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Alex Trebek Will Farrell Joe Farrell

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Can you imagine if his name had been Beauregard Graham Bell? We'd be listening to a tritone dial tone. ← The Devil's dial tones. ← Area code 666.

(sung to the Indiana Jones theme) It's the box set we wait for. We're still waiting for the Cellar Door! First a month late, then some more! Oh Vin-cent! Oh Vin-cent! Hey Vin-cent! Don't be such a bore! He's your Uncle, that is true. Did you think that he can't fire you? Mr. Wilburn, don't be blue! Oh Vin-cent! Oh Vin-cent! Hey Vin-cent! We pre-ordered, too! etc.,etc. maybe more to come, or not......

Can you imagine if his name had been Beauregard Graham Bell? We'd be listening to a tritone dial tone.

Did anyone ever notice that the dial tone on a conventional phone is a combination of the pitches F and A? Since I don't have perfect pitch, I use that as a reference sometimes (when I'm not near a piano or my horn).

I played a show with Lou Rawls tonight, and he sounded great. At the age of 70 that trademark baritone voice is right there in all of its soulful splendor. Unfortunately, he looks to be in very poor health. I'm not sure what is going on and I don't want to speculate, but he has lost a LOT of weight and is looking very frail. He's never been a big man, but I've always thought of him as robust and vigorous. He had to cut the set short when he started feeling bad very suddenly. I'm supposed to do another show with him on Saturday- I hope he feels up to it. I kind of forgot just how many great songs he sang. He has so much soul he's one of those guys who could sing the phone book and make it sound good (ala Barry White). Anyway, feel free to post your thoughts here. And let's send him some love and good thoughts and hope for the best. Paul

Here's a lead for you..... EDIT: Another thing, perhaps you and Duke City should hook up. Just trying to be helpful.

You know, Rod, I just sit and stare at your avatar and crack up. Evan's (Bright Moments) cracks me up too. I must be losing* it. *not "loosing"

I hear Hung likes to hang.

If this is the one you're talking about, you're thinking of Skip Martin.

Is that "bitch" in the "good" or "bad" sense? Which bitch is Skitch? Did Skitch itch to pitch a bitch? Is there a story behind this? Just curious.

That guy Ron Jeremy is sure hanged.

Nice website, Johnny. I didn't know you studied at Glassboro (a.k.a. Rowan). I interviewed for a job there a few years back (didn't get it). Did you get an opportunity to work/hang with Manny Albam at all? BTW, you might want to fix the spelling of the word "college" on your bio, lest anyone questions your academic achievements. (Johnny B.) Have a great gig! I hope to hear the band live sometime.

BTW, there's another candidate for the "greatest jazz name" thread. R.I.P.

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) - Skitch Henderson, the Grammy-winning conductor who lent his musical expertise to Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby before founding the New York Pops and becoming the first "Tonight Show" bandleader, died Tuesday. He was 87. Henderson died at his home in New Milford of natural causes, said Barbara Burnside, director of marketing and public relations at New Milford Hospital. Born in England, Lyle Russell Cedric Henderson moved to the United States in the 1930s, eking out a living as a pianist, playing vaudeville and movie music in Minnesota and Montana roadhouses. He got his big break in 1937, when he filled in for a sick pianist touring with Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney. When the tour wrapped up in Chicago, he used the original pianist's ticket and went to Hollywood. There he joined the music department at MGM and played piano for Bob Hope's "The Pepsodent Show." His friendship with Hope put him in touch with other stars of the day, including Crosby, who became a mentor to Henderson. He studied with the noted composer Arnold Schoenberg, and Henderson's talented ear brought him renown from some of the era's most successful musicians. "I could sketch out a score in different keys, a new way each time," Henderson said earlier this year. That quicksilver ability earned him the nickname "the sketch kid," which Crosby urged him to adapt to "Skitch." It stuck. During World War II, Henderson flew for both the Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Corps. At his estate in New Milford, which he shared with his wife, Ruth, Henderson kept a collection of aviation memorabilia. Even at 87, he had said he hoped to fly the Atlantic once more. After the war, Henderson toured as Sinatra's musical director and lived what he called a "gypsy lifestyle," touring the country with various bands. It was Sinatra's phone call that lured Henderson to New York. "Frank said, 'I'm moving the "Lucky Strike Show" to New York. Get rid of those gypsies and get back here where you belong,'" Henderson recalled in 1985. He served as musical director for the "Lucky Strike" radio show and "The Philco Hour" with Crosby. And when NBC moved to television, the studio brought Henderson along as musical director. In 1954, NBC pegged him as the bandleader for Steve Allen's "Tonight Show," which brought Henderson into the nation's living rooms every night. Even as the hosts changed from Allen to Jack Paar to Johnny Carson, Henderson was a constant. He founded the New York Pops in 1983, using popular tunes to make orchestral music exciting. "People come to hear music that's accessible to them - old songs that are powerful and don't go away," he said. Even in his late 80s, Henderson maintained a tireless work schedule as music director for the Pops, where he regularly served as conductor. He also was a frequent guest conductor at a number of orchestras around the world. "I watch the public like a hawk. If I see boredom, I worry," Henderson said. "You can tell by the applause: There's perfunctory applause, there's light applause, and then there's real applause. When it's right, applause sounds like vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce."

1934 was a loooooong time ago.

Mulligan's ankles never affected me that way! ← That's 'cause he wears kick-ass socks! (that's Zoot he's talking to BTW)

...and don't forget: + =