Paul Whiteman

Known for

Popular titles

Biography

A closer look

Read full biography

Paul Whiteman began his musical career as a viola player for the San Francisco Symphony. He enlisted in the Navy during World War I, and his musical abilities resulted in the Navy putting him in charge of his own band. After the war he moved to New York in 1920, where he recorded his first hit, Whispering/The Japanese Sandman. It sold more than two million copies, making Whiteman was an instant star. In 1924 he introduced the George Gershwin classic Rhapsody in Blue, which became the band's signature song. Whiteman had the foresight to hire some of the best jazz musicians of the era, including Red Nichols, Frankie Trumbauer, Tommy Dorsey and Bix Beiderbecke. Bing Crosby got his start with Whiteman in 1929, in a trio called the Rhythm Boys. Whiteman's band continued its run into the 1930s, but toward the end of the decade their popularity began to wane, and in the early 1940s Whiteman took a job as musical director for the American Broadcasting Co., a position he kept into the '60s. He would put together his band every so often during that period, and in the early 1960s they even managed to secure engagements in Las Vegas, after which Whiteman retired. Date of Birth 28 March 1890, Denver, Colorado, USA Date of Death 29 December 1967, Doylestown, Pennsylvania, USA (heart attack)

Filmography

Movies and shows, newest first

1959
The Big Party
TV show Self
1955
America's Greatest Bands
TV show
1950
The Golden Twenties
Movie Self (archive footage)
1949
The Lambertville Story
Movie Paul Whiteman
1948
The Ed Sullivan Show
TV show Self
1947
The Fabulous Dorseys
Movie Paul Whiteman
1945
Rhapsody in Blue
Movie Paul Whiteman
1944
Atlantic City
Movie Himself
1941
Birth of the Blues
Movie Self (archive footage)
1940
Strike Up the Band
Movie Paul Whiteman
1938
Hollywood Hotel
Movie Producer at Callahan's Drive In (uncredited)
1935
Thanks a Million
Movie Himself - Bandleader
1933
I Know Everybody and Everybody's Racket
Movie Self / Orchestra Leader (as Paul Whiteman and Orchestra)
1932
Broadway Gossip No.2
Movie
1930
King of Jazz
Movie Paul Whiteman
1930
The Voice of Hollywood No. 3
Movie Himself