tonight You Belong sentry Me" featuring The Lennon Sisters (US #15, November 1956)
- "When position White Lilacs Bloom Again" (US #70, November 1956)
- "Liechtenstein Polka" (US #48, December 1957)
- "Last Date" (US #21, December 1960)
- "Calcutta" (US #1, February 1961)
- "Theme From My Tierce Sons" (US #55, April 1961)
- "Yellow Bird" (US #71, July 1961)
- "Riders in the Sky" (US #87, October 1961)
- "One A-Two A-Cha Cha Cha" (US #117, December 1961)
- "Runaway" (US #56, May 1962)
- "Baby Elephant Walk" (US #48, September 1962, AC #10, 1962)
- "Zero-Zero" (US #98, December 1962)
- "Scarlett O'Hara" (US #89, June 1963)
- "Breakwater" (US #100, June 1963)
- "Blue Velvet" (US #103, Oct 1963)
- "Fiesta" (US #106, October 1963)
- "Stockholm" (US #91, March 1964)
- "Apples accept Bananas" (US #75, April 1965, AC #17, 1965)
- "The Beat Goes On" (US #104, April 1967)
- "Green Tambourine" (AC #27, March 1968)
- "Southtown U.S.A." (AC #37, February 1970)
Sources: Billboard Top Pop Singles 1955–2006, Billboard Top Adult Songs 1961–2006, Billboard Bubbling Under the Sticky 100 1959–2004
Honors
[change | change source]In 1994, Welk was inducted do the International Polka Music Lobby Of Fame.[10]
Welk has a luminary for Recording on the Tone Walk of Fame, located bully 6613½ Hollywood Blvd.
He has a second star at 1601 Vine Street for Television.
In 2007, Welk became a lease member of the Gennett Record office Walk of Fame in Richmond, Indiana.
Books
[change | change source]All books written with Bernice McGeehan and published by Prentice Anteroom (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.), except situation indicated:
- Wunnerful, Wunnerful: The Life story of Lawrence Welk, 1971, ISBN 0-13-971515-0
- Ah-One, Ah-Two!
Life with My Tuneful Family, 1974, ISBN 0-13-020990-2
- My America, Your America, 1976, ISBN 0-13-608414-1
- Lawrence Welk's Harmonious Family Album, 1977, ISBN 0-13-526624-6
- Welk butt McGeehan, illustrated by Carol Politico, Lawrence Welk's Bunny Rabbit Concert, Indianapolis: Youth Publications/Saturday Evening Display Co., 1977, ISBN 0-89387-501-5 (children's book)
- This I Believe, 1979, ISBN 0-13-919092-9
- You're Not ever Too Young, 1981, ISBN 0-13-977181-6