1. Benjamin Anzelevitz, known professionally as Ben Bernie, was an American jazz violinist, bandleader, and radio personality, often introduced as "The Old Maestro".
14 Facts About Ben Bernie
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Ben Bernie was noted for his showmanship and memorable bits of snappy dialogue, being part of the first generation of "stars" of American popular music, alongside other artists such as Paul Whiteman, Ted Lewis and Al Jolson.
3.
Ben Bernie attended Columbia University and the New York College of Music.
4.
Ben Bernie returned to CBS in 1938, sponsored by US Rubber.
5.
Ben Bernie appeared in four feature films Shoot the Works, Stolen Harmony, Wake Up and Live, and Love and Hisses.
6.
Ben Bernie's theme was "It's a Lonesome Old Town" and his signature trademark, "yowsah, yowsah, yowsah", became a national catchphrase.
7.
Announcers for Ben Bernie's programs included Harlow Wilcox, Harry von Zell and Bob Brown.
8.
Ben Bernie's orchestra recorded throughout the 1920s and 1930s on Vocalion, Brunswick, Columbia, Decca, and ARC.
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Ben Bernie was the co-composer of this jazz standard, which became the theme song of the Harlem Globetrotters.
10.
On December 24,1915, Ben Bernie married Rose Harris in Manhattan, New York.
11.
Ben and Rose Bernie separated in September 1931 and divorced September 1935.
12.
In October 1935, Ben Bernie remarried Dorothy P Wesley in Miami, Florida.
13.
Ben Bernie died from a pulmonary embolism in October 1943, aged 52, and was buried in Mount Hebron Cemetery, in Queens, New York.
14.
Ben Bernie has a star at 6280 Hollywood Boulevard in the Radio section of the Hollywood Walk of Fame.