1. Gaetano Alberto "Guy" Lombardo was a Canadian and American bandleader, violinist, and hydroplane racer whose unique "sweet jazz" style remained popular with audiences for nearly five decades.
32 Facts About Guy Lombardo
1. 2.
Guy Lombardo's parents were Italian immigrants: Gaetano Alberto who was born in Lipari, Italy, and Angelina Lombardo.
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Guy Lombardo encouraged four of his five young sons to study musical instruments so that they could serve as his accompanists.
4.
The Guy Lombardo quartet made its first significant debut at an outdoor dance pavilion in Grand Bend, Ontario, during the summer of 1919.
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Guy Lombardo's ensemble left the Cleveland area in 1927 for Chicago, where it appeared at the Granada Cafe and broadcast on the radio station WBBM.
6.
Between 1927 and 1931 Guy Lombardo made forty five recordings on 78's for the Columbia label.
7.
Total sales from Guy Lombardo's recordings exceeded 300 million copies by the early 1970s and supported his reputation as the leader of the most popular dance band of his era.
8.
Between 1941 and 1948, Guy Lombardo's sister Rose Marie, the youngest of all seven Guy Lombardo siblings, joined the band as its first female vocalist.
9.
In 1929, Guy Lombardo began a series of appearances at the Roosevelt Grill in the Roosevelt Hotel which lasted for over three decades.
10.
Guy Lombardo performed in Los Angeles during the 1930s, and became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1938.
11.
Guy Lombardo continued to tour in major cities within both Canada and the United States after leaving the Roosevelt Hotel in 1962.
12.
Guy Lombardo's band enjoyed remarkable broad appeal which crossed racial boundaries.
13.
Guy Lombardo is perhaps best remembered for his big band remote broadcasts which were carried on several national radio and television networks for nearly fifty years.
14.
Time magazine even reported that the American public would simply not believe it was New Year's Day until Guy Lombardo heralded its arrival from the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.
15.
In 1954, Lombardo briefly hosted a half-hour syndicated series called The Guy Lombardo Show, and in 1956 Lombardo hosted a show on CBS for three months called Guy Lombardo's Diamond Jubilee.
16.
At the express invitation of Robert Moses, Guy Lombardo served for two decades, as the impresario for numerous summer stock revivals of leading Broadway musicals at the Jones Beach Theater on the south shore of New York's Long Island.
17.
Guy Lombardo enlisted talented actors from the Broadway stage including William Gaxton and Arthur Treacher for his production of "Paradise Island" in 1961 and the film actor Jules Munshin for his 1960 production of "Hit the Deck".
18.
Guy Lombardo often faced many challenges in the course of producing extravaganzas in such an outdoor venue during the summer season.
19.
Guy Lombardo was an active nautical enthusiast and participated in the sport of Step Boat speedboat racing.
20.
Guy Lombardo subsequently achieved victory in several other important races including: the Ford Memorial competition, President's Cup as well as the Silver Cup in 1952.
21.
Guy Lombardo unveiled a robust line of fiberglass boats in 1958.
22.
Later in life, Guy Lombardo retired near the seashore at his home on the south shore of New York's Long Island in Freeport, where he docked his speedboats:Tempo, Tempo VI, and Tempo VII.
23.
On November 5,1977, Guy Lombardo died of a heart attack.
24.
Guy Lombardo is interred at the Pinelawn Memorial Park in East Farmingdale, New York.
25.
Guy Lombardo was featured on a postage stamp issued on December 17,1999, as part of Canada Post's Millennium Collection.
26.
Guy Lombardo has three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles.
27.
The Guy Lombardo Society was created to preserve the music and history of Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians.
28.
Lebert Guy Lombardo's children have an extensive collection of artifacts, including photographs, record albums, sheet music, awards, and the band's framed first paycheck from 1918 in their homes and storage units in Fort Myers and Sanibel, Florida.
29.
Guy Lombardo was cited for his skillful use of muted drums, trumpets and clarinets, bright tempos and smooth, flowing melodic lines.
30.
Guy Lombardo adopted the use of the tuba instead of the double bass in a harmonic role.
31.
Nevertheless, even Guy Lombardo's detractors praised his orchestra for the skill and musicianship of its members.
32.
Guy Lombardo's band was highly respected throughout the industry for its professionalism.