June 9: Happy Birthday, Fred Waring

What does a famous American iconic blender and a famous bandleader have in common? That will become evident soon.

Fred Waring was born in 1900 and became one of America’s most well-beloved bandleaders and tv/radio personalities.

His band, “Waring Pennsyvanians” performed during the 1920’s for Victor Records and held incredible acclaim on the radio. He later added to the band by promoting glee style singing with the Robert Shaw Chorale through the 1930’s.

One of his signature aspects was that tuxedos were posh as the uniform of the chorale. His band was a huge promoter for war bonds during WWII which travel across the bulk of the contiguous United States.

He became a hotel owner when he purchased an Inn and named it the Shawnee Inn. When approached by an inventor to back a new creation of a food blender,

Waring jumped at the opportunity with the proviso his name be on the consumer device. Radio was not the only venue to have Fred Waring’s talents presented.

By the late 1940’s, Waring signed on with CBS and hosted a program, The Fred Waring Show. The choral style of music stayed put on the program for many years until the adolescent crowd wanted a hipper tone, so he combined chorale with the new music and was a hit for a season.

Waring was also a collector of comics and hosted a number of parties and shows that brought together the great talent of the time in comic art to showcase their creations. Fred Waring passed away in 1984. Thanks to Mr Waring, tuxedos never went out of style.

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