Richard Himber was born as Herbert Richard Imber in Newark, New Jersey to the owner of a chain of meat stores.
13 Facts About Richard Himber
1.
2.
Richard Himber's parents gave him violin lessons, but when they found him performing in a seedy Newark dive, they took the instrument away from him and sent him to military school.
3.
In 1915, he stole away into New York City, where Sophie Tucker heard him play and hired him as a novelty act to play with her and the Five Kings of Syncopation where Himber was the highlight of the cabaret act.
4.
Richard Himber worked his way through Vaudeville and down Tin Pan Alley.
5.
Richard Himber managed Rudy Vallee's orchestra service, which sent out bands for private parties and society functions.
6.
Later that year, Richard Himber finally formed an orchestra of his own, parlaying a gig at New York's Essex House Hotel into national NBC radio exposure.
7.
In 1933 Richard Himber made his first records, for Vocalion under the name "Dick Himber," which intimates always called him.
8.
Richard Himber led one of the most sophisticated "sweet" dance bands of the era, featuring Joey Nash as his vocalist, who was replaced by Stuart Allen.
9.
Richard Himber was the publisher of the R-H Log, a weekly survey of the most popular tunes on radio and television.
10.
Richard Himber, always known for his sense of humor, took careful notice of the gimmicks and arrangements employed by his fellow bandleaders, and then satirized them.
11.
Famous celebrity victims of Richard Himber's pranks included Ben Blue, the chanteuse Hildegarde and Charles Laughton.
12.
Fond of the grand gesture, Richard Himber could be as generous as he was unpredictable.
13.
Richard Himber married only in his forties, to prominent model Nina McDougall, with whom he had a son.