Vaughn Monroe, as George T Simon said, in later life opened his
throat more.  It gave him better range and produced pleasant head
tones. Vaughn got better as he got older.
Marylin Duke was liked by a lot of critics.  Probably more than
Vaughn was. She was influenced early by listening to black gospel
singers. I read a article about her a few years ago;she living in a
nursing home.  I believe she was 74. Unfortunaely, I did not make a
copy of the article and when I check later, the library no longer
subscribed to that particular data base.
The disc jockey you refer to was Paul Brenner, who was a friend of
Monroe's,whose show was named "Requestfully Yours."
The female singer you referred to was Frances Langford who preceeded
Doris Day as Les Brown's vocalist, and was on Bob Hope's radio show.
Langford had a club in Jensen Beach, I believe it was called Frances
Langford Outrigger Club. She had been married to Jon Hall, the
actor, Ralph Evinrude, the outbaord manufacturer, and remarried
after Evinrude's death,in 1994, at the age of 80. She mentioned that
she was friends with Vaughn and they would pass time singing
together.  Perry Como had a vacation home in Jensen Beach and would
sometimes join in.
I know someone, who when I mentioned I was going to Stuart with the
VMAS, said that she had been in Stuart many years agowith friends
and they passed the Monroe house and stopped to look.  Vaughn was
upstairs and waved to them from the second floor.
Jack Marshard was sort of the Peter Duchin of Boston in those days,
running society bands along with his brother, Harry.  I once heard
Ziggy Talent in an interview spead very highly of Jack Marshard.
Marshard was killed in an auto accident in I, believe 1943.
As far as I know, "Racing With The Moon" was never charted on the
top 40's.  It was probably inn the top 100.
Very long post, but once I start, it's hard to stop.
Herb W

HI HERB AND JOHN
SEE YOU POSTED YOUR FAVORITES FOR THE MAESTRO. A WHILE BACK WHEN THE
VMAS BB WAS ON THE 'OTHER' SITE, CLAIRE ASKED MR. MONROES FANS WHAT
WERE THEIR FAVORITES AMONG 4 AREAS SHE POSTED.
I FRANKLY COULDN T PINPOINT ONE OF THE AREAS OR ONE PARTICULAR ALBUM.
MR. MONROE DID, AS SO MANY ARTISTS DO TODAY. SORT OF REINVENTED
HIMSELF AND HIS BAND AS HE PROGRESSED.  SOME OF HIS EARLY NON VOCAL
BAND ARRANGEMENTS I STILL FIND VERY ENJOYABLE.  LATER HIS FEMALE
SINGERS, ESPECIALLY MARILYN DUKE, WAS ANOTHER PHASE. I THINK HE AND
SHE ONLY DID ONE SONG TOGETHER, 'REQUESTFULLY YOURS' WHICH WAS A
THEME SONG FOR A LOCAL DJ OF THE 40'S AND 50'S IN NEWARK NJ'S WAAT
STATION. TALK ABOUT ASSOCIATION OF MEMORIES WITH THAT ONE.
LATER THE SINGING GROUPS, THE NORTON SISTERS AND THE MOONMAIDS. THEN
HE STOPPED PLAYING HORN AND TRUPET, AND DID MORE VOCAL SOLOS, ADDING
THE MOON MEN.THE FULL EXPOSURE TO RADIO AND TV AND FINALLY THE
MOVIES. FOLLOWING THE BAND S BREAKUP, HIS VARIOUS LABEL CHANGES AND
ATTEMPTS AT AREAS NOT DONE PREVIOUSLY. HE DID SOME VERY NICE WORK AT
DOT RECORDS, THEN HIS 'HYMNS AND GOSPELS' ALBUM FOR SWAMPFIRE WHICH
I HAVE GIVEN MANY COPIES TO FRIENDS WHO ARE AMAZED BY IT, AS I WAS
AND STILL AM.
MR. MONROE DID MANY SOLO STINTS AROUND THE COUNTRY,  DID A GIG IN
LAS VEGAS, ONE WITH JUDY GARLAND, AND AS JUST DISCOVERED IN THE
SHOW 'ANNIE GET YOUR GUN' HE CONTINUED TO SING IN FLORIDA AT AN AIR
FORCE BASE THERE NEAR HIS HOME, FORMED A SINGING GROUP AT HIS CHURCH
THERE, AND PERFORMED AT A NIGHT CLUB OWNED BY BOB HOPE S FEMALE
SINGER ON HIS MANY TOURS (WHO FOR THE LIFE OF ME CAN T REMEMBER
RIGHT NOW AND WILL WHEN I POST THIS)

AM SURE HIS MANAGER, JACK MARCHARD HAD A GREAT INFLUENCE ON MR.
MONROE. MARCHARD HAD BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH SWING MUSIC IN THE 30S AND
TOUTED JAZZ. I BELIEVE HE HAD BEEN WITH BENNY GOODMAN.  HE LATER
SWITCHED HIS STRATEGY AND WENT FOR THE 'SWEET SOUND'( THAT HE
ORIGINALLY CLAIMED HE DIDN T LIkE )WITH MR. MONROE AND OTHERS AS
CLIENTS. HE SET UP HIS OWN AGENCY. HIS ABOUT FACE DID SOME RUMBLING
IN THE MUSIC BUSINESS. MAKE NO MISTAKE MR. MONROE WAS A SHREWD
BUSINESS MAN AS WELL.
HERB, YOU MENTION 'RACING WITH THE MOON' AS HAVING HIT THE MILLION
MARK. HAVE NO DOUBT ABOUT THAT. HE RECORDED THAT ONE MANY TIMES ON
HIS ALBUMS AND IT WAS HEARD ON EVERY RADIO AND TV PROGRAM HE DID.
I SUBSCRIBE TO A KEYBOARD MAG 'SHEET MUSIC. THEY  DID A RADIO
CROONERS ISSUE BACK IN 1995 AND A BIG BAND ISSUE IN 1996.  ONE
FEATURED MR. MONROE S 'BALLERINA', THE OTHER 'THERE I'VE SAID IT
AGAIN'. WASN T AWARE OF IT BUT THE LATTER WAS ACTUALLY INRODUCED BY
BENNY CARTER S BAND 19 YEARS BEFORE IT BECAME MR. MONROE S BIG
SELLER. AN AFTERNOTE WITH THE 'BALLERINA' WRITEUP TOLD OF HIS MANY
HITS, BUT ADDED AS A CLOSURE 'INTERESTING ENOUGH, MR. MONROE'S WELL
KNOWN THEME SONG NEVER REACHED THE TOP TWENTY'  THAT GET S ME TO
WONDERING IF IT WAS SOMEWHERE ON THE CHARTS AT SOME POINT.
ANYWAY TO SUM IT ALL UP. VAUGHN MONROE WAS A VERY VARIED, PROLIFIC
MUSICIAN AND SINGER, ALBEIT CONTROVERSIAL FOR MANY. PERSONALLY, I
CAN'T PINPOINT ONE AREA AS AN OUTSTANDING FAVORITE.TOO MANY TO
CHOOSE FROM.
BEST WISHES
GERALD NICK
OH, THINK IT WAS KAY FRANCIS I WAS REFERRING TO EARLIER.

----- Original Message -----

From: herbw20

To: Vaughn_Monroe_@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Tuesday, November 16, 2004 8:16 PM

Subject: [Vaughn_Monroe_] Vaughn's Best Album

I was waiting for the Giants game to start and tuned into the final
minutes of "Diehard 2" just as they were playing  Vaughn
Monroe's "Let it Snow." This version is superior to the original.
Vaughn sings by himselt, without vocal backup and sounds really good.

I checked out the "There I Sing/Swing It Again" album (I have both
the LP and the CD reissue). "Let  it Snow" and all the other songs
are really good, with great new arrangements.  I think Vaughn had
grown as a singer over gthe years. I believe the album came out in
1958.
The liner notes are concise and accurate, except they spell Marian's
(Mrs. Monroe) name as Marion.  The liner mentions that "Rain" was a
forgotten song he recorded with Larry Funk and "You Were Meant For
Me" was included especially for Marian.
The notes also confirm that the band's last appearance was at West
Point. They also confirm that "Racing with the Moon" was a million
seller.  That fact is often overlooked because it was not an
immediate megahit, but rather had a steady sale through the years. I
remember a report on the radio about Vaughn receiving a Gold record
for the song, probably in the late forties.
This is my favorite album, with "Dance With Me" a close second.
Herb Wasserman

I was waiting for the Giants game to start and tuned into the final
minutes of "Diehard 2" just as they were playing  Vaughn
Monroe's "Let it Snow." This version is superior to the original.
Vaughn sings by himselt, without vocal backup and sounds really good.

I checked out the "There I Sing/Swing It Again" album (I have both
the LP and the CD reissue). "Let  it Snow" and all the other songs
are really good, with great new arrangements.  I think Vaughn had
grown as a singer over gthe years. I believe the album came out in
1958.
The liner notes are concise and accurate, except they spell Marian's
(Mrs. Monroe) name as Marion.  The liner mentions that "Rain" was a
forgotten song he recorded with Larry Funk and "You Were Meant For
Me" was included especially for Marian.
The notes also confirm that the band's last appearance was at West
Point. They also confirm that "Racing with the Moon" was a million
seller.  That fact is often overlooked because it was not an
immediate megahit, but rather had a steady sale through the years. I
remember a report on the radio about Vaughn receiving a Gold record
for the song, probably in the late forties.
This is my favorite album, with "Dance With Me" a close second.
Herb Wasserman

I remember seeing a small blurb from Rebublic about "The Professor
and the Coed."  They gave no background information.  I have to dig
through my stuff to see if i can find he co-star.
Herb

HI HERB
WONDERING;   WAS THAT MOVIE YOU MENTIONED MR. MONROE WAS TO DO NEXT
ACTUALLY A REMAKE OF THE "BACHELOR AND THE CO ED?"? THINK THAT WAS
THE TITLE OF THE MOVIE WITH CARY GRANT AND SHIRLEY TEMPLE.
WILL TRY TO GET TO THAT PIZZERIA IN OHIO.  HAVE TO SCOUR MY FILES
SWEAR I HAVE A COLLAGE FROM THERE (or another eatery) OF STARS THAT
WERE PRINTED RIGHT ON THEIR MENU. THOUGHT MR. MONROE WAS ON IT TOO.
THIS ONE WILL TAKE ME A WHILE TO CHECK ON. HAVE SEVEN BRIMMING
VOLUMES OF ITEMS I PRINTED AND MIGHT HAVE SENT TO CLAIRE FOR VMAS
USE.
TIL NEXT TIME
MY BEST TO YOU AND ALL,
JERRY F

That was a very good research job, Jerry.  Too bad there isn't more
info around on Kenley.
By the way, you can get DVD copies of the Vaughn Monroe westernson
the peedee website I mentioned in my previous post.  Now that I have
a DVD player, I think I will order the two.
Vaughn Monroe was scheduled to do a movie titled "The Professor and
the Coed," but the project was cancelled. I'm not sure who the
costar was supposed to be. I believe he was originaly supposed to do
six films for Republic, but these contracts usually have escape
clauses































i believe

HI GANG,
AN ARTICLE BY PETER FILICHIA IS AVAILABLE VIA HIS 'TAKING STOCK'ON
THE THEATRE MANIA.COM SITE.   TO OBTAIN IT USE YAHOO SEARCH;  KENLEY
PLAYERS DAYTON OHIO     ONCE YOU GET THE LIST SCROLL DOWN TO #4
THEATER NEWS.   THIS ARTICLE HAS NO MENTION OF MR. MONROE, BUT GIVES
AN QUITE A HISTORY OF THE GROUP AND STARS THAT APPEARED IN ITS
PRODUCTIONS. AS HERB POINTS OUT, MR. MONROE WAS IN VERY GOOD
COMPANY. WONDER IF THE LOCAL PAPER HAS A REVIEW OF THE PRODUCTION.
IT ALSO MENTIONS A PIZZERIA , MARIAN S, THAT IS ACTUALLY IN A
CENTERVILLE OHIO SHOPPING CENTER. THEY HAVE A LARGE COLLECTION OF
MEMORABILIA THAT PETE MENTIONS.  TRIED TO GET THAT FACILITY ON LINE,
BUT IT ISN T SERVICED BY SERVER I WENT THROUGH.
HOPE YOU ENJOY THE ARTICLE.
ALSO HERB CHECK OUT #1 OF THE SEARCH GROUP, THE AXE FILES. THIS LADY
HAD ONE EXTENSIVE LIST OF PERFORMANCES ALL OVER THE COUNTRY. THINK
SHE WAS FOLLOWING A RELATIVES CAREER.
THE SITE FOR MR. MONROE S VHS VERSIONS OF FILMS ,THAT HERB POINTED
OUT , WAS ONE I USED TO OBTAIN A COPY.  VERY NICE PEOPLE TO DEAL
WITH. ENJOY MARIAN. A SHAME MR. MONROE DIDN T MAKE A THIRD FILM,
WHICH WASN T GOING TO BE A WESTERN. I THINK HE DID VERY WELL IN THE
TWO THAT DID COME OUT THAT YOU REQUESTED.
BEST REGARDS,
JERRY F

The Kenley Players operated from 1957 to 1995. A large number of
famous players appeared over the years. Vaughn and Constance Moore
were in very good company. The group apparantly performed in Ohio
and Michigan. John Kenley was recently hornored by Actors Equity
with a lifetime membership.
Herb Wasserman

For reasonably priced copies of Singing Guns and Toughest Man In
Arizona try Comet Video:
http://www.peedeeworld.net/~cometvideo/home.htm

Long winded address, but they have an big list of "B" westerns.
It's run by a western movie collector.  I almost went to their movie
festival last month, but opted to go to Boston for a few days
instead.
Herb Wasserman

HI CLAIRE,
JUST BROWSED AND A DVD VERSION OF 'SINGING GUNS' IS AVAILABLE FOR
MARIAN TO BID ON ON EBAY.  STARTING PRICE IS 19.99  AND WILL RUN FOR
THE NEXT SIX DAYS.IF MORE AVENUES OF AVAILABILITY COME UP I, AS I M
SURE HERB WILL ADVISE VIA THIS BOARD.
BEST REGARDS TO ALL
GERALDNICK
TO GET TO BIDDING AREA TRY;  E BAY, AUCTION,BUY IT NOW, VAUGHN MONROE

--- In Vaughn_Monroe_@yahoogroups.com, Jgower528@a... wrote:
> Hi,
> Does anyone know of a source for either of the two
> western films, SINGING GUNS, or TOUGHEST MAN IN
> TOMBSTONE COUNTY  (?) I think.  Marian  Gower

Keep your eye on eBay, Marian. Also, Critics Choice used to have
these two films commercially available on VHS. (Correct me if I'm
wrong Herb and Jerry!)

Claire

P.S. The title of the second film is "Toughest Man in Arizona"

HI GANG,
HERB WASSERMAN, A LONGTIME MEMBER OF VMAS, HAS BEEN A LONG TIME
SOURCE OF INFO ON MR. MONROE AND HIS CREW.  I THINK HE LIVES IN THE
NYC LIBRARY, THE RCA RADIO AND VIDEO MUSEUM, LINCOLN CENTER, AND
OTHER SOURCES OF THAT TYPE ALWAYS SEARCHING.
EARLY LAST YEAR, HE COMMENTED ON MEETING CONSTANCE MOORE, THE
ACTRESS, AT A GATHERING IN HOLLYWOOD CA. A HERMIT HERB IS NOT.
SHE COMMENTED TO HIM SHE HAS BEEN IN A BROADWAY PLAY WITH MR.
MONROE.
HERB NEVER GOT THE DETAILS OF WHERE OR WHEN, BUT IT WAS ASSUMED BY ME
(AND YOU KNOW WHAT DOING THAT OFTEN COMES TO) IT WAS DONE IN
CALIFORNIA.
HERB AGAIN WENT TO A GATHERING IN CA, THIS YEAR, BUT NO CONSTANCE
MOORE IN ATTENDANCE TO FILL IN THE FACTS.
THIS WEEK ON E BAY, A SELLER HAS AN ITEM  ON AUCTION  THAT PROCLAIMS
INDEED MR. MONROE DID APPEAR  IN THE SIXTIES   WITH THE HENLEY STOCK
GROUP (CIRCA 1965 TO 1995) OF DAYTON OHIO  WITH CONSTANCE MOORE
IN "ANNIE GET YOUR GUN".
HERB, AGAIN MY HAT IS OFF TO YOU (I DO WEAR ONE CONSTANTLY).
HAVE YOU GOT SOME MORE ITEMS WE CAN SEARCH FOR?
HOPE TO SEE YOU AND OTHERS AT THE JANUARY 05 VMAS GATHERING IN
FLORIDA. TAKE CARE.
BEST REGARDS TO YOU ALL,
GERALDNICK

James Stewart has kindly passed along another source for the
movie "Carnegie Hall," which features a cameo appearance by Vaughn
Monroe:

Bel Canto Society: Browsing #791 Carnegie Hall (NTSC or PAL VHS)
Pinza, Heifetz, Stokowski, more. Deluxe slv. Reg.$24.95, SALE

Claire

Jack Roden has submitted a photo to share with the group. I have
uploaded it to a folder called "Jack's Album" in the Photos section.
Just click on "Photos" in the menu bar on the left side of the
screen. You can view a thumbnail of Jack's picture by clicking on the
folder. Then, click on the picture to see the larger version of the
photo.

Members can create their own folders and upload pictures to them
(subject to moderator approval of course :-)

Hope you enjoy this new feature of our YahooGroups discussion forum.

Claire

I remember Ziggy Talent being interviewed twenty some odd years ago
on WNYC radio in New York, and he talked about the band's last
performance being at West Point.
Also, on the VMAS Moommaids web page, Dee Laws of the Moonmaids
mentions the West Point show, which she thinks was broadcast on the
Vaughn's Camel Caravan show.

There is a memory that has been haunting me for a long, long time. In
a performance at West Point, N.Y. for the Corps of Cadets Vaughn
Monroe announced that this would be the last as the Vaughn Monroe
Band.

Have searched and been unable to locate any publication to confirm
this memory.  Does such a publication exist? If so, how might I go
about locating it to quote from?

Dear Marian,

Thanks so much. I will submit these to Leo's Lyrics and email them to
the person who inquired about them.

Sincerely,
Claire

--- In Vaughn_Monroe_@yahoogroups.com, Jgower528@a... wrote:
> Hi,
> I have it on records, if all else fails.  Let me know and
> I can listen to it and type it for you.
> Did you know that there were two versions of Racing
> with the Moon?  Very similar...just 2 different lines, but
> interesting.  See you in January.  Marian Gower

Marian,

If you would be so inclined and have the time--that would be great!
If you don't feel comfortable submitting it to the online lyrics
databases mentioned in my previous email, I can do that for you.

Yes, I think I did know about the two separate versions. Again, check
out the words at: http://www.leoslyrics.com/artists/2501/

Claire

Hi,

Anybody have the words to "The Maharajah of Magador?" Two people
emailed the website asking for words to this song. If you have the
sheet music and wouldn't mind spending the time to type it up, submit
it to Leo's Lyrics or Lyricsfind (found in the Links section of our
VMAS website). Then we can refer future inquiries to those spots. I
did "Racing with the Moon" that way several months ago (maybe its
been a year now--time flies).

Claire

Good to hear from you Jerry.  Hope you can make it to Florida.
Glad you're continuing with your project.
I'm looking up some old charts at the New York Public Library
performing arts branch at Lincoln Center.  There's not a real lot
there that I have not seen before.  They have a copy of the Joyce
Discography.
The Cinecon film fest in Hollywood was pretty good.  They had Roger
Corman,Audrey Totter Betty Garrett and Gene Barry there as guests.
They were hoping that William Shatner would show up, as the Corman
movie they showed starred Shatner, but he was busing filming "Boston
Legal."  I was hoping that Constance Moore would be there as I would
have liked to ask her about her stage appearance with Vaughn Monroe,
but she was not around. (A number of old stars show up at the
banquet they hold).
Claire's done a great job.getting this site.
Herb

Jerry,

Artist Direct told me that it would be unlikely that those bulletin
boards will be back soon because they had problems with their server
and don't know that they want to make an investment to be able to
continue that service. Here is their response:

not sure if they are coming back or not. very sorry.
a server went down and we don't have the resources right now to get
them back up

I hope you all can get used to this message forum and it proves to be
a big success. One drawback is that you can't post messages by topic
and have replies nested within the main message. The messages are
posted in the order received no matter what they refer to, so on busy
boards it gets a little messy/confusing.

Wrapping text is a good idea. Otherwise it just goes on and on in a
single line.

The invites for the gathering went out in the mail yesterday.

Claire

HI VMAS FANS
MAN, THIS WAS  FOR ME ANYHOW  A REAL CHALLENGE TO GET ON AND
UNDERSTAND. THANKS VERY MUCH CLAIRE FOR YOUR FEEDBACK  ON E MAIL
LINE LETTING ME KNOW HOW I WAS DOING.
STILL NOT SURE HOW ALL THIS WORKS.  GUESS TOO USED TO OLD BULLETIN
BOARD WHICH APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN SIMPLER TO GET ON AND UTILIZE.
AM READY TO RESUME   ACTUALLY START OVER   WITH MY GOAL OF
PUBLISHING ALL THE LIST OF ALL COMMERCIALLY RECORDED RECORDS BY MR.
MONROE UNDER ALL LABELS   SO FAR IT CONSISTS OF 40 PAGES.  SOME
TITLES HAVE MUCHO RECORDINGS THAT THEY WERE PRESENTED IN, WHILE
OTHERS MAY JUST HAVE ONE APPEARANCE ON A RECORDED VERSION. MAYBE
WILL DO 5 A WEEK.
PERSONAL BUSINESS AND INVOLVEMENTS PREVENT ME FROM ONE A DAY. MAYBE
THAT TOO. WE LL SEE.
WAITING FOR NOTICE OF OUR JANUARY 2005 GATHERING YOU RE SENDING OUT
CLAIRE. THINK THIS ONE IS THE ONE FOR ME TO ATTEND. FOUND OUT THAT
IN DOING RESEARCH  OTHER ALTERNATIVES AVAILABLE FOR ME TO TAKE
FLIGHT FROM NEWARK LIBERTY INSTEAD OF ATLANTIC CITY. AM WORKING ON
THAT TOO.
AM LOOKING AT THE BASE OF THIS MESSAGE CENTER AND SEE SOMETHING
LABLED 'WRAP MESSAGE TEXT'  ANYONE KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS???? GOING TO
VENTURE OUT AND TRY IT. IT S ALREADY CHECKED BY GOOGLE.

HERB, HOPE YOU ARE WELL AND LOOKING FORWARD TO SOME MORE CHAT VIA
THIS.THOUGH NOT STRICTLY RELATED TO MR. MONROE,  MAYBE YOUR LATEST
TRIP TO HOLLYWOOD LAND. SOUNDED VERY INTERESTING.

OTHERS OF YOU PLEASE JOIN IN, ESPECIALLY THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE NEW TO
THE VAUGHN MONROE APPRECIATION SOCIETY (VMAS)
OK LET S SEE IF THIS WORKS.  HOPE WE CAN VIEW ALL ITEMS POSTED AS
WAS POSSIBLE ON OLD BULLETIN BOARD (WHICH IS STILL BEING
RECONSTRUCTED)  TIL NEXT TIME
BEST REGARD TO ALL
JERRY F

Since the ArtistDirect (imusic) bulletin board went down and there
doesn't seem to be any promising indication that they will get the
boards back up, I have started a Vaughn Monroe Group on Yahoogroups.
While this isn't truly a bulletin board--it's more of a group
discussion forum--I didn't want to wait until I had the know-how to
create our own bulletin board on the website itself. Yahoogroups
seems to be a popular forum for many other artists as well. I hope
this serves our purpose too.

Claire